The University of Georgia Cooperative Extension will hold pecan production meetings virtually in January, February and March. UGA Pecan Team members include Lenny Wells (Extension pecan specialist), Angel Acebes (entomologist), Andrew Sawyer (Area Pecan Agent-Southeast District) and Jason Brock (plant disease diagnostician). All will give presentations and be available for questions over Zoom. Tentative dates for the meetings are as …
Sneak Peek: January 2021 VSCNews Magazine
By Ashley Robinson The January issue of VSCNews magazine will be the blueberry grower’s handbook heading into the 2021 season. Chilli thrips are a growing threat for blueberry growers. Without proper management of the pest, overall plant vigor and yields can be affected. Oscar Liburd, a professor at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) in …
Chilly December Aiding Southeast Fruit Farmers
A chilly December should have alleviated some concerns of Southeast fruit farmers worried about chill hours in a La Nina winter, according to Pam Knox, University of Georgia Extension Agricultural Climatologist. “If you look at the plot of chill hours over this year, November was quite warm. I think they were running way below normal in the number of chill …
Will 2021 Be Any Different?
This year was a season unlike any other for produce farmers in the Southeast. Not only did COVID-19 strike at the worst time, but lingering international trade issues with Mexico resulted in diminished market prices for producers like Tifton, Georgia farmer Bill Brim. If something isn’t done soon, 2021 will be no different than 2020. “We’ve been fighting Mexico since …
Florida Farmer Looking Forward to 2021
Florida farmers are used to adversity. Between occasional hurricanes, unpredictable market prices and challenging international trade from competitors like Mexico, no season is stress free in the Sunshine State. “It’s not an easy profession. It seems like more paperwork, more everything all the time; more disease, more pests, more regulations,” said Florida blueberry producer Ryan Atwood. “You throw the (coronavirus) …
A Southern Fir Christmas Tree is on the Horizon for Ornamental, Timber Industries
By Mark Czarnota for CAES News During the holiday season in the U.S., more than 20 million freshly cut Christmas trees are sold every year, with fir trees topping the most-desired list. Unfortunately growers cannot meet the needs of consumers, and every year, there is a shortage of trees, primarily due to the incredible losses of susceptible firs — including …
Risks Come With Hemp Production
Risks come with any crop farmers attempt to produce in the Southeast. Between diseases, pests, input costs, unpredictable weather and instability in the marketplace, producing a crop and making a profit is not a guarantee. Hemp production is no different. Producers need to do the appropriate research before planting their crop next spring. This is especially important since hemp is …
UGA Encourages Growers to Fill Out COVID-19 Survey
The University of Georgia wants feedback from producers impacted by COVID-19. Growers have until Dec. 23 to fill out a survey that will help industry leaders gauge the impact the pandemic has had on Georgia’s agricultural sector. The survey covers various facets of farming operations that have been altered since the pandemic began in mid-March. This includes commodity prices, disposal …
UF Hemp Program Overseer: Good Science Takes Time
“Good science takes time.” That is the message Jerry Frankhauser is preaching. The assistant director of the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station who oversees the University of Florida hemp research program stresses that like other projects at other universities, the UF/IFAS Industrial Hemp Pilot Project will take between 3 and 5 years before they have a handle on how hemp will …
Alabama Pecan Industry Forever Changed
Alabama pecan producers in Baldwin and Mobile Counties are still cleaning up debris left behind from Hurricane Sally more than three months ago. What many are not going to be doing, though, is replanting trees that were destroyed on Sept. 16, says Bryan Wilkins, Alabama Extension Research Associate. “The older guys, they told me they’re done. Some of them, they’re …