GAINESVILLE, FL (UF/IFAS) — Hurricane Dorian began its much-anticipated northward swing Tuesday morning and is now expected to skirt Florida’s Atlantic coast, threatening a dozen coastal counties that are home to 9 million residents and more than 770,000 acres of agricultural land. Though most agricultural production in these counties occurs 10 miles or more inland, crops could be lost to …
Keeping an Eye on Dorian
Update Sept. 3, 2019: After being stalled over the Bahamas for the majority of the holiday weekend, Hurricane Dorian is expected to start moving north today, still staying off the east coast of Florida. Gary England from the University of Florida released another update this morning about how the storm may impact northeast Florida as it slowly starts heading north: …
Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Censky on the Tomato Suspension Agreement
Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Steve Censky recently visited a California winery to discuss the importance of ratifying the U.S-Mexico-Canada Agreement. In a phone interview with AgNet West’s Taylor Hillman before the event, Censky discussed the recent approval of a new tomato suspension agreement. Hear Censky’s full comments: Sponsored ContentNuseed Carinata Covers New GroundNovember 1, 2024TriEst Ag Group: Partners in ProfitabilityApril …
Water Issues: Ag Has Allies
By Ernie Neff “I think that the ag industry has a number of allies within the regulatory arena,” says Rich Budell, who moderated a panel of Florida regulators at Citrus Expo. Budell, now a consultant, spent 31 years working on water issues with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS). The panelists were Chris Pettit, director of agricultural …
Creating Blackberry Varieties for Florida
The team at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC) works on a multitude of crops historically grown in the Central Florida region. However, GCREC researchers have also been dedicating their time to finding new alternative crops for Florida. One of those crops is blackberries. Zhanao Deng, professor of ornamental …
Factors to Consider Before Adopting Alternative Crops
By Karla Arboleda Choosing to grow an alternative crop could prove to be a beneficial move for growers, but there are some factors that must be considered first. From macadamias to avocados, the worthiness of different alternative crops is dependent on several factors. Jose Chaparro, an associate professor at University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences in the …
UF/IFAS Economist: Millions in Agricultural Crops at Risk as Dorian Approaches Florida
If Hurricane Dorian makes landfall mid-way up Florida’s Atlantic Coast – as many models predicted Thursday afternoon – the storm could devastate not only Central Florida tourist destinations, but also the region’s agricultural areas, which include significant acreage devoted to citrus, vegetable, ornamental plant and cattle production. Economists and Extension faculty with the University of Florida Institute of Food and …
More Ways to Manage Fusarium Wilt
By Karla Arboleda Five years ago, there was no solid foundation for managing fusarium wilt in watermelons. Now, researchers have identified several techniques watermelon growers can use to help combat the disease. Nicholas Dufault, associate professor of plant pathology at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), says his research on the pathogen is leading to …
Florida Hemp Diseases on the Horizon
Florida growers are not strangers to dealing with disease, and future hemp growers will be no different. Nicholas Dufault, University of Florida (UF) associate professor of plant pathology, has been working on the UF hemp pilot project to examine what kind of diseases hemp growers could see in the field. He presented his initial findings at a recent hemp workshop …
Sneak Peek: September VSCNews Magazine
The September issue of VSCNews magazine is packed with information ranging from breeding updates to peach production. Florida growers will recognize the man on the cover next month. On July 31, University of Florida (UF) Extension Agent Gene McAvoy retired. The September VSCNews cover story dives deep into McAvoy’s career and tells how he went from world traveler to Florida …