By Clint Thompson Specialty crop producers in Georgia, Florida and Alabama are reminded that registration is ongoing for the upcoming Southeast Regional Fruit and Vegetable Conference, scheduled for Jan. 6, 2022 through Jan. 9, 2022, at the Savannah Convention Center in Savannah, Georgia. Late registration for the event ends Jan. 5. Interested attendees can register for the full four-day conference …
Keeping Phosphorus on the Farm
By Sanjay Shukla, Asmita Shukla and Alan W. Hodges Stormwater detention/retention systems or agricultural ponds can be used to convert the vegetation growing inside to a beneficial commodity while reducing phosphorus discharges. These are the findings of a study conducted by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS). The study evaluated the environmental and economic feasibility …
What Do We Know? The Latest Information on Neopestalotiopsis Fruit Rot Disease
By Clint Thompson To say that Neopestalotiopsis Fruit Rot has devastated Florida strawberries the past three growing seasons would be an understatement. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) researchers are researching ways to keep the disease from being as much of a problem in the future. One breakthrough that was discovered last season was the observance …
Learn the 3 New Cs of Citrus Variety Evaluation
See how growers and researchers are applying curiosity, conservation, and creativity in the lab and in the field.
Freeze Protection: Overhead Irrigation Efficient Strategy for Blueberry Growers
By Clint Thompson Frost protection will be an essential management plan for blueberry producers in the Southeast during the upcoming months leading up to harvest. Eric Stafne, a Mississippi State Extension/Research Professor, highlights the benefits and importance of using overhead sprinkler irrigation when temperatures drop below freezing. “The benefit of using that is it’s the most effective way to prevent …
Proclaim Insecticide a Valuable Option for Growers Against Diamondback Moth
By Clint Thompson One of the leading insecticide treatments for diamondback moth could still be vulnerable to overuse and eventual resistance. That’s why John Taylor, agronomic service representative for Syngenta, implores producers to rotate different modes of action so resistance does not develop. “Proclaim® is one of the stalwarts, so to speak, of diamondback moth management. With that being said, …
Baldwin, Mobile Counties Added to Domestic Sweet Orange Scab Quarantine
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), in cooperation with the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries (ADAI), is establishing a quarantine for Elsinoë australis, the fungal causal agent of sweet orange scab (SOS), in all of Baldwin and Mobile counties to prevent the spread of the disease. The quarantine area encompasses seven nurseries and 60 acres of citrus …
Minimal Diseases so far for Florida Strawberry Producers
By Clint Thompson The extended dry period in South Florida has been a boost for strawberry production. Natalia Peres, Professor of Plant Pathology at the University of Florida/IFAS Gulf Coast Research and Education Center, believes weather conditions have been favorable for strawberries early in the season and diseases have been minimal so far. “It’s been pretty quiet. We’re good, I …
Heat Management Strategies for Tomatoes in High Tunnels
By Juan Carlos Diaz-Perez, Sudeep Bag and Tim Coolong Protected agriculture technologies such as high tunnels (HT) are increasing in popularity in the United States, particularly with small and organic growers. High tunnels, also known as hoop houses, typically have a pipe framework covered by a single-layer plastic film (4 or 6 mil thickness). In contrast to greenhouses, high tunnels …
HLB Quarantines Established in Multiple Alabama Counties
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, in conjunction with the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries (ADAI), is putting in place new quarantines for huanglongbing (HLB) or citrus greening disease. The quarantines are confined to areas in Baldwin and Mobile counties in Alabama. The action is necessary because HLB was detected in plant tissue samples …