FL Trucking Restrictions Eased to Expedite Transport of Crops

Gary Cooper Citrus, Florida, General, Nursery Crops, Specialty Crops, Vegetables, Weather

Late Tuesday Florida Governor Charlie Crist lifted the restrictions on truck weights in light of the deep freeze the state is experiencing right in the midst of winter fruit and vegetable harvests. The news release from the Florida Dept of Agriculture is below. For those transporting produce, a copy of the order and accompanying letter from DOT must be kept …

Gulf Citrus Head Cites Greening, Water & Land Use Concerns

Dan Citrus, Florida

Gulf Citrus Growers Association Executive Vice President Ron Hamel in the first of these two interviews cites greening disease and pending EPA water quality standards as the biggest issues facing his growers. In the second report, he says land use and water supply issues are also major concerns. Post sponsor: Copper coverage with Less Metallic Copper per acre. Sponsored ContentNuseed …

USDA Official Clarifies Florida’s Citrus Canker Rule

Dan Citrus, Florida

Michael Hornyak of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Citrus Health Response Program in this series of interviews with Southeast AgNet’s Gary Cooper clarifies changes to the citrus canker rule in Florida. In the first report, he notes that a canker quarantine remains in place, but has been altered to allow fresh fruit to move to other citrus producing states. In …

FL Commissioner Spotlight on the Florida Ag Stats Directory

Randall Weiseman Field Crops, FL Commissioner Report, Florida, Livestock, Specialty Crops

This week’s Commissioner’s Spotlight from Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson is about the ’09 Florida Agriculture Statistical Directory. To view the directory online as a PDF file, click on FL Ag Stats Directory. To order a hardcopy of the directory, click on Brochures and Publications. The Florida Agriculture Statistical Directory is listed third on the online order form. Sponsored ContentNuseed …

Research Foundation, Citrus Commission Making News

Dan Citrus, Florida

The Citrus Research and Development Foundation Tuesday will interview three Chief Operating Officer finalists; the person chosen will head this group that will soon administer research funds. In an historic move, the Florida Citrus Commission Wednesday will meet in Bartow, where the Florida Department of Citrus will soon be housed; this comes after 70-plus years of meetings in Lakeland. Southeast …

Florida’s Fresh Citrus Industry – A Holiday Update

Dan Citrus, Florida

This series on Florida’s fresh citrus industry is based primarily on interviews with Florida Citrus Packers Executive Vice President Richard Kinney and Citrus Administrative Committee Manager Duke Chadwell.It begins by discussing the importance of the holiday season to Florida growers and packers, and with reports of reduced shipments so far this season compared to recent seasons. The new canker rule …

USDA Announces Final Analysis on Climate Change Legislation

Randall Weiseman Alabama, Cattle, Corn, Cotton, Energy, Field Crops, Florida, Forestry, Georgia, Livestock, Peanuts, Soybeans, Specialty Crops, Vegetables

The final analysis on the impact of proposed energy and climate change legislation is completed as Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack gives us an overview of the findings. Secretary Vilsack acknowledges that specialty crops will not see much of a benefit in a carbon sequestration system, but says that they have some preliminary plans to assist growers. Sponsored ContentNuseed Carinata …

FL Commissioner’s Spotlight on the 2009 Farm to Fuel Summit

Randall Weiseman Energy, FL Commissioner Report, Florida, Specialty Crops

This week’s Commissioner’s Spotlight from Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson is on the 2009 Farm to Fuel Summit held in Orlando this past summer to explore ways of using crops and other biomass materials to provide ethanol and bio-diesel fuel to meet our energy needs. For more information about Farm to Fuel and to view the presentations made by the …

Citrus Tour Focuses on Alternative Greening Treatments

Dan Citrus, Florida

Fifty growers and production managers took a full-day bus tour a week before Thanksgiving to see how nutritional sprays and so-called systemic acquired resistance (SAR) products are working in some greening-infected groves in Southwest Florida. The tour, organized by Peace River Valley Citrus Growers Association, started and finished in Arcadia and included several stops near Immokalee. Southeast AgNet’s Ernie Neff …