In May, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam announced the Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame had started accepting nominations for the class of 2018. The deadline for those nominations is quickly nearing, as they must be submitted by September 1, 2017. The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services partners with the Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame Foundation each year …
Pick and Store Your Green Beans
Cathy Isom has some tips about how to pick and store one of the top 10 favorite vegetables in America. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. A lot of people love to eat Green Beans. They’re in the top 10 most consumed vegetables in the United States. And they also have many aliases. String Beans, Pole Beans, …
Organic Family Farmers Need Strong Standards and Enforcement
American family farmers and ranchers grow and raise organic foods for the nation under strict standards. Those standards are set by the National Organic Program under the guidance of the National Organic Standards Board and protect the integrity of the industry. When major producers and organic product importers fail to comply with these standards, it puts all organic farmers and …
Largest Ever Dead Zone Found in U.S. Gulf
Federal scientists have measured the largest dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico in recent history. The oxygen-depleted area is roughly the size of New Jersey. Politico’s Morning Ag Report says the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the increasing dead zone was fed by nutrient pollution washing down the Mississippi River. NOAA says the nutrient runoff comes primarily from …
Ex-Trade Negotiator Says Trump “Misguided” on NAFTA
The Trump Administration’s goal to reduce trade deficits by renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement is not a good one. That’s the opinion of former top Obama-era trade negotiator Darci Vetter. Captial Press Dot Com says Vetter feels that goal may cause unforeseen and unintentional consequences for farm exports. Vetter was the chief U.S. agricultural trade negotiator from 2014 …
Agri View: Thieves Targeting Bees
Everett Griner talks about thieves now targeting bees in today’s Agri View. Well, not only are America’s bee farmers losing hives to unstoppable disease, mites, and stress, but in one area, they are losing hives to thieves. In one case, the culprits were arrested and 2,500 hives were recovered — 2,500 hives! Location and names are not …
Webcast Outlines Proper Cleaning Procedures for Sprayer Systems
Inadequate or improper cleaning of sprayer systems can often cause contamination issues and costly damage to plant foliage. A new Focus on Cotton webcast titled “Tank Cleaning” helps cotton growers, consultants, and other industry experts properly remove all unwanted residue from equipment and prevent the unintentional introduction of herbicides to sensitive or non-labeled cotton crops. This 29-minute talk by Fred …
Land Values and Cash Rents-Southern Region
Agricultural Land Value and Cash Rent Highlights The United States farm real estate value, a measurement of the value of all land and buildings on farms, averaged $3,080 per acre for 2017, up $70 per acre from 2016 values. The average value of farm real estate was up in the Southeast region. Alabama farm real estate values increased $150 per …
“Good-Guy” Fungus to Take on Killer of Oaks and Ornamental Crops
A beneficial soil fungus could offer a bio-based approach to battling Phytophthora ramorum, a pathogen that kills oaks, other tree species, and woody ornamentals. BioWorks, Inc. of Victor, New York, is collaborating with Agricultural Research Service (ARS) plant pathologist Tim Widmer to commercially formulate the fungus, Trichoderma asperellum. The species is a mycoparasite, meaning it attacks and kills other fungi, including P. ramorum, a fungus-like …
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue Proclaims National Farmers Market Week
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has proclaimed Aug. 6-12 to be National Farmers Market Week. This is the eighteenth year USDA has supported local producers by encouraging families to meet, and buy from, the farmers and other vendors at their local farmers market. The proclamation Perdue signed notes farmers markets and other agricultural direct marketing outlets contribute approximately $9 billion …