My weekend started with a BOLO: Be On the Look Out sent by my predecessor, retired County Agent Bill Thomas. He reported finding a smorgasboard of caterpillars around his homestead. A mix of loopers, hornworms, and beet armyworm, and a few corn earworms. I set out into the area farm fields looking around to see …
Continue reading ‘BOLO: Caterpillar Pests and Cutworms in Peanut’ »
One of our Columbia County farmers has started sweet corn harvest. The spring was challenging for the sweet corn crop with cool temperatures throughout March and April and a hard freeze on the mornings of March 27 and 28. However things have gone well overall and they have started harvest of a great crop. Prior to …
Continue reading ‘Sweet Corn Harvest (Video) and Stinkbugs’ »
Downy Mildew of Cucurbits Update for June 11, 2013 Nicholas S. Dufault, Assistant Professor of Plant Pathology, Extension Specialist for Vegetable and Field Crops. The risk of Downy Mildew disease development is high for many growers throughout North and South Florida. This disease, caused by the fungal like pathogen Pseudoperonospora cubensis, thrives in cool (59 …
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We have been aggressively fighting Palmer amaranth (pigweed) in the cotton fields of Columbia County. Most of our farmers are planting varieties tolerant to Liberty herbicide, which is no silver bullet, but has at least been a crutch. Our recent efforts have been to apply glyphosate + metolachlor where pigweeds haven’t emerged, and Liberty + metolachlor where we …
Continue reading ‘Palmer Amaranth Control a Challenge in Cotton (Part 1)’ »
While we appear to be winning the battle. I can see we are missing weeds with multiple methods of control, and we need better control to win the war in the long term. One thing I will say, I wish we had some straw or residue on these fields to shade the soil and prevent emergence …
Continue reading ‘Palmer Amaranth a Challenge in Cotton (Part 2)’ »
Extension shares Ag knowledge with Ft White High School Students By Jennifer Chasteen/Special to the Reporter As Published in Lake City Reporter, June 4, 2013 UF/IFAS Columbia County Extension Agronomist Mace Bauer knows that raising crops in Florida has its unique challenges and ensuring that local youth have an opportunity to meet that …
To say it has gotten dry in the area would be an understatement. Looking at the Live Oak FAWN weather station, we have recorded 0.34″ of rain in the last 29 days. The weather forecast has a chance of rain everyday for the foreseeable future, so maybe we will soon get some help. In the meantime our …
Farmer: Here is a photo of the twin row corn you shared in your (April 5) blog. We are starting to see a few ear shoots. Bauer: Are you keeping up on irrigation? Farmer: It is taking about 50 hours to apply 0.75″. Three times per week shouldn’t be an issue. “Text of the Week” …
B&L Farms of Live Oak, FL have kicked off wheat harvest here in North Florida. This was these young farmers first year growing wheat after their interest was piqued by a farm tour hosted by William Birdsong, Extension Specialist with Alabama Cooperative Extension Service (ACES). William hosted a tour to the Myron Johnson Farm in Headland Alabama where …
It is been pretty quiet around here in terms of the peanut market. Most springs people want to talk about the market and the crop prospects. Some of them must think I am an economist, some use me as a contrarion indicator, they do the opposite of what i say. For those who don’t know me. I …
Continue reading ‘Peanut Market and My Humble Interpretation’ »