By Clint Thompson A productive 2020-21 strawberry season could entice Florida growers to increase acreage this year. That’s a concern, though, for fellow producer Matt Parke, farm manager of Parkesdale Farms in Plant City, Florida; especially with input costs rising. “Hopefully, people don’t overplant themselves and flood the market. You know when farmers have a good year, they like to …
Plummeting Prices: Central Florida Groves not as Valuable as Used to be
Central Florida grove land sold for about 30% less per net tree acre in 2020 than the year before, according to a firm that sells Florida land. Brian Beasley, senior advisor at SVN Saunders Ralston Dantzler in Lakeland, reported the sales in the firm’s Lay of the Land 2020 Market Report. “We assume most of this decrease (in prices) is …
Florida Tomato Conference in September
By Clint Thompson Registration is under way for the Florida Tomato Conference, scheduled for Sept. 8 at the LaBelle Civic Center in LaBelle, Florida. The annual format will feature industry and research updates in the morning session. Michael Schadler with the Florida Tomato Committee will speak about the state of the industry. Scientists from the University of Florida/IFAS will share …
Pepper Weevil Pointers
By Gene McAvoy The pepper weevil (Anthonomus eugenii) is a key pest of all pepper varieties grown in Florida. Populations build throughout the season and often reach unmanageable numbers in South Florida in the late spring (early fall in North Florida), resulting in crop loss. In South Florida, it is not unusual for growers to terminate older plantings where weevils …
Tomato Producers Be Wary of Fall Diseases
By Clint Thompson Tomato season is here for producers in Florida. Diseases like bacterial leaf spot and target spot should be on the mind of growers preparing their fungicide programs, says Josh Freeman, University of Florida/IFAS Associate Professor in Horticultural Science. “In the fall season we really worry about bacterial leaf spot getting established early just because we’re in a …
What’s the Latest? Upcoming Expo Focuses on Vegetables, Specialty Crops on Aug. 18
By Clint Thompson Registration continues for the upcoming Citrus, Vegetable and Specialty Crop Expo, scheduled for Aug. 17-18 at North Fort Myers, Florida. Those interested in learning more about vegetable and specialty crops are encouraged to attend Thursday’s sessions. Various topics will be discussed. These include Mike Joyner, president of the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association, discussing the impact of …
Update on Tomato Brown Rugose Fruit Virus in Florida
By Ozgur Batuman and Salih Yilmaz Tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV) is a highly contagious, devastating and economically important plant virus. It mainly threatens greenhouse-grown vegetable crops worldwide, especially tomatoes and peppers. ToBRFV is very similar to other tobamoviruses, such as tomato mosaic virus (ToMV) and tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), two tomato-infecting viruses common to most Florida growers. Although …
Wet Summer: Minimal Dry Conditions Reported Across Southeast
Alabama, Florida, Georgia have sufficient moisture and are not reporting any abnormally dry conditions, according to Thursday’s release of the U.S. Drought Monitor. Persistent rainfall has been the dominant story of this year’s summer for most of the Southeast region. Similar conditions are being reported up the East Coast. Only a small portion of Greenville County and Spartanburg County are …
Tomato, Pepper Listening Sessions Scheduled with USDA RMA
Florida and Georgia tomato and pepper producers are invited to listening sessions with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency (RMA). Feedback about potential production and revenue history policy is wanted for both commodities. The fresh market tomato sessions are for growers in South Florida, industry members and regional insurance representatives. The pepper sessions are for fresh market growers …
Planning Ahead: Strawberry Farmer Proactive to Remain Sustainable
By Clint Thompson Strawberry growers need to stay proactive to remain viable and sustainable amid growing challenges throughout the industry. Consider the obstacles that Florida producers like Dustin Grooms must deal with: Imports from other countries continue to flood the U.S. market, driving down prices. The rise of the new Neopestalotiopsis Fruit Rot disease in the last three years has …