State lawmakers continue to craft tax relief for Florida’s storm-battered citrus industry, as President Donald Trump signed off Friday on billions of dollars in much-anticipated federal disaster relief. A spending bill approved by Congress and Trump includes nearly $90 billion for disaster relief, with $2.36 billion aimed at assisting the agriculture industry for losses from Hurricane Irma in Florida, Hurricane …
Florida Farmers Brace for Cold Weather
Florida farmers were preparing Thursday for continuing cold weather, with temperatures expected to drop into the 30s overnight as far south as Fort Myers and Homestead. Many of Florida’s crops cannot handle freezing temperatures for long periods. Citrus and strawberry farmers are preparing harvests ahead of time, often running irrigation systems to create small layers of ice over the fruit …
Celebrating National Poinsettia Day
Cathy Isom gives us a bit of history and ways of celebrating the flower of the holiday season. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Celebrating National Poinsettia Day Each year on the 12th day of December, people across the United States recognize National Poinsettia Day. The poinsettia plant’s connection to the Christmas season dates back to 16th-century Mexico. …
UF/IFAS CALS Student Places First in International Graduate Student Competition
Debalina Saha, an environmental horticulture graduate assistant at the University of Florida, has always wanted to study how different mulches and herbicides affect weed growth. Her tenacity has paid off: Saha placed first in the International Plant Propagation Society Southern Region graduate student research competition at its 42nd annual conference. “Measuring light under different mulch depths was something that had …
Latest ARC-PLC Enrollment Period Is Open
Local Farm Service Agency offices are now accepting annual enrollments for two Farm Bill farm safety net programs. Rod Bain has the story. Image credit: FSA/ARC-PLC/License: Creative Commons/by Wikivisual Sponsored ContentCIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsJuly 1, 2025Nuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober 1, 2024TriEst Ag Group: Partners in ProfitabilityApril 1, 2024
Green Industry Contributes More Than $20B to Florida Economy
Up 19 Percent from 2000 Florida’s environmental horticulture industry is recovering from the recession of 2007 to 2009, and it is growing in many sectors, with $21.8 billion in annual economic contributions. This is an increase of 19.2 percent from 2000, a new University of Florida report shows. The environmental horticulture industry, or the “green industry,” includes landscaping, nurseries, greenhouses, …
Putnam Announces Preliminary Florida Agricultural Damages Due to Hurricane Irma Total $2.5 Billion
Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam H. Putnam announced that the preliminary agricultural damages caused by Hurricane Irma in Florida total more than $2.5 billion. In an initial report released today, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services estimated losses for each segment of agriculture. The preliminary economic assessments account for current crop losses and ancillary losses, such as debris …
NRCS Reminder of Programs Helping with Irma Recovery Efforts
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) wants to remind farmers and ranchers affected by Hurricane Irma, that they have programs which can that provide assistance. This includes the Emergency Watershed Protection Program (EWP) and Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). Sponsored ContentCIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsJuly 1, 2025Nuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober 1, 2024TriEst Ag Group: Partners in ProfitabilityApril 1, 2024
Research on Pests and Beneficial Species Funding from USDA
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced 21 grants totaling $7.6 million for research to help manage pests and beneficial species that affect agricultural crops. The funding is made possible through NIFA’s Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) program, authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill. “There continues to be a critical need to …
A National Day for the Flower of Love and Romance
With the rose being the official flower for the month of June, there obviously has to be a day dedicated. Cathy Isom has ways of celebrating a magnificent flower and symbol of love and romance. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Each year on June 12, people in the United States observe National Red Rose Day. It honors the …