The watermelon harvest is now getting into full swing in the north-central Florida region. Visiting a field plot trial with the Enza Zaden seeds team this week, I had the opportunity to meet one of our Southeast AgNet radio listeners at his farm in Trenton, as the harvest crew was doing the first crown cut of one of his fields. …
Managing Soil Pests
Soil insects can be tricky to spot because they can’t be seen, but they can cause major devastation to vegetable crops. Ayanava Majumdar, Extension entomologist with the Alabama Cooperative Extension system, knows that when pests are out of sight, they are sometimes out of mind as well. Oftentimes, symptoms from soil pests will not appear until planting time. Some soil …
Perdue Responds to UGA Study on USMCA
This op-ed, written by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, originally appeared in The Telegraph. He Oversees Nation’s Farm Policy and He Has Bone to Pick with UGA Trade Deal Study The University of Georgia (UGA) recently published a study claiming the new United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) would cost some Georgia vegetable and fruit growers revenue and jobs. The sensational …
Florida Growers Pave Way for New Crops
By Karla Arboleda Tradition runs deep in Florida, but the state now has more growers producing a new range of specialty crops. PURPLE SWEET POTATODanny Johns, a fourth-generation potato farmer, grows a purple sweet potato with a fresh aesthetic and more nutrients to promote healthier eating. Aside from being brand new eye candy, Blue Sky Farms’ new variety grows right …
USMCA Not Likely to Change for Southeastern Produce Industry
The Southeastern produce industry has been very vocal about the issues it faces with the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and now the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which is the NAFTA rewrite. Due to heavy competition from Mexico, the industry says rural communities have been impacted and businesses have not been able to survive. After the USMCA was released, it …
UF Eyes Butterfly Pea as Natural Food-Color Source
It provides a natural food coloring. It gives nurseries another ornamental to grow and sell, and it might provide health benefits to those who eat it with their food. It is the Butterfly Pea, and University of Florida researchers are studying the flower to see if it will grow in Florida. Much of what we eat every day contains added …
Whitefly Management Methods
By Hugh Smith The silverleaf whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) transmits tomato yellow leaf curl virus in tomatoes. The pest also transmits three viruses to cucurbits, including squash vein yellowing virus, which causes watermelon vine decline. In addition to virus transmission and contamination, the silverleaf whitefly induces irregular ripening in tomato and the silverleafing in squash that gives it its common name. …
VSC Expo Registration Opens June 1
AgNet Media is excited to introduce a new industry event: Vegetable and Specialty Crop Expo (VSC Expo). Held in conjunction with the Citrus Expo, which is now in its 28th year, VSC Expo is set to be an event that growers won’t want to miss. Last year, AgNet Media incorporated vegetable and specialty crop seminars into Citrus Expo. After receiving …
Industry Reaction to U.S. Senate Approval of a Disaster-Aid Package
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) applauded Senate passage of a disaster supplemental that will provide much-needed funds to Florida’s Northwest communities, which were devastated by Hurricane Michael more than seven months ago. With Senate passage, Rubio urged the U.S. House of Representatives to swiftly approve the long overdue disaster-relief package, and send the measure to …
Guest Worker Reform and More Mechanization Needed
By Karla Arboleda While the H-2A program in the United States helps agriculture when native workers are not able or willing, experts agree that H-2A reform could lead to a more sustainable industry. The hard work and discipline required of people working on farms have become less attractive to Americans. This puts U.S. growers at a disadvantage in comparison to …