By Gary Cooper Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam opened to a packed house in Blountstown, FL late Tuesday afternoon. Area residents participated in a listening session hosted by his department. Reviewing the latest information available regarding damage assessments, Putnam pointed out there has been devastating damage to many crops including some that have no established programs in place to help …
Alabama Extension Puts All Hands on Deck After Michael
Hurricane Michael blew through the Southeastern region in early October. Vegetable growers in Georgia are still suffering from sunburnt peppers, and Florida growers are facing up to 100 percent crop loss. In Alabama, cotton seemed to take the worst hit in the southeastern corner of the state. Hurricane Michael also devastated greenhouses, cucumbers, tomatoes and several Alabama Extension research plots. …
Panhandle Growers See Major Losses from Michael
By Breanna Kendrick Hurricane Michael hit the Florida Panhandle hard. Farmers across this region have lost some, if not all, of their crops. Josh Freeman, associate professor of horticultural sciences at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences North Florida Research and Education Center in Quincy, surveyed the area of Gadsden and Jackson counties for crop damages. …
Georgia Vegetable Grower Discusses Hurricane Damage
Hurricane Michael decimated multiple sectors of Georgia agriculture, ranging from cotton to pecans. One industry that was heavily impacted was vegetables. What was supposed to be a banner fall season for Georgia growers has turned into devastation. Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture Gary Black says that while the economic damages of vegetables are smaller than other commodities like peanuts or cotton, …
Putnam Briefs Pence and Perdue on Initial Agricultural Damage from Hurricane Michael
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Hurricane Michael devastated the Florida Panhandle, and today Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam H. Putnam briefed Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue on the initial agricultural damage assessment. Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture Gary W. Black joined Commissioner Putnam for the briefing. Commissioner Putnam’s statement is below: “Hurricane Michael devastated the Florida Panhandle, and …
Hurricane Florence Damage Protocols
By Breanna Kendrick As Hurricane Florence is knocking on the Carolinas’ doorstep, Tom Dobbins, director of Cooperative Extension Service for Clemson University, has some information to share with South Carolina farmers: “Our agents are prepared to go out and assist the farmers who experience damages from Florence,” he says. Agents will assure proper documentation of hurricane damage is recorded. “It’s …
Tropical Storm Strikes Coastal Pecan Crop
Source: Alabama Farmers Federation A once-promising pecan crop bore the brunt of wind gusts and torrential rain from Tropical Storm Gordon, which downed trees, limbs and ripe pecans when hitting the Gulf Coast Sept. 4. In Baldwin County, the storm dropped nearly 9 inches of rain. Across the bay in Mobile County, rain totals were lower, though wind damage was …
UF Launches One-Stop Resource for Disaster Prep, Recovery
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Floridians preparing for the next Hurricane Irma can visit the University of Florida’s (UF) new disaster website for quick tips, videos and more on how to deal with a natural disaster. Experts encourage users to bookmark the new site, disaster.ifas.ufl.edu, for quick access. “We’ve integrated all our disaster resources so people could find everything in one place, …
Improving Information Collection After a Natural Disaster
By Breanna Kendrick Alan Hodges, an Extension scientist in the Food and Resource Economics Department at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), believes that natural disaster recovery systems must be upgraded. Hodges serves as Extension coordinator in the department and as director of UF’s Economic Impact Analysis program, which conducts sponsored projects for industry organizations …
Beware of Bacterial and Fungal Pathogens in Increased Rainfall
By Breanna Kendrick Nicholas Dufault, assistant professor and Extension agent in the Plant Pathology Department at the University of Florida, researches management of diseases affecting vegetable crop production in Florida. “With all the rainfall, the biggest thing we want to pay attention to is the movement of fungal and bacterial pathogens,” said Dufault. “Fungal and bacterial pathogens will be a …