Assistance Available through NRCS for Ag Land Damaged by Hurricane Michael

Florida farmers and ranchers who suffered damage to working lands and livestock mortality due to Hurricane Michael are encouraged to sign up for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) through the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Agricultural producers in Bay, Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson, Leon, Liberty, Wakulla, and Washington counties are eligible to apply for assistance. …

Putnam Recognizes Ag-Environmental Leadership Award Recipients

Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam awarded the recipients of the Ag-Environmental Leadership Award during the last breakfast at the Florida Farm Bureau’s (FFB) annual meeting. Southeast AgNet’s Abbey Taylor was able to catch up with Putnam after the breakfast, where they discussed this award and its recipients this year. The winners of the award included Florida agriculture professionals that …

USDA Disaster Assistance and Hurricane Recovery Workshops

Representatives from USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Farm Service Agency (FSA), Rural Development (RD) and Risk Management Agency (RMA) will present disaster assistance information for agricultural producers. Workshop topics include emergency assistance for livestock & crop-related expenses and losses; financial assistance programs to help with farm and farmland damage; deadlines for applying for disaster assistance programs and programs to help with restoration and rehabilitation of farm and …

Family Farm Recognized for Environmental Leadership

Lykes Bros., Inc., was honored for their environmental stewardship with a County Alliance for Responsible Environmental Stewardship (CARES) award on October 18. Lykes Bros. Inc., has grown a 500-acre Brooksville farm to more than 610,000 acres in Florida and Texas. Lykes Bros. Inc., has been a leader in agribusiness for more than a hundred years and fully invests in responsible …

UF/IFAS Employees Help Hard-Hit North Florida REC

Scientists at the UF/IFAS North Florida Research and Education Center — particularly its Marianna facility — may take a while to fully recover their research after it was damaged by Hurricane Michael, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences administrators say. In Marianna, five center pivots – irrigation systems — were turned over and damaged, said Glen Aiken, …

EQIP Signup in Florida Ends November 2

There is just a little over a week left for Florida farmers, ranchers and forest owners to apply for financial and technical assistance through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). Conservation Programs Specialist with USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Florida, Nathan Fikkert, says one aspect of this signup is the energy initiative. EQIP Signup in Florida Ends November 2 Sponsored ContentStrong Relationship …

Children to Benefit from UF/IFAS Master Gardener Legacy Fund

The Florida Master Gardener program, part of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), recently created a Legacy Fund to help support educational projects directly in counties. The Legacy Fund was created by an anonymous donor in 2017, and the first applications were received in the summer of 2018. “The Master Gardener Legacy Fund will support …

Citrus Production Guide Provides Perfect Tool for Growers

Researchers at the Citrus Research and Education Center (CREC) have revamped the Citrus Production Guide. What used to be a guide focused on pest management has stretched its scope to include horticulture and plant pathology, among other topics. Lauren Diepenbrock, an entomologist at the CREC, encourages citrus growers to grab a copy of the guide. Regarding HLB, the guide offers …