By Clint Thompson Dry weather conditions that were prevalent across the Southeast (SE) this summer have dissipated. Only areas in Northwest Alabama and Southeast Florida are abnormally dry, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Pam Knox, University of Georgia Extension Agricultural Climatologist, discusses the change in weather patterns that specialty crop producers have observed in recent weeks. “Every summer after …
Alabama Extension Part of Upcoming Food Safety Webinar
By Clint Thompson Alabama Extension will be part of U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) webinar on Thursday highlighting food safety. Kristin Woods, Alabama Regional Extension agent, who specializes in commercial horticulture and food safety, will join Michelle Danyluk, from the University of Florida, and Dawanna James-Holly from USDA National Agricultural Library (NAL), to discuss the implementation of the Food Safety …
UGA Research: Weed Control in Organics
By Clint Thompson University of Georgia research may have yielded a new way for growers to manage weeds in organic production. Tim Coolong, associate professor in the University of Georgia (UGA) College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, is researching the effect of irrigation combined with different cultivation tactics to control weeds. He is studying shallow sub-surface drip tape placement for …
U.S. Ag Trade: Imports in FY 2023 at $197 Billion
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service and Foreign Agricultural Service Situation and Outlook Report notes that agricultural (Ag) imports in fiscal year (FY) 2023 are projected to increase $5.0 billion above the FY 2022 forecast to $197 billion. This is mostly due to higher imports of horticultural products, sugar, tropical products, along with grains and feed products. Total …
New Irrigation Demonstration Site at UGA-Griffin
By Ashley N Biles The new irrigation demonstration site on the University of Georgia (UGA) Griffin campus will be used for training, research and education on the latest irrigation technologies for industry professionals, homeowners and researchers. “We are very proud to have the irrigation demonstration site on the Griffin campus and we appreciate all of the hard work that has …
Florida Black Spot Quarantine Expanded
Federal and state agriculture officials have expanded the citrus black spot (CBS) quarantine area in Florida. They have added four sections in Collier County and five sections in Glades County. The action was taken by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) in cooperation with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Division of …
UF/IFAS Seeking the Next Breakthrough Crop
By J. Scott Angle, jangle@ufl.edu, @IFAS_VP Danny Johns is growing the same crop on the same land as his great grandfather did when he started farming in Hastings a century ago. PURPLE SWEET POTATOESBut Johns was immediately interested when University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Extension agent Wendy Mussoline invited him to look at purple sweet …
Reduce SWD to Protect Against Sour Rot
By Clint Thompson The ripening of grapes around the Southeast means producers need to be managing drosophila flies. As grapes near veraison or 15 degrees brix, they become more attractive, especially for spotted wing drosophila (SWD). As Brett Blaauw, assistant professor at the University of Georgia (UGA) College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, points out in the UGA Extension Viticulture …
Kernel Filling Stage: Sunshine Needed for Pecan Crop
By Clint Thompson The pecan crop is loaded in orchards across the Southeast. But if the crop is to reach its full potential, it needs more sunshine over the next couple of weeks. Cloudy weather helped doom the crop last year, as sunshine was lacking during the most critical stage of development. Lenny Wells, University of Georgia (UGA) Extension pecan …
Nematode Management: Know the Species Impacting Your Field
By Clint Thompson Before Florida specialty crop producers begin treating for guava root-knot nematodes, they need to understand what kind of nematodes species is impacting their fields. Not all nematode species can be treated the same, says Johan Desaeger, assistant professor of entomology and nematology at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Gulf Coast Research and …