By Clint Thompson
Initial assessments of Florida blueberry bushes following Hurricane Milton last week indicate some impact across impacted areas – but nothing catastrophic.
Doug Phillips, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) blueberry Extension coordinator, talked with a handful of producers immediately following the storm’s trek across Florida. He compared it to a previous hurricane that battered Florida in 2022.
“It’s not as bad as Hurricane Ian from the ones that I’ve heard back from. There is wind damage with plants blown over. There’s some defoliation and wind burn. Some of the farms, depending on how wet they typically get, have some standing water they’re pumping out,” Phillips said. “It’s interesting, from the ones that responded back, some had little, if any, impact, and others had a bit more. It doesn’t sound like anything catastrophic.”
Hurricane Milton made landfall as a Category 3 hurricane near Siesta Key on Oct. 9. It quickly moved across the state, impacting most of Florida’s blueberry production in the process. The resulting damage could have been a whole lot worse, says Phillips.
“It passed right over much of the blueberry-producing region, either directly or on the edges of it. A lot of the guys I talked to, plants blown over, some water standing in the field. Everybody described it as, it’s an issue but wasn’t too significant,” Phillips said. “That’s actually good.”