El Niño Helps Alleviate Dry Conditions Across SE

Clint ThompsonAlabama, Drought, Florida, Georgia

By Clint Thompson The El Niño weather pattern this winter has helped alleviate most of the dry conditions across the Southeast (SE). According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, abnormally dry conditions are mostly present in areas across North Alabama and North Georgia. Abnormal and moderate conditions are also observed along the west coast of Florida. Dry conditions stretch as far …

UF Tomato Breeder Discuss New Role at GCREC

Clint ThompsonFlorida, Tomatoes

Jessica Chitwood-Brown is the new tomato breeder at the University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC). Chitwood-Brown coordinates the lab where she earned Ph.D. and conducted her post-doctoral research, in the northern end of Florida tomato country. She’s taken the position of her doctoral adviser, Sam Hutton, at the GCREC.  “I really admire Sam, so I have a …

UF/IFAS Plants Grown in Space Flown Home

Clint ThompsonFlorida

ET may have phoned home, but plants from a University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) experiment were recently flown home from the International Space Station (ISS). Plants, specifically Arabidopsis thaliana, grown from seeds by astronauts in the ISS were harvested, launched on a return capsule that touched down to Earth and shipped to eager researchers at …

El Niño Impact: What Blueberry Diseases are Most Concerning for Growers This Year?

Clint ThompsonBlueberries, Florida, Weather

By Clint Thompson The excessive wet weather associated with El Niño this winter has provided ideal conditions for blueberry diseases to pop up. Phil Harmon, professor and Extension plant pathologist at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), highlighted the two disease concerns growers should be wary of heading into harvest season. They are botrytis gray …

AgNet Media Set to Host Florida Citrus Show

Clint ThompsonFlorida

By Clint Thompson Citrus and specialty crop producers should mark their calendars for the upcoming Florida Citrus Show, scheduled for Wednesday, April 3 in Fort Pierce, Florida. This will mark the second year that AgNet Media will host the event, which will once again feature a tailgating theme with vendors in attendance, along with general and educational breakout sessions featuring …

Neopestalotiopsis: The Latest Tips in Managing Strawberry Disease

Clint ThompsonFlorida, Strawberries

By Clint Thompson Neopestalotiopsis disease in strawberries remains a concern for Southeast growers. Natalia Peres, professor of plant pathology at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Gulf Coast Research and Education Center, provided producers tips on how to control the disease during her presentation at the Southeast Regional Fruit and Vegetable Conference in Savannah, Georgia. …

Blueberry Water Needs Highlighted During Southeast Regional

Clint ThompsonBlueberries, Florida, Georgia

By Clint Thompson Water requirements for blueberries was highlighted during the Southeast (SE) Regional Fruit and Vegetable Conference. Wes Porter, University of Georgia Extension Precision Ag and Irrigation Specialist, focused his presentation on water needs for one of the Southeast’s most important fruit crops. “In the springtime when we start getting ready to put on buds and flowers, our water …

McAvoy Earned Place in Florida Ag Hall of Fame

Clint ThompsonFlorida

You ask most Southwest Florida farmers who they turn to for science-based agricultural information, and they’ll say, “Gene McAvoy.” It’s no accident the growers know him. “When I first started to work in Southwest Florida, I would just ride around and cold-call visit farmers,” said McAvoy, now a University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Extension agent …

Peak Season for Florida Strawberries

Clint ThompsonFlorida, Strawberry

By Clint Thompson South Florida strawberries are almost in peak season. For one grower, his volume should be in place to satisfy the potential increased demand. “We’ve got a lot of fruit sitting out there. I’ve probably got 2,000 flats sitting on the bush right now, sitting there, per acre,” said Matt Parke, farm manager of Parkesdale Farms in Plant …

Commissioner Simpson Announces Approval of First Loan for Farmers Impacted by Idalia

Clint ThompsonFlorida

Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson announced on Friday, Jan. 26 the approval of the first Hurricane Idalia recovery loan through the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Agriculture and Aquaculture Producers Natural Disaster Recovery Loan Program. Simpson and legislative leaders announced the launch of two first-of-their-kind agricultural disaster recovery programs with more than $112 million in funding to …