The April issue of Specialty Crop Grower Magazine highlights the Florida Citrus Show, which was held on March 13 in Fort Pierce, Florida. The event offered various educational talks, including research updates for citrus growers, and pepper management for vegetable growers.
The Alabama Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association Conference and Trade Show was held Feb. 5-7 in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Seminar sessions and workshops were held at the event, highlighting various topics impacting specialty crops in Alabama, including marketing.
Compact bed design is currently being tested in North Carolina tomatoes. Southeastern tomato growers largely rely on plasticulture to produce commercial-scale crops. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences research has examined benefits of a new bed architecture that is narrower and taller than traditional beds.
It sparked interest in other parts of the Southeast, including with Emmanuel Torres Quezada, assistant professor of horticulture at North Carolina State. He initiated trials to learn how compact beds would function for the state’s tomato growers.
The biologicals industry continues to expand across the world. Mark Trimmer is the president and founding partner of DunhamTrimmer, which is a market research company focused on the global biocontrol, biostimulant, biofertilizer and crop nutrition markets. He provided an update of the biologicals industry.
Also, the specialty crop producers must be prepared for a potential raid or audit of their workforce amid the crackdown by the Trump Administration in deporting those who are in the country illegally. The Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association hosted a webinar in February to help outline what farming operations should remember if the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shows up with a judicial warrant.
Video Component
Don’t miss this months bonus video coverage in the interactive digital edition of Specialty Crop Grower magazine.
VIDEO: See scenes from the successful Florida Citrus Show held last month in Fort Pierce.
VIDEO: Get a grower perspective about how to use the Citrus Research and Field (CRAFT) program successfully.