By Clint Thompson A natural disaster declaration for 18 Georgia counties by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is vital assistance for peach producers impacted by the mid-March freeze. Chris Butts, executive vice president of the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, discussed how important this declaration is for his growers who suffered near 100% loss. “What the declaration does …
UGA Entomologist: Insect Pressure is Light
By Clint Thompson Insect pests are currently not a problem for specialty crop producers. That’s good news for growers trying to navigate vegetable production in South Georgia, North Florida and South Alabama. And that was before last week’s heavy rain events that flooded parts of the Southeast region. Stormy Sparks, University of Georgia (UGA) Extension vegetable entomologist, discussed what producers …
Lull in Strawberry Crop Across Central Alabama
By Clint Thompson The current lull in strawberry supply in middle Alabama is attributed to the mid-March freeze event. Plants were vulnerable to temperatures that dropped in the mid-20s, says David Lawrence, regional Extension agent in central Alabama. “Right now, we’re seeing a reduction in volume just based off of the freeze event that we had in March,” Lawrence said. …
UF Blueberry Specialist: Growers Cautiously Optimistic This Harvest Season
By Clint Thompson Blueberry harvests are well under way across Florida. After a year that’s seen producers challenged with multiple weather events, like Hurricane Ian last September, Hurricane Nicole last November and multiple days of cold temperatures during Christmas week, growers are optimistic about this year’s crop. Phil Harmon, professor and Extension plant pathologist at the University of Florida (UF) …
Diversification: Secret to Specialty Crop Success
By Clint Thompson Drew Echols attributes his success to not putting all of his eggs in one basket. The fifth-generation farmer who co-owns production on more than 600 acres in northeast Georgia is not afraid to adjust his farming practices to fit the current needs of specialty crop production. INCREASING ACRES, CROPS AND MARKETS“I looked at a lot of these …
UF/IFAS Economists Narrow Estimate of Ag Losses from Hurricane Ian to $1.03 Billion
University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) economists have refined the estimate of agricultural losses due to Hurricane Ian to $1.03 billion. This number is an estimate of the total value of seasonal crops, livestock, nursery and aquaculture products that will not be harvested or marketed as a result the category 4 storm. Hurricane Ian made landfall …
Clemson Extension Agents Provide Crop Updates
Weekly Field Update Clemson Extension agents provide updates in The South Carolina Grower this week about the status of various crops being produced throughout the state. Statewide Justin Ballew reports, “The coldest temperature I heard of right before Christmas was 7 degrees (in the upstate). That is certainly low enough to damage strawberry crowns. While most folks had their fields …
Citrus Leaders Testify on Weather Disasters
Florida agriculture took a wallop from Hurricane Ian last year. Throw in another hurricane (Nicole) and a freeze, and the disaster losses stacked up. The state’s citrus industry took a particularly hard hit. On Jan. 17, citrus industry representatives headed to Tallahassee to testify before the Florida Senate Agriculture Committee about the toll these weather events had on an already …
How Low Will We Go? Wintry Conditions Expected Over the Holidays
By Pam Knox I’m talking about temperature, folks! A lot of my social media feed for the last couple of days has been related to one or more cold outbreaks that could affect the U.S. over the next couple of weeks or even into January. On Twitter, the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center posted an infographic about bitterly cold …
Agricultural Losses to Hurricane Ian Could Top $1.5 Billion in Florida
The combination of seasonal crops, livestock, nursery and aquaculture products potentially lost as a result of category 4 Hurricane Ian will likely be valued between $787 million and $1.56 billion, University of Florida economists predict. The estimate was released as part of a new document, “Preliminary Assessment of Agricultural Losses and Damages resulting from Hurricane Ian,” from the UF/IFAS Economic Impact …