USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released its December crop reports today. Becky Sommer with NASS in Washington D.C. says the U.S. cotton production estimate is still down 20% from last year’s crop. All cotton production is forecast at 15.9 million 480-pound bales, down 7% from the previous forecast, and down 20% from 2019. All cotton planted totaled 12.1 million acres, unchanged from the previous …
Backroom Briefing: Simpson Not a Fan of Reservoir
(NSF) — Senate President Wilton Simpson (R-FL/District 10) said he wasn’t sold on a $1.6 billion reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee when he voted in 2017 for the project, which was a priority of then-President Joe Negron, R-Stuart. And with the coronavirus pandemic punching a $3 billion to $4 billion hole in the state budget for next fiscal year, Simpson …
Cabinet Eyes ‘Devil’s Garden’ Land Deal
(NSF) — Nearly 6,500 acres of land, with the vast majority in the Devil’s Garden area south of Lake Okeechobee, are in line to be the state’s next Florida Forever conservation deals. Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Cabinet — Attorney General Ashley Moody, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried and Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis — will be asked Tuesday to …
Blueberry App Developed to Help Growers Battle Diseases and Pests
(UF/IFAS) — A new University of Florida app will help the state’s blueberry growers identify and manage disease and insect injuries commonly encountered in Florida before their crop is ruined. Collectively, blueberries are a $60 million-per-year crop in Florida. Patricio Munoz, the UF/IFAS blueberry breeder and an assistant professor of horticultural sciences, came up with the vision for, and supervised …
UF/IFAS Study Shows Less Need for Pesticides to Control Pests
It’s harvest season for Florida’s $300 million-per-year strawberry season, so those who grow this fruit need help to control pests such as the tiny (up to 2-millimeters long), destructive chilli thrips. Farmers often use pesticides to control thrips, but they would like to use minimal chemicals. University of Florida scientists may have found a good reason to use pesticides at …
UF Scientist Request Citrus Grower Help to Set Research Directions for 2021
(UF/IFAS) — University of Florida entomologist Lauren Diepenbrock is looking to the future of her research program and needs citrus industry professionals to help her see a clear picture. Since arriving at the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Citrus Research and Education Center (CREC) in 2018, she has worked with many growers to identify best practices for successful …
Grower Discusses Conservation Steps
Travis Miller, part owner and manager of the 330-acre DeSoto Grove in DeSoto County, was recently recognized by the Florida Farm Bureau Federation for his natural resource conservation efforts. Miller and 22 other Florida farmers and ranchers received the Farm Bureau’s County Alliance for Responsible Environmental Stewardship (CARES) award. Miller reports on the conservation steps taken at DeSoto Grove: “We enrolled into …
Hemp Program Lighting Up Florida Agriculture
(NSF) — Hemp is blazing among Florida’s agriculture inventory in the seven months since it was first allowed to be legally grown in the Sunshine State, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried told business leaders Tuesday. Fried said 22,078 acres are currently licensed for hemp, nearly equal to the acreage in Florida of tomatoes, watermelon and snap peas, and double the …
Feeding Florida Beef to Coast Guard Members
The Florida Beef Council (FBC), together with the Florida Cattlewomen (FCW) and a few members of the Florida Cattlemen’s Association (FCA) will be busy this Thursday cooking a great beef meal for members of the Coast Guard. FBC Director of Education & Promotion DeAnne Maples says they expect to feed more than 200 people. For more information about Beef Checkoff …
COVID-19 Impacts on Florida Citrus
The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on Florida’s citrus industry were recently summarized by Fritz Roka, director of the Florida Gulf Coast University’s (FGCU) Center of Agribusiness. Roka discussed pandemic impacts on both the citrus production side of the industry and the packing and juice-processing segments. Here are some highlights of Roka’s presentation that apply to both the production and …