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July 2015Volume 5, Number 4

Serving South Georgia

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Volume 5, No. 4

Publisher

Jeff Masters

Editor

Dwain Walden

Graphic Design

Hayley Starling

Ad Directors

Tom Overton — Americus Times Recorder

Chris Lewis — Cordele Dispatch

Chris White — Moultrie Observer

Norman Bankston — Thomasville Times Enterprise

Dan Sutton — The Tifton Gazette

Mae Stokes — The Valdosta Daily Times

AG SCENE

A collaborative effort of the staffs of The Moultrie Observer, TheValdosta Daily Times, the Thomasville-Times Enterprise, theAmericus Times Recorder, the Cordele Dispatch and the TiftonGazette.

July 2014

BY JOE JOE WRIGHT

[email protected]

VIENNA - In 1977 Elliot Ellis who at the time was a county extension returned home to Dooly County to help with the family farm. Little did he know that nearly 40 years later he and his sons would be running aPecan operation that is the envy ofmany and also have a Pecan type named after him. Introducing the Ellis Pecan patented to Elliot Ellis of Vienna,Ga.

The Pecan variety is a new cultivarof pecan. It combines a number of traitsincluding large nut size, high kernelpercentage, high yields, good scab resist-ance, thin shells and consistent produc-tion. Mr. Ellis is the president of thecompany and his sons Brad and Keith

run the different aspects of the busi-ness. Nearly all of Mr. Ellis grandchil-dren work or have worked in the busi-ness at some point in time. This new va-riety of pecan is disease resistant andwith its high kernel percentage shouldcause a stir in the pecan industry foryears to come. The original parentingtree that started this new lineage wasstruck by lightning in 2005 but the selec-tion was saved by the trees propagatedby Ellis prior to lighting strike. EllisBrothers farms is located one mile off I75 at exit 109 in Vienna, Ga. Keith Ellisruns the retail end of the operations andwill be accompanied there by his moth-er Mrs. Cile Ellis from time to time.Brad Ellis runs the production end ofthe operations and is currently servingas President of Georgia Pecan GrowersAssociation.

Ellis Brothers Pecans trend setters

Elliot Ellis

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July 2015 Ag Scene Page 5

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Matt Mobley

929893


BY CLINT THOMPSON

University of Georgia

TIFTON — Two of theworld’s largest producers ofcotton play key roles in thefuture of cotton prices, ac-cording to University ofGeorgia cotton economistDon Shurley.

China is the world’slargest user and second-largest producer of cotton.That country’s actions relat-ing to stocks and importscould be an overwhelmingfactor on the improvementof prices for cotton, fromthe 62 to 67 cents per poundrange, where cotton hasbeen stuck for the past ninemonths.

“What goes on over

there is very important. It’seven more so now, becausethey hold 60 percent of theworld’s cotton stocks, cottonleft over from previousyears that’s still on hand,”said Shurley, a researcherin the UGA College of Agri-cultural and EnvironmentalSciences. “Their policies af-fect how that cotton is used,how it’s moved into the sup-ply chain and when it willhave a big impact.”

Also a significant devel-opment is the monsoon sea-son in India, the world’slargest cotton producer.

In Shurley’s biweeklynewsletter, “Cotton Market-ing News”(caes.uga.edu/depart-ments/agecon/extension/n

ewsletters/CMN.html), hewrites that the Indian gov-ernment forecasts the mon-soon season as “deficit,”meaning the country’s cot-ton crop estimate could belowered in future reports.India’s expected decrease incotton production could beanother factor in the direc-tion that prices take in fu-ture months.

Shurley said cottonfarmers prefer to see pricesreach the 80-cent plateau, amark not seen since June2014. The U.S. Departmentof Agriculture (USDA) willrelease its estimate of actu-al cotton acreage planted inthe U.S. on June 30. Com-bined with the release ofJuly production and sup-

ply/demand numbers, thisinformation should provideclarity about the future ofthe cotton market by nextmonth.

“There are so many fac-tors globally that are inplace now. Plus we’ve goneto, essentially, 24/7 trading.We’ve gone fully electroni-cally now. Prices have a wayof changing very rapidly,”Shurley said.

There are concernswithin the industry aboutcotton, in general. The mostrecent farm bill did notplace cotton in a very favor-ablelight, compared to othercommodities like peanutsor corn, Shurley said. TheUSDA estimates Georgia’scotton acreage will drop to

1.1 million acres, down from1.38 million a year ago.

“Some years when youhave low cotton prices,everything else is low too.Then (farmers) just stickwith cotton. Some yearswhen cotton prices are low,other commodities, likecorn and soybeans, are a lotbetter. Farmers will shiftsome acres out from cottonand in to those other crops,”Shurley said. “That’s whatwe’ve seen this year.”

Many Georgia farmersshifted those cotton acres topeanuts. As a result, peanutacreage is expected to in-crease by 20 percent, to be-tween 700,000 and 750,000acres.

“The farm bill gives

these other commoditiesthe potential for ARC andPLC payments,” said Shur-ley. “I think most farmerstry not to bust up their rota-tions. They try not to getout of a rotation that theylike tostay in for agronomicreasons. But, at the sametime, if the market dictates,they can stay fairly close totheir desired rotations andstill shift some acres on cer-tain farms or fields.”

ARC, or agriculturalrisk coverage, payments aremade when the revenue forthe crop is less than 86 per-cent of the historical aver-age. PLC, or price loss cov-erage, payments are madewhen the price falls below alevel set in the farm bill.

China, India play key roles in future of cotton prices

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BY JILL NOLIN

CNHI State Reporter

Cindy Johnson’s butterpound cake normally fillsher Moultrie shop with thesweet smells of Southernbaking. But lately the popu-lar confection is also threat-ening to eat up her profitmargin.Johnson’s recipe calls for

10 eggs. That becametougher for the veteran bak-er to stomach when eggprices jumped last month,due in part to an avian fluoutbreak in other states.She tried to wait it out,

crossing her floured fingersthat prices would drop. But,at this point, Johnson saidshe will likely have to dis-continue some goodies andbump up what she's askingfor others.“On cakes like red vel-

vet, we’re already at a pricethat I don’t think Moultriewould pay any more for,”said Johnson, owner of theCorner Cakery. “On somethings, you’re just kind ofmaxed out.”Johnson's is one of

many Georgia businessesthat are indirectly affectedby avian influenza, whichhas wiped out millions ofbirds – mostly egg-layers –since emerging in the Unit-ed States in December.The baker said the price

for a case of eggs – about 30dozen – jumped from $53to $88.97 in the span of amonth. Some Georgiarestauranteurs, whode-clined to talk on the recordfor fear of spooking cus-tomers, report similar in-creases.In the New York region,

the average wholesale costfor a dozen large eggs was

$1.69 in May – an increaseof 30 percent from last year,according to the U.S. De-partment of Agriculture. Itwas a jump up from $1.22 inApril.Price increases are af-

fecting Georgia, too, even ifthe virus hasn’t turned uphere yet.As a leading poultry pro-

ducer, the state contributesa significant number ofeggs to the national market.And damages to top egg-producing states, likeIowa,have constrained thenational supply.How that translates to

consumers varies by re-gion, and even from store tostore, said Joshua Berning,assistant professor of agri-cultural and applied eco-nomics at the University ofGeorgia. Some businessescan weather a shortage bet-terthan others.Berning said spikes in

egg prices are likely at leastpartly due to a “food scare,”which can fuel increasesthat are higher than whatthe market would naturallycause. More stringent ani-mal welfare regulations inCalifornia are also influenc-ing costs, he said.The good news, he said,

is that prices in the South-east are beginning to relent.“The whole issue is

starting to stabilize a littlebit now, as they have morecontrol over the flu and takecare of the problem,” hesaid. “We’re still over thehistoric highs for theprices, but we’re comingback down in the right di-rection.”The country’s decision to

find new egg sources - likethe Netherlands - is helpingsatisfy the demand, he said.

Whether these positivetrends continue remains tobe seen.And as for the virus, it-

self, Georgia's 3,600 poultryproducers are preparing forits possible arrival this fall,when migrating waterfowlblamed for spreading avianflu return south for the win-ter.Though avian influenza

poses no known risk to hu-mans, the fast-spreadingvirus presents real econom-ic threats.Georgia is a top produc-

er of chickens raised formeat, called broilers, whichuntil now have been mostlyunscathed.The state had a close call

last month when three ship-ments from an infectedfarm in Iowa were sent tosmall farms in Georgia, butthose flocks were eutha-nized. To date, no knowncase of the avian flu hasbeen confirmed in the state.“The level of concern is

high, and we’re taking itvery seriously,” said MikeGiles, president of the Geor-gia Poultry Federation.Even if the nation's poul-

try and egg producers man-age to avoid a recurrence ofavian flu, the industry willneed time to recover froman outbreak that's al-readykilled off entire flocksof hens.“This tight supply is

likely to be with us for therest of the year, at least, andpossibly into next year,”Giles said. “And that’s basedon what’s already happen-ing.”

Jill Nolin covers the GeorgiaStatehouse for CNHI's news-papers and websites. Reachher at [email protected].

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BY KAREN MURPHY

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THOMASVILLE —Many dream of winning thelottery and then travelingthe world, buying fancycars and living in big cities.

But one lottery winnertook a different route.

Zippy Vonier returned tohis roots and has started asmall business, Hugh Pro-duce, that he hopes will notjust benefit himself, but alot of his friends, familyand neighbors too.

“Farming is the onlything I know to do,” saidVonier, “My granddaddyHugh was a farmer wholived in Pavo his whole life.I named my business afterhim, to respect and honor

him. He was one of the bestmen I’ve ever known in mylife.

Located on Highway 122between Pavo andThomasville, Hugh Producesits on 30 acres. It is opennow and will have its grandopening June 17. Voniercurrently employees eightothers, three of whom arerelatives.

The charming producestore sports rocking chairson the porch out front andcomfortable tables andchairs inside, designed toencourage people to stayawhile and enjoy conversa-tion, coffee and socializing.“When I was growing up,”said Vonier, “there was al-ways some little businesssomewhere where people

can come by and socialize,drink a little coffee.”

All the produce will begrown in the fields right be-hind the store. They aregrowing 26 different vari-eties of fruits and vegeta-bles, including peas, beans,okra, zucchini, squash,tomatoes and an assortmentof greens. They are alsogrowing grapes as well asapples, blueberries and arelatively uncommon cropfor south Georgia, olives.They will be planting every15 days, so there is alwayssomething fresh. Customerscan go to their website atHughproduce.com to seewhat’s coming in.

“This is not a U-pickplace,” explained DannyDukes, Hugh Produce CEO.

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Zippy Vonier examines hisbell pepper plants growing inthe green house behind theHugh Produce Store.


Located on Highway 122 between Pavo and Thomasville, Hugh Produce is open and had its grand opening June 17.

“When you come here, it’s picked, shelled, washed, baggedand ready to go home.”

“I guarantee there will be nothing in here over threedays,” said Vonier. “On the fourth day it goes to the foodbank. I know when it comes out of the field. I’ll have datesmarked on it. After three days, it’s out of here.”

Additionally, the Voniers are raising chickens for browneggs and even grass-fed angus, which will be sold “on thehoof,” meaning a customer orders the beef, Hugh Producetakes it to a processor and then the customer picks it upfrom the processor. Hugh Produce is also purchasing livehoney bees in order to sell fresh honey.

“Anything we grow, we’ll sell here,” said Vonier, “and Idon’t think anyone can offer anything any fresher.

“If it’s not good enough for my table, I’m not going tosell it.”

Dukes said of Vonier, “It’s one of the ways he’s givingback to the community. He’s offering the freshest produceand then donating whatever doesn’t sell in that first threedays.”

Beyond that Vonier said that the first year, prices for theproduce will be set by market prices, but after that, he justwants to make enough to cover his expenses and pay hisemployees.

“I want to support what we have here, so it’s not out ofmy pocket book to keep it going, but I’m not here to make abig profit,” said Vonier.



Hugh Produce offers 26 different varieties of fruits and vegetables, including a couple differenttypes of blueberries.


Jordan Hurst plants lima beans on Hugh Produce’s 30 acres.

930146

BY CLINT THOMPSON


TIFTON — University ofGeorgia Associate Dean forCooperative Extension Lau-ra Perry Johnson an-nounced that Mike Stewarthas been named the newdistrict Extension directorfor Southwest District.“Mike is new to Exten-

sion and UGA but brings awealth of management ex-perience and leadershipskills as well as immenseunderstanding of/insightinto county governments,”Johnson said. “We look for-ward to working with himas the newest member ofthe Georgia Extension ad-ministrative team.”Stewart has served as

county manager and admin-istrator in multiple coun-ties throughout Georgia, in-cluding Colquitt, Ware,Lowndes and Liberty. He al-so served as the assistantdirector for county serviceswith the Association Coun-ty Commissioners of Geor-gia for almost 12 years.Prior to joining UGA Ex-

tension, Stewart was serv-ing as interim city managerin Grantville, Georgia.Stewart was also instru-

mental in helping to estab-lish local governments over-seas in conflict environ-ments, including Iraq andAfghanistan. He served asthe governance sectionchief at the Diyala Provin-cial Reconstruction Team inDiyala, Iraq, for two years.He also led U.S. Agency forInternational Development

(USAID) efforts in the devel-opment of the Afghan Pub-lic Protection Force inAfghanistan and recentlyreturned from another tripto Iraq to provide assistanceto the many internally dis-placed people in the north-ern region of that country.Though Stewart has no

prior Extension experience,he embraces this new ca-reer move with excitementand confidence.“I can’t say enough

about the considerationthat was given to me for theposition. I just hope I canwork hard and fulfill the ex-pectations,” Stewart said.“My approach is to build ateam effort, to maintaincontinuous outreach, tosearch for and find solu-tions to problems. I want tobecome a partner with thecommunity, the staff, the lo-cal governments and pro-vide every resource avail-

able at the disposal of theuniversity system to ourcommunities.”University of Georgia

Extension is a county, stateand federally funded organ-ization that offers learningopportunities through unbi-ased, research-based infor-mation on agriculture, theenvironment, and youthand family development.Stewart will lead work inthe 41 counties that com-prise UGA Extension’sSouthwest District—Baker,Ben Hill, Berrien, Brooks,Calhoun, Clay, Clinch,Colquitt, Cook, Crisp, De-catur, Dooly, Dougherty,Early, Echols, Grady, Hous-ton, Irwin, Lanier, Lee,Lowndes, Macon, Marion,Miller, Mitchell, Peach, Pu-laski, Quitman, Randolph,Schley, Seminole, Stewart,Sumter, Taylor, Terrell,Thomas, Tift, Turner, Web-ster, Wilcox and Worth.

“That’s a tremendous re-sponsibility because, at theend of the day, it’s people.That’s why I’m in publicservice, because I enjoyworking with people. I en-joy making a difference,and I enjoy helping people.Physically, it’s going to beimpossible to be every placeat one time, but I’m going todo my best to do that,”Stewart said.Stewart earned a bache-

lor’s degree in communityplanning and developmentfrom Columbus State Uni-versity and a master’s de-gree in public administra-tion from Valdosta StateUniversity.

Stewart’s office is located inthe UGA Tifton Campus Con-ference Center.

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BY ALAN MAULDIN

[email protected]

MOULTRIE — One co-nundrum of running afarm show that looks todemonstrate new technolo-gies to farmers is that whenit’s a good weather day fordemonstrating, it’s also agood day to be out takingcare of business on thefarm.Despite this circum-

stance, the Sunbelt Agricul-tural Exposition brings intens of thousands each Oc-tober and a smaller audi-ence each July when itgives a tour of its DarrellWilliams Research Farmfield plots.Expo maintains the 600-

acre working farm, withhundreds of acres of cot-ton, along with corn,peanuts and other crops. The July 9 Expo Field

Day brought University ofGeorgia researchers to pro-vide farmers the latest insoil fertility, crop protec-tion, water managementand irrigation technology. Italso brought seed companyrepresentatives to discussthe latest varieties that areavailable and in develop-ment to address specificfarm needs.“The good news is we

had good weather,” ExpoExecutive Director ChipBlalock said. “The bad newsis we had good weather, sosome of the farmers wereout in the fields.”Despite that circum-

stance, more than 350 peo-ple took the tour of thefarm area, down from about400 last year, he said.Southwest Georgia farm-

ers are facing a tough yeardue to low cotton prices.

One silver lining in theequation has been low fuelprices, saving farmers mon-ey on the cost of runningequipment for planting andchemical applications in thefields.“Low fuel prices have

played in,” Blalock said.“It’s (also) lowered fertilizerprices a little bit.”One of the objectives of

Field Day is to address cur-rent issues such as the lowcommodity prices. Re-searchers and agriculturalcompanies aimed to help byhighlighting how to maxi-mize yields while loweringcosts. Topics included weed-

management practices on abudget and new herbicidesreleased for 2015 that weredisplayed in the cottonplots.“This is a tighten-your-

belt and make-it-throughtype of year,” Blalock said.Field Day allows re-

searchers to speak withthose who will put it intopractice, said Steve Brown,a former University ofGeorgia cotton researcherwho now works as cottondevelopment specialist forDow AgriSciences.“It gives the opportunity

in a concentrated time peri-od to expose our new vari-eties to a wide range offarmers,” he said. “It givesthe opportunity to showwhat we have presently andfor (the) future.”For the current year, cot-

ton growers’ lot has beencast, with any improvementin prices depending on howmuch cotton is grown -- andsuccessfully harvested -- inother parts of the countryand in such cotton giants asChina and India, said

Richie Seaton, executive di-rector of the Georgia Cot-ton Commission, who wasat the Field Day.“Obviously the price is-

n’t where we want it to be,”he said. “ That’s why we’rehere today. We fund an aw-ful lot of research to makethese guys as efficient asthey can be.”Come October, during

the three days of the Sun-belt Agricultural Exposi-tion, farmers can see thenewest farm machinerytechnology in the fields har-vesting some of the crop --weather permitting. But forfarmers in the midst of thefall harvest, a bad day to bein the fields is a good day tocheck out the farm show.Attendance over the threedays can reach 80,000 ormore.“We’ve got our sights set

on October for the 38th an-nual Expo,” Blalock said.“Exhibition numbers areprobably 95 percent (occu-pancy) sold out on indoorand outdoor space. Our ex-hibitors know if they comeand show their latest tech-nology, they know we’re go-ing to have the crowd forthem to show them off.”

Field Day: It’s a tighten-your-belt year

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Farmers and agribusinessmentake tram rides through theSunbelt Expo farm in Moultrieto view cotto, corn, peanutsand hay fields. They werebriefed on the latest in insect,fertilizer and watermanagement.

929874


BY MICHAEL MURRAY

AMERICUS — Residentsof Americus and SumterCounty will soon have anew and exciting place tospend some of their freetime. The Wolf Creek Plan-tation, long a popular desti-nation for local golf enthu-siasts, is currently in theprocess of being developedinto a vineyard and winery— a unique addition to thearea.

Sumter County resident,Matt Johnson, and hiscousin and business part-ner, Jerry English, boughtthe former golf course afterit had been sold at auctionseveral years ago and haveundertaken the massivetask of converting the onceimpeccably manicured fair-ways into a haven for mus-cadine growth.

The land had been inJohnson’s family for gener-

ations before his uncle soldthe golf course.

“It was kind of sad to seeit go into someone else’shands.” Johnson said.“Then it went through acouple of different owners,and was eventually lost.The bank repossessed itand tried to run it as a golfcourse but wasn’t able to, sothey auctioned it. Webought it from the personthat they had sold it to. Wewere glad to get it back inthe family.”

English and Johnson,along with vineyard manag-er, Thomas Young, haveplanted seven and one-halfacres of muscadines. Thegroup has planted a widevariety of muscadinespecies over the last twoyears. Johnson said thatthey have two types of winegrapes in development: abronze muscadine called a“Carlos variety” and a

white variety dubbed “No-ble.”

Other species have beenplanted on the land, whichwill be available through lo-cal retailers when theplants are fully matured.Visitors to the plantationwill also have the opportu-nity to pick their own fruiton the premises.

The plants are expectedto be in full production intwo years. At the density atwhich the vines have beenplanted, the group is antici-pating a harvest of abouteight tons per acre whenthe vines are fully matured.

When the wine produc-tion is ready to begin, thegroup will use a facilityhoused in the former golfcourse’s cart barn to do thefermenting and bottling.Johnson and English hiredanother family member,Hannah Johnson, to super-vise the construction of the

Sumter County vineyardup and running

MICHAEL MURRAY | AMERICUS TIMES-RECORDER

There are currently seven different varieties of muscadines planted on seven and one-half acresat the Wolf Creek Plantation.

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Five individuals make up the crew that manages the WolfCreek Plantation Vineyard. Front row from left are vineyardmanager, Thomas Young and winery manager Hannah Johnson.Back row from left are owners Jerry English, Matt Johnson andSpence Johnson.


This variety of muscadine, named ‘Noble,’ will eventuallyproduce a deep red-colored fruit.

winery and help oversee thedevelopment of the wine.

In addition to mus-cadines, they have alsoplanted pine trees on sec-tions of the land that arenot suitable for fruit pro-duction. Johnson says thatthe trees will help encour-age wildlife diversity on theland and will provide an ad-ditional source of incomefor the family when thetrees have matured.

As for the lakes on theproperty, Johnson hasbrought his brother, SpenceJohnson on board to helpmanage the property’s wa-ter features. Spence saysthat he is working with aprofessional biologist fromPerry to ensure that thelakes provide a one-of-a-kind angling experience forlocal fishermen. The bodiesof water will be opened toanglers through a member-

ship program as soon asthey are deemed suitable bythe biologist. The lakes andponds will be stocked withbream, bass and catfish.Spence said that they areconsidering stocking thelakes with rainbow troutduring the winter monthsto promote year-round an-gling. Every member of theteam involved in developingthe premises seems to agreethat it has been a very re-

warding experience as wellas a daunting undertakingso far. Matt summed up thegroup’s feelings, saying,“We enjoy it. There’s some-thing about being out therein the vineyards ... Whenyou’re out there in the after-noons or on the weekends,tending the vines, it is verypeaceful. Of course, there’salways something to doaround here. It’s a lot ofhard work.”

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BY JILL NOLIN

CNHI State Reporter

ATLANTA — The CleanWater Act’s expanded reachmakes Richard Curtis nerv-ous.Streams crossing Cur-

tis’ family property inGreene County feed into theOconee River. Even thoughCurtis, a forester, doesn’ttap into that water supplytoday, he might one day. The 70-year-old sees the

expanded rule, announcedby President Barack Obamathis week, as another regu-latory hurdle for smallfarms.“It’s brick on brick on

brick - until pretty soonthere’s a wall you can’t getthrough,” he said.The rule seeks to clarify

which smaller waterwaysare covered under the feder-alClean Water Act, aimed atcurtailing pollution. The re-vision flags streams thatmerge with protected bod-ies of water.But the rule was met

with criticism from Repub-licans and farmers who seeit as extreme.As of this week, it re-

mains unclear which Geor-gia waterways gain protec-tion under the rule. KevinChambers, spokesman forthe state EnvironmentalProtection Division, saidthe change will take time toanalyze.But the impact is likely

extensive. EnvironmentGeorgia, an advocacy group,estimated that the rule af-fects 57 percent of nearly

40,000 miles of streams inGeorgia — including water-ways that feed into the Sa-vannah, Flint and Chatta-hoochee rivers.Jennette Gayer, the

group’s director, celebratedthe rule as the most signifi-cant step for clean water inmore than a decade.However, it’s struck a

nerve with farmers sincebeing proposed last spring.“Keep your conniving,

grubby hands off my littlepiece of Georgia,” a farmerwrote in one of the manypublic comments submittedto the U.S. EnvironmentalProtection Agency last year.

The Georgia Farm Bu-reau claimed credit onTwitter for more than 15,000comments submittedagainst the rule after it wasproposed. The group op-posed the changes becauseof a far-reaching definitionof “tributary” that it sayswill compromise privateproperty rights.The farm bureau’s staff

was still analyzing the 297-page rule last week to deter-mine any impact it mighthave on its members.But Jeffrey Harvey, as-

sistant legislative directorfor the group, said in anemail exchange that the

EPA’s preliminary descrip-tions and “aggressive advo-cacy campaign in support ofits original proposed rule”didn’t leave much room foroptimism that the agricul-ture community’s concernswere addressed.Gayer said any contin-

ued opposition from farm-ers is surprising.“They already have a

ton of exemptions, and thisdoes nothing to those ex-emptions,” she said.The federal agencies al-

so offered assurances thatthe rule doesn’t harm farm-ers.“The final rule doesn’t

create any new permittingrequirements for agricul-ture, maintains all previousexemptions and exclusions,and even adds exclusionsfor features like artificiallakes and ponds, water-filled depressions from con-struction, and grass swales -- all to make clear our goalis to stay out of agricul-ture’s way,” wrote EPA Ad-ministrator Gina McCarthyand Jo-Ellen Darcy, assis-tant secretary of the Armyfor Civil Works, in a blogpost.But Andy Bell, a De-

catur County farmer, re-mains unconvinced.

He fears the change willprove “disastrous for allfarmers.”“The expanded defini-

tion of navigable waterswould allow the EPA to reg-ulate private lands aroundsmall water features thatare wet often only duringheavy rainperiods,” he saidin an email. “All farmerswant clean water, but theseregulations go too far.”

Jill Nolin covers the State-house for CNHI’s Georgianewspapers. Reach her at [email protected].

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Save the Date:

Field DayJuly 9th

OCT. 20-22, 2015Moultrie, GA


BY JORDAN HILL

AND CLINT THOMPSON


Heavy rainfall and highwinds contributed to Geor-gia farmers growing fewerVidalia onions this year, butdemand for the popular veg-etable and low yields forTexas onions helped keepprices steady. According to Cliff Riner,

coordinator of the Universi-ty of Georgia Vidalia Onionand Vegetable ResearchCenter, Georgia's onion cropwas limited this year due toan accumulation of in-clement weather. "We had temperatures as

low as 15 degrees (Fahren-heit), hail storms, 40- to 50-mile-per-hour winds and re-

ally heavy rain," Riner said."We were already plant-

ing 400 to 600 acres fewerthan what we have beenplanting. There weren'tmany growers that in-creased their acreage plant-ed after last year. We justharvested an average crop,with some major losses tofields that weren't evenbrought in," he said.Riner said the biggest hit

came on the second maturi-ty group of onions, what isreferred to as the "earlymain season." Two majorstorms brought hail andwinds through southeastGeorgia just as fields werestarting to mature."This group of onions

makes up our largestacreage. Some fields weren't

harvested because of thehail damage, and wherethere was just strong wind,we just didn't get the sizewe needed. When the windlays the tops down andknocks the leaves off, theonion won't increase in sizeas it would normally. Somegrowers suffered lossesworse than others, but theweather brought some chal-lenges (to all growers) thisyear," Riner said.Vidalia onions are har-

vested in only 20 state-sanc-tioned Georgia countiesfrom mid-April throughMay. Though productionwas lacking this season,farmers that did produce agood crop were rewardedwith strong prices. Rinersaid the price could contin-

ue to rise through the sum-mer, as demand is stillstrong and shipping is atfull capacity.A crop shortage in Texas

this year also led to a robustmarket for Georgia produc-ers, according to Riner."Back in January and

February, the national pricesituation on onions waspretty low. However, all ofthat changed because theTexas crop was poor thisyear. They were only able tosell about 20 percent oftheir onions. That 80 per-cent loss really changed Vi-dalia's outlook," Riner said."We could have had a verybad year price-wise, but itreally turned out to be posi-tive by the time our onionswere ready. Tim Coolong

hopes to help boost Georgiafarmers' onion crop in thenear future. The UGA Coop-erative Extension horticul-turist is working with Rinerto study fertility treatmentsof Vidalia onions with thegoal of boosting the indus-try, which had a farm gatevalue of $163 million in2012. This year, Coolong isstudying 14 different fertil-izer treatments and pro-grams in search of one thatbest improves overall yieldquality while reducingrisks. One potential risk is"bolting," when an onionplant flowers prematurely."With our fertility trials,

some varieties bolted veryheavily. In some varieties,up to 30 percent bolted. Oth-er varieties weren't nearly

that bad. Some were downaround 5 to 10 percent,"Coolong said. "When theyflower like that, you can'tsell them."Coolong is also studying

fertilizer's impact on onionflavor and storage life. "Our goal at the end of

this is to develop a commonprogram that we can makeavailable to growers to say,in most years, that this fer-tility program will managetheir risk effectively," Coo-long said. "There may be an odd

year where heavy rains re-quire a more nitrogen-in-tense program to maintainhigh yields, but, on average,what we're hoping to do isto take out some of thatvariability."

Fewer Vidalia onions expected this year

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Page 24 Ag Scene July 2015 July 2015 Ag Scene Page 25

BY BETH ALSTON

[email protected]

AMERICUS — Havingbeen established a scanttwo years ago, the Harvestof Hope Food Pantry on Mc-Garrah Street has been asaving grace for many localfamilies in need.

The shelter, started bySonny and GingerPinckard, serves over 700clients each month, supply-ing them with good, nutri-tious food. If they qualify, aperson can walk away with20 to 25 pounds of food eachmonth. The food pantry hasa board of directors.

Sonny said clients aregiven a bag of canned food,a bag of miscellaneous food(which usually includespeanut butter), a bag ofbread and sweets, a bag ofmeats which could rangefrom filet mignon to groundbeef or pork, to chicken orhot dogs) and a bag of

mixed vegetables. ThePinckards said they pick upfood donated by Food Lionin Americus every day, toadd to the larder.

But that’s not all. Five orsix local farmers, who willremain anonymous, donatefresh produce during thespring and fall. Gleaners ofpears, and other fruit, alsodonate to the food pantry.

These local farmersbring in trailers of squash,zucchini, cucumbers, greenbeans, watermelons,peanuts, cabbage, peppersand sweet potatoes.

“Fresh vegetables can beexpensive to purchase inthe stores, so these dona-tions are a blessing to thepeople who receive them,”Sonny said. “Green beansare really popular.”

Ginger said the doorsopen at 8:30 a.m. on themonthly Tuesday they dis-tribute the food, and often 929919

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Food pantry shares bounty of local farmers

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

Sweet potatoes

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Volunteers with Harvest of Hope Food Pantry wait to give out watermelons.


times, people start liningup by 7 a.m.

After the clients comein and register, they aregiven the food from thewarehouse. Then they aregiven a bag of fresh pro-duce, if available, from infront of the building.When all is done, around11 a.m., whatever produceis left in front is availablefor whoever, according toGinger.

Ginger said they have1,900 clients registered intheir database althoughsome of the people mayhave died or moved awayor gotten a job so theylonger need the food.

Both Pinckards agree

that the need is great inthis community. They areespecially thankful for the“good core group” of vol-unteers who come in andhelp to register clients andpackage food. She said thatmany people they haveserved have come back anddone something nice forthem in appreciation.Some of their clients shopFood Lion just because ofthe store’s generosity.

Harvest of Hope recent-ly relies on private dona-tions. They burned themortgage of their buildingin a recent ceremony, andwelcome any volunteersand monetary or food do-nations.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Green beans


DR. EDDIE SEAGLE

“My life, I realize suddenly,is July. Childhood is June,and old age is August, buthere it is, July, and my life,this year, is July inside ofJuly.”— Rick Bass

Our 4th of July holidayhas come and gone. Withtwo long months until thenext (Labor Day), we try tostuff as much into thesemonths as possible includ-ing summer vacations,weekends at the beach,short trips before schoolstarts again, and so forth.We are a more mobile socie-ty than ever before andhave many opportunitiesfor travel that our ancestorsnever had.

During our travels, wesee landscapes and plantsthat catch our attention.Our first thought iswhether or not these plantswill survive back home. Cit-rus are such plants whetherfor aesthetics or for flavorthat add to the curiosity ofour landscapes.

Shrubs and trees (suchas the grapefruit, lemon,and orange) in the genusCitrus are evergreen, flow-ering plants usually withspines, leathery and aro-matic leaves, and juicy edi-ble fruits surrounded by aleathery aromatic rind. Cit-rus is a common term forthese plants which are be-lieved to have started in thesoutheast Asia area bor-dered by northeast India,

Myanmar and the Yunnanprovince of China.

It is believed that theSpanish initially introducedcitrus into the continentalUnited States near St. Au-gustine, Florida in the late1500's and these plants ulti-mately made their way toArizona and California inthe 1700's. There are twotypes (sweet and acid) ofcitrus that be grown in ourlandscapes for fruit and aes-thetics. Environmental con-ditions, cultural practices,and pest activity can dictatethe degree of successachieved in growing citrusin this area.

The sweet types of citrusinclude grapefruit, man-darins and sweet orangeswhich grow into appealing,

medium to large trees.Grapefruit do not withstandcooler temperatures verywell. The farther the site isfrom the warm coastal ar-eas, the more difficult theyare to grow and survive.Redblush and Star Ruby(red fruit) and Marsh (whitefruit) are seedless cultivarswhich are often plantedwith favorable success.Royal and Triumph (whitefruit) are seedy varietiesthat offer good fruit quality.

The mandarin class ofcitrus has loose skin (easilypeeled), deep coloration andgood flavor. Such citrus in-clude the mandarins, sat-sumas, and tangerines. Theterms mandarin and tan-gerine are often used toidentify the same loose-

skinned fruit depending onwhere you are. What iscalled a mandarin in Cali-fornia may be called a tan-gerine in Florida. Cross pol-lination is necessary forbest fruiting of most tan-gerine varieties.

The satsuma which isself-fruitful will toleratecolder temperatures andproduce more consistentfruits than other types ofsweet citrus. Thus, thesefruit grow very well insouth Georgia. Cultivars in-clude Owari, Silverhill andChangsha. With satsumas,the fruits may be fullyripened while the peel isstill green.

The tangerine is also an-other good type of citrus toplant because of its cold tol-

erance. The satsumas andtangerines are more coldtolerant than grapefruit andsweet oranges. Cultivars oftangerine include Dancy(self-fruitful), Ponkan (self-fruitful), and Clementine(cross pollination).

The tangelos are tanger-ine-grapefruit hybrids thatproduce loose-skinned, tan-gerine-like fruits. Cultivarsinclude Orlando, Lee,Robinson, Osceola, Novaand Page. However, plantalongside Dancy or Clemen-tine for cross pollination forbest fruiting.

If an effort is made togrow sweet oranges, thencold protection will also beneeded (cold damage occursat or below 20 degrees F).Cultivars include Hamlin

Georgia Clipping: Citrus adds curiosity to our landscapes


and Ambersweet. The navalorange is also a good choiceto grow. Cultivars includeWashington, Dream andSummerfield.

The acid types of citrusprovide favorable fruits andmake effective ornamentalspecimens. They are self-fruitful and do not requirecross pollination. Thekumquats are the most coldtolerant of this group. Theywill withstand tempera-tures as low as 15 degrees F.The small orange-like fruitis about one inch in diame-ter and can be eaten fresh(peel and all) or used inmaking jellies, marmaladeand candies. Cultivars in-clude Nagami (oblong topear-shaped fruit with acidpulp), Marumi (round andsweet) and Meiwa (roundand sweet).

The calamondins havesmall, round fruits withacid pulp and look like atangerine. These can begrown as a container plant-ing, either indoors or out-doors, and have good coldtolerance (low 20's degreesF). The fruits are yellow toorange in color and can beused as lemon or lime sub-stitutes.

The lemon is anothergood choice of citrus for thelandscape and will toleratetemperatures in the mid20's degrees F. Meyer is agood cold-tolerant cultivar.The limequat is a very coldtolerant (low 20's degrees F)lime-kumquat hybrid whichmakes a very attractive con-tainer plant. They producefruit resembling the lime inlooks and quality. Eustis,Lakeland and Tavares arecultivars of the limequat.

The Thomasville cit-rangequat is a cold hardycitrus tree with good fruitand makes a great lime sub-stitute with a kumquat/or-

ange flavor. The tree isnamed for Thomasville,Georgia where it first fruit-ed and is will tolerate tem-peratures to 5 degrees Fonce established.

For all citrus, properrootstock selection is criti-cal. Trifoliate orange (Pon-cirus trifoliata) is an effec-tive rootstock for satsumas,oranges, kumquats and tan-gerines. Other rootstocksinclude sour orange,Cleopatra mandarin, andRusk and Carrizon cit-ranges (sweet orange andtrifoliate orange crosses).Cleopatra mandarin makesa great rootstock for man-darins-tangerines and sourorange is not compatible asa rootstock for kumquats.

Citrus trees are self-fruitful and do not requirecross-pollination, exceptingClementine tangerines andOrlando tangelos. The self-fruitful types of citrus maybe grown as single trees inthe landscape for aestheticsand fruit. They producefruit best when grown infull sun, but large treecanopies can provide somedegree of winter protection.Do not plant these treesnear septic tanks or drainfields. Citrus trees do bestin sandy loam soils withgood drainage.

Blossom, fruit, and leafdrop can be noticed in cit-rus and happens naturally.Such natural shedding offlowers and fruits preventscitrus from overproducingwhich minimizes stress tothe plant. Citrus leaves re-main intact for about twoyears and then drop. How-ever, some leaf drop occursthroughout the year as isthe case with most ever-greens. Also, be aware ofother causes for leaf dropand poor plant health suchas environmental condi-

tions, cultural practices,disorders, insects or dis-eases.

If you elect to grow cit-rus in your home land-scape, research your choicebefore purchasing in orderto fully understand what isneeded to keep the plantshealthy and attractive. Lookfor citrus that are cold tol-erant and do well in thesouth Georgia environ-ment.

May the results of yourimmediate efforts be long-lasting so that you can en-joy the fruits of your laborfor seasons to come. Thinksustainability. Keep yourhanging baskets and pottedplants refreshed with waterand food. Remember to feedand water the songbirds,and give your pets the carethey need (do not leavethem unattended in a hotcar or tied to a tree all daylong). Also, be on lookoutfor children playing alongthe streets and roadwaysthroughout our communi-ties this summer. Let's keepeveryone safe.

“And when the ChiefShepherd appears, you willreceive the crown of glorythat will never fade away.” 1Peter 5:4. “In Him [Jesusour Lord] and through faithin Him we may approachGod with freedom and con-fidence.” Ephesians 3:12.

Seagle is a Sustainability As-sociate, Golf Environment Or-ganization (Scotland), Agron-omist and Horticulturalist,CSI: Seagle (Consulting Serv-ices International), ProfessorEmeritus and Honorary Alum-nus, Abraham Baldwin Agri-cultural College, and Associ-ate Editor of The Golf Course,International Journal of GolfScience. Direct inquiries toeddie@csise

TIFTON — U.S. Depart-ment of Agriculture Secre-tary Tom Vilsack and Unit-ed States Trade Representa-tive Michael Froman re-cently announced the ap-pointment of Brenda Mor-ris, peanut farmer fromOcilla, Georgia, to the Agri-cultural Policy AdvisoryCommittee (APAC) and DonKoehler, Georgia PeanutCommission executive di-rector, to the AgriculturalTechnical Advisory Com-mittee for Trade in Tobac-co, Cotton and Peanuts (AT-ACs). "The last six yearshave been the strongest inhistory for U.S. agriculturalexports, with internationalsales of American farm andfood exports totaling $771.7billion," says Sec. Vilsack."Those exports now supportmore than a million qualityAmerican jobs. As we nego-tiate new trade agreementsin Asia and Europe we willrely on APAC and ATACmembers' expertise andknowledge to bring homethe best possible deals."

Morris was reappointedto serve on the AgriculturalPolicy Advisory Committeeuntil June 15, 2019. Morrishas been farming with herhusband, Armond, in Ocil-la, Georgia, for 52 years.The farm totals 2,500 acresof peanuts, cotton, corn andsmall grains. "I feel privi-leged as a farmer to be ableto serve on APAC and pro-vide advice regarding tradepolicy and the impact oftrade negotiations," Morrissays. "Trade is important tofarmers as we continue toseek additional export op-portunities and develop pol-icy and trade negotiationsthat will benefit the Ameri-can farmer."

Koehler's reappointmentto the Agricultural Techni-cal Advisory Committee(ATAC) for Trade in Tobac-co, Cotton and Peanuts is ef-fective through June 15,2019. The Tobacco, Cottonand Peanuts ATAC providestechnical advice on U.S.agricultural trade issues tothe Secretary of Agricul-ture and the United StatesTrade Representative (US-TR). "I am honored to rep-resent the peanut farmersof Georgia on the ATACCommittee," Koehler says."We are making greatstrides in the export marketfor peanuts and we need tocontinue to focus our ef-forts on increasing trade asour productivity continuesto advance."

Congress established the

advisory committee systemin 1974 to ensure a private-sector voice in establishingU.S. agricultural trade poli-cy objectives to reflect U.S.commercial and economicinterests. The U.S. Depart-ment of Agriculture andthe Office of the U.S. TradeRepresentative jointly man-age the committees.

The APAC provides ad-vice and information to theSecretary of Agricultureand the U.S. Trade Repre-sentative on the administra-tion of trade policy; includ-ing enforcement of existingtrade agreements and nego-tiating objectives for newtrade agreements. The AT-ACs offer technical adviceand information about spe-cific commodities and prod-ucts.

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Morris and Koehler appointed to USDAcommittees on agricultural trade

BY CLINT THOMPSON

UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA

TIFTON — A Universityof Georgia vegetable horti-culturist is searching fornew varieties to help Geor-gia squash farmers improvethe state’s $24.7 millionsquash industry. Yellowsquash is predominantlygrown in the South, as morenational acreage is devotedto growing zucchini. ManyGeorgia growers face agreater demand to producezucchini than traditionalyellow squash.

“In terms of farm gatevalue, it’s (squash is) not assignificant a crop as water-melons or onions, but weare consistently one of the

top squash-producing statesin the country,” said TimCoolong, a scientist withthe UGA College of Agricul-tural and EnvironmentalSciences.

Coordinating researchtrials on the UGA TiftonCampus, Coolong is investi-gating multiple varieties inan effort to find improvedsquash selections that meetgrowers’ increasingly strin-gent demands: resistance todisease, early harvest andimproved shelf life.

“With viruses and otherissues, there are a lot of dis-ease problems in the fallthat growers have to con-tend with (when growingsquash). We also strive forearliness and early produc-

tivity, because growers areusually chomping at the bitto get to market. If pricesare high early, they want tobe in there making money,”Coolong said. “Then, ofcourse, storage quality is abig factor producers want toimprove upon.”

Squash generally does-n’t have a long shelf life, hesaid. Adding even a coupleof days of improvement instorage life can make a bigdifference for growers.

Coolong is in the midstof his third season studyingdifferent squash varieties.So far, he is pleased withthe progress.

“When we started,southwest Georgia varietytrials hadn’t been conduct-

ed in several years. In thefirst season, we just wantedto seewhere some of the va-rieties stood relative to eachother. Now we are workingwith some seed companiesto evaluate pre-commercialselections so that we can an-ticipate what will be reach-ing the market in the nextfew seasons,” Coolong said.

When grown from seed,squash takes 38 to 40 days tostart fruiting. Once harvestseason arrives, squash aretypically picked every otherday. When temperaturesrise, growers may harveston a daily schedule.

Coolong’s UGA re-search crew harvests threedays per week and on someweekends, totaling 12 to 15

seasonal harvests.Out of the more than

two dozen vegetables thatCoolongstudies, dependingon the growing season, hedevotes approximately 10 to20 percent of his researchtime to squash.

“Working with squashis nice because there arelarge differences, plant toplant, in how much fruit isproduced, compared to oth-er crops where the yield isprimarily determined bythe plant stand,” Coolongsaid. “Assuming you get acomparable plant stand inyour trials, sometimes youwon’t see a lot of differencein varieties (when it comesto other crops). In some-thing like squash, you can

see a large difference be-tween varieties as far asproductivity.”

Though squash is plant-ed both from seeds andtransplants, Coolong usestransplants in his researchtrials to ensure an evenplant stand.

Coolong said the mar-ket for squash is veryvolatile. As of two weeksago, prices were “good,though they could alwaysbe better.”

According to the UGACenter for Agribusinessand Economic Develop-ment, squash accounted for2.48 percent of Georgia’svegetable crop in 2013, andwas grown on 4,587 acres.

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DIXIE — Garrett Brewer of Dixieis getting a head start on a possiblecareer in agriculture by spending hissummer working directly with farm-ers in the field. Brewer is one of twocollege students in Georgia to receivea field sales internship with Monsan-to Company this summer.

Brewer, studying diversified agri-culture at Abraham Baldwin Agricul-ture College, will spend three monthsworking alongside a knowledgeableDeltapine customer representative inTifton, Georgia.

“Monsanto is a great company towork for, with employees that arewilling to help you better yourself ineverything that you do,” said Brewer,who is back for his third summer in-

ternship with the company. “I lookforward to gaining more knowledgeabout Monsanto’s company and prod-ucts, as well as building relationshipswith customers.”

Throughout the summer, Brewerwill work with 40 growers to assesstheir needs and propose possible so-lutions, allowing him to expand hisknowledge of agriculture and buildrelationships with farmers.

Monsanto’s internship programplaces students on the inside track toa career with an industry leader. Lastyear, approximately 70 percent of thecompany’s full-time hires out of col-lege came from the intern program,and it is expected to be even higherthis year.

“We see three types of studentsapply for the internship,” said RoddWhitney, Monsanto talent acquisitionspecialist. “Those who have neverhad any exposure to ag, those whogrew up in a rural area but not on afarm, and those who grew up on afarm. We have a good representationfrom all three of these sectors thisyear. This internship is a great op-portunity for those considering ag toget their feet wet.”

There are 44 field sales internsacross the country this summer. On-line applications for next summerwill be available on August 1. Tolearn more about Monsanto intern-ships, visit Monsanto.com/students.

Intern program provides inside track for future ag careers

9272

21


BY CLINT THOMPSON


TIFTON — A three-time Young Scholar, DaceeBlawn has been trans-formed by the University ofGeorgia College of Agricul-tural and EnvironmentalSciences (CAES) programfor high school students.Once aspiring to be an artmajor, the Ocilla, Georgia,native now has dreams ofpursuing a career in aqua-culture.

“I didn’t think that agri-culture was for me until Igot into the program. Itmade me realize that there’smore than just livestock.

There’s a lot of other stuffthat goes into agriculture,”Blawn said.

As part of the YoungScholar Program, Blawnhas worked alongside GaryBurtle for three summerson the UGA Tifton Campus.Burtle, a UGA CAES aqua-culturist, is leading Blawnthrough a food safety proj-ect studying the presenceof bacteria on the surfacesof vegetables growing in anaquaponics system.

“We’re using fish waterthat has fish waste in it.Even though we filter thatwater, there’s still some bac-teria carried through thesystem. We want to show

that fish bacteria are notthe dangerous bacteria thatwe’re seeing in so manyfood recalls,” Burtle said.“We feel like a hydroponicsgrower has got to prove thesafety of their product.We’re trying to find a sim-ple method to test for bacte-ria on aquaponic produce.”

Blawn will present herresearch findings duringthe Young Scholars Pre-col-legiate Research Confer-ence, held in Athens, Geor-gia, July 8-10. The three-dayevent caps the six-week pro-gram that draws advancedhigh school students, likeBlawn, to UGA CAES cam-puses in Tifton, Griffin and

Three students journey into Young Scholars

CLINT THOMPSON | UGA

Dacee Blawn, rising college freshman, works for Gary Burtle.Continued on page 34

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“Both of my childrenare Young Scholar alumni.As a parent, I was veryaware of the benefits of theprogram,” said SuzAnneLamb, coordinator of theYoung Scholars Program inTifton. “Along with TeriHughes, assistant coordina-tor, I say this has been a funlearning experience for me,too. It is very rewarding tobe a part of a program thatoffers those 'ah-ha' mo-ments to our students. It isexciting to be a part of suchan outstanding program.”

Logan Seeman, arising

senior at Tift County HighSchool, had no agriculturalbackground prior to beingselected for the program.However, through her workwith UGA CAES entomolo-gist Jason Schmidt, Seemanis learning about beneficialinsects and their impor-tance to various crops andthe environment.

“It’s very interesting,”Seeman said. “It definitelygives you working experi-ence, but you’re still in thecomfortable position of be-ing a high school student.You have someone to helpyou out and teach you, butyou can still be independ-ent at the same time.”

Schmidt’sresearch fo-cuses on improving agri-

cultural management sys-tems to preserve beneficialinsects. Seeman and fellowYoung Scholar, Travis Gar-rick, are studying helpfulinsects, like ladybugs andspiders.

“Projects that are easyto do in a very short periodare lab-based, so we’re ex-ploring the different effectsof agricultural chemicalson behavior and the mortal-ity of beneficial insects,”Schmidt said.

Schmidt, who started atUGA Tifton in January,wanted to be a Young Schol-ar mentor because of pastexperiences with similarprograms. While he is ex-periencing the Young Schol-ar Program for the first


Logan Seeman, rising senior at Tift County High School, works for Jason Schmidt.

Continued on page 36


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time, other UGA facultymembers choose to mentoryear after year. Such is thecase for Babu Srinivasan, aUGA CAES research ento-mologist, who has mentoredin the program for sevenyears.

“This is a good way torecruit students to get intoscience and especially to getinto UGA. That’s one of ourmain goals, while at thesame time creating bettercitizens of science for to-morrow,” Srinivasan said.“In the process, we’re ableto get them to do small proj-ects for us. They gettrained. It’s a win-win situa-

tion for all involved.”Rising junior Robinson

Wallace of Colquitt County,Georgia, is learning fromAmanda Smith, an agricul-tural economist on the UGATifton Campus. Wallace isworking on an irrigationproject, studying the eco-nomic feasibility of a local-farmer drilling a well andadding two pivots to provideirrigation for crops on 110acres. Considering the fu-ture commodity prices andthe financial investmentneeded, Wallace is examin-ing what the returns-to-irri-gation would be.

“He’s looking at in-

creased yield as a result ofirrigation and also thechange of costs, because ir-rigated crops cost a little bitmore to grow. He’s alsolooking at what principalinterest payments would befor that grower to financethe pivots and well,” Smithsaid. “His job is to figureout if it’s worth the invest-ment.”

Young Scholars on theUGA Tifton Campus thissummer are from Colquitt,Dougherty, Irwin,Lowndes,Sumter, Tift and Worthcounties.


Deep Patel, rising senior at Tift County High School, works for Glen Rains.

929223


BY CLINT THOMPSON


TIFTON — High sum-mer temperatures and in-tense sun could reduce theend of Georgia’s watermel-on crop this year, accordingto University of GeorgiaCooperative Extension veg-etable horticulturist TimCoolong. Coolong joined theUGA College of Agricultur-al and Environmental Sci-ences two years ago to workon Georgia-grown vegeta-bles, especially those withthe most acreage in thestate — watermelons, pep-pers, beans, cucumbers andonions.

Soaring temperatures have watermelon farmers feeling the heat

Continued on page 38

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Temperatures last weekin south Georgia wererecorded in the upper 90s.Temperatures on the UGATifton Campus reached ashigh as 97.5 degrees Fahren-heit on Wednesday, June 17,according to UGA’s GeorgiaAutomated EnvironmentalMonitoring Network. At thegrounds of the SunbeltAgricultural Exposition inMoultrie, Georgia, a high of98 F was recorded the sameday.

Watermelons are sus-ceptible to sunburning inthe fields, which detractsfrom their marketability.Particularly after the firstharvest, when vines are“beat down a little bit,”cooler temperatures orcloud cover help the crop,Coolong said.

Because of the in-creased heat over the pastweek, risk for sunburnedwatermelons has been high.If watermelons do sun-

burn, they may not be mar-ketable, which may reducefarmers’ normal timeframefor selling their crop.

Coolong said mostfarmers aim to sell theirwatermelons in the pre-Ju-ly Fourth market, when wa-termelons are moved mostfrequently. Some farmersstill harvest watermelons aweek or two after the Inde-pendence Day holiday.How-ever, as the heat adverselyaffects more watermelons,Coolong believes many pro-ducers’ crops may be fin-ished by the end of June.

“With the near-100 de-gree heat we’re seeing, theintense sunlight, it’s just re-ally hard to keep those mel-ons from getting burned,”Coolong said.

When watermelonsburn, the rind can appearyellowed, which negativelyaffects the fruit’s appear-ance. The result is an un-marketable melon.

“As a homeowner, ifyou had watermelons thatwere a little sunburned,they would taste OK,” Coo-long said. “Sometimes, ifthey get a little sunburned,they’ll mature early. You al-so may get a melon thatdoesn’t have the size on itthat you would expect.”

Coolong said farmersare applying different typesof sprays to their watermel-ons to help shield themfrom the sun. Many of theproducts used this seasonare calcium or kaolin-claybased.

“People have beenspraying them very regular-ly this year. Typically, afterthat first pick, a large num-ber of growers will spraysomeshade on their remain-ing melon crop. This year,it’s even more critical. Ifthe vines are beat up andit’s 100 degrees, it’s hard fora plant to come back afterthat,” Coolong said.

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Griffin, Ga. – More than200 people gathered June 24for a groundbreaking cere-mony that brought new tur-fgrass research and educa-tion facilities on the Univer-sity of Georgia’s campusesin Griffin, Tifton andAthens one step closer tocompletion.

Local, state, industryand UGA representativesmet on the UGA Griffincampus to officially markthe university’s continuedcommitment to an industrythat provides 87,000 full-and part-time jobs through-out the state.

“Turfgrass is one ofGeorgia’s largest agricul-tural commodities, and thefuture of the turfgrass in-dustry—now valued atnearly $8 billion—is very

bright,” said UGA PresidentJere W. Morehead. “At theheart of the industry’sgrowth and developmentlies UGA’s College of Agri-cultural and EnvironmentalSciences. Our turfgrass sci-entists conduct leading re-search, provide training toindustry professionals andprepare students to be lead-ers in turfgrass manage-ment.”

During the 2014 legisla-tive session, Gov. NathanDeal and the Georgia General Assembly approved$11.5 million for a statewideturfgrass facilities enhance-ment project. Outdated facilities on UGA’s campus-es will be replaced withlabs, greenhouses, class-rooms and office spaces designed to keep the univer-

sity at the forefront of turfbreeding programs aroundthe nation.

“In business, you’re on-ly as good as your ability tokeep ahead of your com-petitors. In Georgia, our sodgrowers and turf profes-sionals are fortunate tohave a world-class turfgrassprogram to keep themahead of our friends andcompetitors in otherstates,” said J. Scott Angle,the college’s dean and direc-tor. “Much of the past suc-cess of our sod and turf in-dustry is a direct result ofthe many varieties of turf-grass generated here (inGriffin), in Tifton and alsoin Athens.”

The college has beenserving the turfgrass indus-try for more than 60 years,

starting in the 1950s with awarm-season turfgrassbreeding program. UGA re-searchers—known as theTurf Team—continue to de-velop and evaluate new va-rieties, searching for thosethat require less fertilizerand are more drought, dis-ease and pest tolerant. Inthe college, 10 faculty mem-bers focus primarily on turfalong with an additionaleight researchers who haveinvolvement in turf-relatedprojects.

“Our state has a huge investment in humancapital and machinery and equipment in the(turf) industry, and to come down here to what Ifeel like, in a lot of cases, isthe home of the green in-dustry in our state means

so much,” said Rep. TerryEngland (R-Auburn), chair-man of Georgia’s House Ap-propriations Committee.Turf, he continued, “is justone of those things thatgives enjoyment to every-body.”

Additional ceremonyspeakers included TommyHopkins, regent of the Uni-versity System of Georgia,and Ken Morrow, presidentof Sod Atlanta Inc.

Turf developed at UGAhas been underfoot on aninternational scale—atWorld Cup soccer tourna-ments and Olympic venuesincluding the upcominggames in Japan—and grac-ing fields locally, includingSanford Stadium and theUGA practice facilities.

Ultimately, a turf

scientist’s work is aboutbuilding relationships, saidBecky Grubbs, a doctoralstudent in the college’s cropand soil sciences depart-ment.

“In turfgrass science,we do not grow food, and wedo not grow fiber. We growhuman experiences and hu-man connections,” Grubbsexplained. “We grow thesoccer fields that childrenplay on during the week-ends, we grow the footballfields that we love to visitevery fall, we grow theparks that we spread blan-kets out on to watch fire-works, we grow the yardsthat we stand on in our barefeet, and we grow the golfcourses that someone’sgrandfather plays everySunday.

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TIFTON — A “green su-perfood” is making its wayinto the mainstream and in-to the fields of southwestGeorgia farms, according toa University of Georgia veg-etable expert.

In the past, kale has beengrown for use as a garnishfor salad bars. Increasedconsumer demand in con-nection with its manyhealth benefits has Georgiafarmers planting, and sell-ing, more of the leafygreen, said University ofGeorgia Extension horticul-turist Tim Coolong.

Georgia growers whohave traditionally cultivat-ed collard, mustard and

turnip greens have nowadded kale.

“Consumer demand hasincreased, so large growershave been asked to grow it,”Coolong said. “They can sellwhat they’re growing, andbecause of the demand,they can sometimes marketit at a higher price pointthan other greens. If con-sumers demand it, growerswill grow it.”

Kale is typically grownlike other greens, making iteasy for existing growers toincorporate it into theirfarming systems, he said.Kale has a similar flavor totraditional greens, andthere are multiple ways to

prepare it. Its growing pop-ularity is linked to its per-ceived health benefits, ac-cording to Coolong.

“Researchers have fo-cused on the impact oflutein levels in kale, withsome studies showing that alutein-rich diet, featuringvegetables such as kale, canhelp slow macular degener-ation along with a numberof other positive health at-tributes,” Coolong said. “Al-though many associate highlevels of carotenoids withmore colorful vegetables,kale has long been knownto have abundant levels ofcarotenoids, among thehighest levels of all vegeta-

bles.”According to the Nation-

al Institutes of Health, di-etary carotenoids arethought to decrease the riskof disease, particularly cer-tain cancers and eye dis-ease.

“Leafy crops are good toeat, and other greens can bejust as nutritious as kale,”Coolong said.

Judy Harrison, UGA Ex-tension food and nutritionspecialist, says kale hasbeen grown for centuries,but its resurgence is due toa greater emphasis onhealthy diets.

“I think the emphasis oneating more fruits and veg-

etables and including a va-riety of these in our dietshas helped people rediscov-er kale,” she said.

Kale is a member of thecabbage family, contains nofat or cholesterol and is lowin sodium. It provides anabundance of vitamins Aand C, which Harrison sayshelp ensure bodies workproperly.

“Increased intakes offruits and vegetables mayhelp prevent obesity andmay help to reduce risk ofchronic diseases, like Type2 diabetes, cancer and car-diovascular disease,” shesaid.

With such a high de-

mand placed on kale, UGACollege of Agricultural andEnvironmental Sciences re-searchers are evaluating awider selection of varietiesthat growers may plant.

Seed supplies of someof the more traditional va-rieties have been short dueto the increase in populari-ty, Coolong said.

“We’re still working onthe variety trials,” he said.“Some new selections areworking well, but we haveonly a few seasons of data.”

To incorporate kale inyour diet, Harrison sug-gests adding it to stir-fry, us-ing it as a smoothie ingredi-ent or baking kale chips.

Georgia farmers planting, selling more kale

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Special to the Thomasville Times-Enterprise

THOMASVILLE – Whatare mayhaw berries? Ismayhaw jelly any good, youask?Mayhaw berries – also

affectionately known asmayhaws or hawthornberries – is the fruit of thecommon hawthorn tree(Crataegus monogyna).Hawthorn trees providesfood and shelter for manyspecies of birds and mam-mals. In China, mayhaw

berries are called sh’nzh’.They are used in the pro-duction of Chinese snackssuch as haw flakes, jams,jellies, and tanghulu – andin the production of juices,alcoholic beverages, andother drinks. In Mexico,mayhew berries are calledtejocotes – and are eatenraw, cooked, and/or used tomake jam in the wintermonths. At Christmas, theberries are combined withother fruits and brewed intoa popular Yuletide punch.Mayhaw berries are alsopopular in Canada, Iran,and in many other coun-tries.In the swamps of South

Georgia, wild mayhawberries are gathered from aboat by scoops or nets. Theharvest season is the monthof May. The name mayhawis derived from [1] themonth of May – when theberries are ripe, and [2]hawthorn – the type of treethe berries grow on. Wild mayhaw berries re-

semble pink cranberries.Mayhaw jelly is considered

to be a great delicacy. Be-cause of its place in the ap-ple family, mayhaw jellytastes like apple jelly with akick. Mayhaw jelly is goodon bagels, hot buttered bis-cuits, and toast. Some peo-ple use mayhaw jelly as acondiment for roastedchicken, turkey, wild game.Others use mayhaw jelly asan alternative to mint jellywhen serving lamb.Cindy Lewis – owner of

Lewis Produce inThomasville – remarked:“Many residents in theSouth love serving mayhawjelly to their loved ones. Wesell a lot of mayhaw jelly,and a lot of mayhew berriesfor those who enjoy makingtheir own jelly. Many North-erners call me to order jellybecause they can’t find it upthere.” Lewis noted that theberries can be frozen formaking mayhew jelly later.Cindy Taylor – house

manager at Pinion PointPlantation – added, “Every-one who lives here lovesmayhaw jelly. We purchaseit quite frequently – and wenever run out. In fact, weserve mayhaw jelly everymorning at breakfast.”Colquitt, a small town in

Southwest Georgia, is homeof the National MayhawFestival. Terry Toole – pub-lisher of the Miller CountyLiberal, Colquitt’s family-owned weekly newspaper –said this year’s NationalMayhaw Festival was one ofthe best.“The rains the night be-

fore the festival and paradedampened the event some,but the next day was nearperfect,” Toole explainedabout the mid-April event.

Four Colquitt women, in-cluding Toole’s wife, BettyJo, along with Joy Jinks,Dot Wainright and PatBush, operated a plant inColquitt that delivered may-haw products throughoutthe United States and inother parts of the world.Said Toole, “The reason

for the mayhaw plant was toallow people an outlet forthe mayhaw berries. Somemade up to $200 or more perday gathering the tart, wildberry that made ‘The BestJelly in The World.’ It reallyis the best!”

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Cindy Lewis, owner of Lewis Produce in Thomasville – remarked: ‘Many residents in the South love serving mayhaw jelly to theirloved ones. We sell a lot of mayhaw jelly, and a lot of mayhew berries for those who enjoy making their own jelly. ManyNortherners call me to order jelly because they can’t find it up there.’

MACON – No matterwhere you are in Georgia,chances are there's a farmnearby offering fresh fruitsand vegetables. Some farmshave a high profile andsome don't, but they all of-fer nutritious and deliciousproduce. Georgia peachesare a summer staple but thestate's namesake fruit isjust one of many cropsavailable at Georgia FarmBureau's Certified FarmMarkets (CFMs).Visitors come for the

food. The interactions arefree. “They can come outhere and meet the peoplewho actually planted theseed to grow the fruit orvegetables or raise the beeffor the steak they're eating,”said Ivy Lowrey ofLowrey's Rome GrownFarm Market in FloydCounty. “You can't go to thegrocery store and meet theperson who started the seedand harvested the actualproduct.” The Lowrey fami-ly started farming in north

Floyd County in the 1920s.Ivy and her husband John,the family's third genera-tion of farmers, opened afarm market 10 years ago tosell their corn directly tothe public. Since then,they've added other pro-duce, all-natural beef fromthe cattle they raise andwhole-hog sausage, as wellas peach ice cream.“It's the things that we

raise here on our farm thatwe provide to our communi-ty and we like to bring it infresh every day and sell it,”Lowrey said. The GFB CFMs also of-

fer a set of experiences al-most as varied as the pro-duce. Next month, for in-stance, Lowrey's will hostThe Great Valley Exposi-tion, featuring antique trac-tors and farm equipmentand displays detailing agri-cultural history. OtherCFMs around the state hosttheir own festivals, andmany CFMs also offer pick-your-own produce and fami-

ly fun activities. Other prod-ucts like jams and jelliesare available, and manyCFMs also share recipes soconsumers can make theirown. For unique and easy-to-make recipes featuringpeaches and your other fa-vorite farm products visitthe GFB recipe page athttp://www.gfb.org/recipes. With more than 90locations around the state,most Georgians are lessthan an hour from at leastone CFM, where the fresh-est possible fruits and veg-etables await.“Our Certified Farm

Markets have something foreveryone,” said GFB Presi-dent Zippy Duvall. “Thefood frequently comes di-rectly from the field, so itdoesn't get any fresher. Plus,the on-farm experiencesprovide additional value forconsumers who make thetrip to the farm.”For a complete list of the

GFB Certified Farm Mar-kets, visit http://www.gfb.org/commodities/cfm/default.html. Founded in1937, Georgia Farm Bureauis the state's largest generalfarm organization. Its vol-unteer members activelyparticipate in local, districtand state activities that pro-mote agriculture awarenessto their non-farming neigh-bors. GFB also has 20 com-modity advisory commit-tees that give the organiza-tion input on issues perti-nent to the major commodi-ties grown in Georgia.


Summer produce offered at local farmsSUBMITTED PHOTO

Fresh fruits and vegetablesare available at Georgia FarmBureau’s Certified FarmMarkets (CFMs).

BY CLINT THOMPSON


TIFTON — Mark Ab-ney’s message to Georgiapeanut farmers is the sametoday as it was two yearsago, when he was hired asthe University of Georgia’sresearch and CooperativeExtension peanut entomolo-gist: “We need to be scout-ing more of our peanuts.”

The majority of Geor-gia’s peanut acreage, whichis expected to be between725,000 and 750,000 acresthis year, is not scouted. Ab-ney insists this is a majorproblem.

In a recent UGA Exten-sion survey of peanut grow-ers, only 25 percent of re-spondents reported moni-toring their crop through apaid scout or consultant.

“This is discouraging,

but it’s also an opportunityfor UGA Extension to letgrowers know the benefitsof regular scouting and,hopefully, increase thescouted acreage,” Abneysaid. “There are very fewacres overall that are sys-tematically scouted. Thatmeans we’re treating a lotof fields for insects thatdon’t need to be treated andwe’re probably treatingsome fields that needed tobe treated last week, thisweek.”

The lack of scoutingmeans Georgia peanutfarmers are incorrectlyspending money and timetreating diseases and pests,and basing insecticideappli-cation decisions on incom-plete or incorrect informa-tion, Abney said.

“That means many ofour spray decisions are

based on what our neigh-bors are doing or whatsomebody has seen in a dif-ferent field,” Abney said.“Maybe you walk into afield and see a problem andsay, ‘OK, I’m going to sprayeverything.’ We reallystress hiring someonewhose job it is to scout yourpeanuts.”

Farmers also tend toautomatically spray an in-secticide and a fungicide tosave time. That can be cost-ly, however, as insecticidesprays can cost more than$15 per acre.

“We’re not usuallyscouting for diseases be-cause we know we have tospray. It’s easy for a growerto say, ‘I’ve got to spray afungicide on this field any-way, so let me throw someinsecticide in there for in-surance.’ There are prob-

lems with that approach,”he said.

Also, ill-advised spray-ing can lead to the declineof natural predators, whichcould open up an even big-ger problem.

“If you go into a cottonfield, the fruit of the cottonis right there. If it’s gettingeaten, you can see it; with peanuts, it is not thateasy. The most serious pestsof peanuts are usually be-low the ground; the cater-pillars we see eating leavesare not nearly as importantas the insects we do not see

eating the pegs and pods be-low the ground,” Abneysaid.

Growers often use abroad-spectrum materiallike a pyrethroid, he said,because of its low cost. Butthese chemicals can wipeout natural enemies andlead to more pest problems.

Some of the insects thatGeorgia peanut farmers aremost wary of are lessercornstalk borers and bur-rower bugs. Both can wreakhavoc in peanut fields if leftuntreated. Abney remindsgrowers that just because

their neighbor’s peanutsmay be infested, doesn’tmean their crop is, too.

“The single, most im-portant thing that we canchange in Georgia to helpus with insect managementis to scout more acres,” Ab-ney said.

Georgia is the country’slargest producer ofpeanuts. According to the UGA Center forAgribusiness and EconomicDevelopment, Georgia gen-erated $507.4 million infarm gate value for peanutsin 2013.

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UGA entomologist stresses scouting fields for pests to Georgia peanut farmers

CLINT THOMPSON/UGA

Pictured are dug-up peanut plants on a dry land peanut field in east Tift County on Tuesday,Sept. 9, 2014.

BY CLINT THOMPSON


TIFTON — The Univer-sity of Georgia’s C.M.Stripling Irrigation Re-search Park (SIRP), inCamilla, Georgia, providedheat relief for South Geor-gia 4-H’ers on Wednesday,June 3 during the annual 4-H20 Camp.

More than 130 campersattended the second sessionof the three-day camp at SIRP. They learned about water conservation,water’s importance in agriculture and its

environmental impact.“The camp is all about

helping our 4-H studentsunderstand the importanceof water to our region ofthe state, and why it’s im-portant to protect it, con-serve it and use it wisely soit will be around for futureuse,” said Calvin Perry,SIRP superintendent.

The camp is a collabora-tive effort coordinatedevery year by SIRP, MitchellCounty Extension and theFlint RiverQuarium in Al-bany, Georgia. MitchellCounty was one of 11 coun-ties – the others being Bak-

er, Calhoun, Colquitt, Crisp,Decatur, Dougherty, Lee,Mitchell, Quitman, Ran-dolph, Sumter, Terrell andWorth – with 4-H’ers in at-tendance.

“Our 4-H’ers enjoy groupactivities. They like tospend time with theirfriends from other countiesand learn at the same time;4-H20 is the perfect activityfor that,” said Jennifer Gro-gan, Mitchell County Exten-sion coordinator. “It is vitalthat youth learn about theimportance of water to thegrowth of plants and South-west Georgia agriculture,

while at the same time real-izing that yes, plants needwater, but not too much.”

This year marks theeighth year 4-H20 has beenheld. The camp started as asummer activity forMitchell County 4-H’ers in2008. Surrounding countiesexpressed interest in partic-ipating and, the followingyear, 4-H20 was turned intoa districtwide camp.

The camp started onTuesday at the FlintRiverQuarium in Albany.

On Wednesday at SIRP,the 4-H’ers learned aboutwater’s importance towildlife from NickFuhrman, an associate pro-fessor in UGA’s College ofAgricultural and Environ-mental Science. Also known

as “Ranger Nick,”Fuhrman brought along an-imals native to Georgia tohelp him teach the children.

Sylvia Davis, BakerCounty Extension’s familyand consumer sciencesagent, taught the impor-tance of staying cool andhydrated with water duringthe hot Georgia summer.

Wes Porter, UGA Exten-sion irrigation specialist,showed the children an irri-gation pivot and talkedabout water’s role in thegrowth of crops.

“Unless children growup on a farm, sometimesit’s hard to understandwhat goes into producing acrop. During this camp wespecifically focused on wa-ter use and the importance

of water in agriculture,”Porter said. “It’s easy tothink that we don’t need ir-rigation, or that irrigationwater is free and plentifulfor everyone to use. Ourmain focus was informingthe campers about the im-portance of our water re-sources and what we can doto conserve them.”

On Thursday, the stu-dents will meet with RomeEthredge, Seminole CountyExtension agent, at An-drews Lock and Dam on theChattahoochee River. Thecamp will conclude laterThursday at a water park inDothan, Alabama.

For more about Georgia4-H programs, go to geor-gia4h.org.


4-H20 Camp visits Stripling Irrigation Research Park

CLINT THOMPSON | UGA.

Calvin Perry is superintendent of Stripling Irrigation Research Park.

BY CLINT THOMPSON


TIFTON — In addition tolow prices, controlling ne-matodes is top priority forGeorgia cotton farmers. Butwith one effective controlmethod being taken awayand a new one in short sup-ply, University of Georgiaresearchers and Coopera-tive Extension agents areworking quickly to helpfarmers find a solution.Nematodes are micro-

scopic worms that can havea devastating effect on cot-ton and other row crops.Root-knot nematodes causethe most problems becauseof the wide range of theirrow crop hosts.“Behind water and soil

nutrients, nematodes arethe biggest limiting factorin terms of yield in mycounty. Cotton farmers arealways trying to find some-thing to help control nema-todes,” said Andrew Shirley,the UGA Extension agricul-tural and natural resourcesagent in Mitchell County.Since the aldicarb pesti-

cide Temik was phased outof use a few years ago,growers have been search-ing for a replacement fornematode control, UGA Ex-tension plant pathologistBob Kemerait said.“In our cotton ground,

from a survey we conducted10 years ago, we know 75percent of fields have somelevel of parasitic nema-todes,” Kemerait said.“Finding the right mix be-

tween resistant varietiesand nematicides and croprotations is what we try todo here at the University ofGeorgia to help the growersout.”One option is Telone, a

soil fumigant that can con-trol nematodes. However,Kemerait estimates it wouldcost $60 per acre to apply, ahigh cost for farmers whoare trying to limit expenseswhen cotton prices are cur-rently listed at just 64 centsper pound.Colquitt County agricul-

tural and natural resourcesagent Jeremy Kichler esti-mates growers in his coun-ty who use Telone have toproduce an additional 100pounds per acre just tobreak even, assuming 60cent cotton and Telone cost-ing $60 per acre.Velum Total is another

option. Introduced this year,Velum Total is an in-furrowliquid spray applied toseeds at planting. Thechemical was in limitedsupply this year but couldbe part of the answer to cot-ton farmers’ nematode con-trol problem, Kemerait said.“I am hopeful that Velum

Total will give growers anew tool in their fightagainst nematodes. VelumTotal will not replace thestrength of Telone in fieldswhere damage from nema-todes is severe, but I expectthe efficacy of Velum Totalto exceed that of a seedtreatment and to be more inline with the historicalnematode control provided

by Temik,” he said.Like Temik, Velum Total

is for management of nema-todes and thrips.At UGA, Kemerait and

Shirley are coordinating atrial this year to further ex-amine Velum Total’s effec-tiveness.“The hope is that this

chemical will provide thecontrol that these farmersare looking for,” Shirleysaid.Kemerait estimates that

there was enough VelumTotal available this year tomeet 20 to 25 percent ofGeorgia farmers’ needs. Afull release of the chemicalis planned for 2016.Colquitt County is tradi-

tionally one of the top cot-ton-producing counties inGeorgia. Kichler estimatesthat the majority of thecounty’s cotton acreage hassome level of yield lossfrom nematodes.“Southern root-knot ne-

matodes are a big problemdown here. Growers aredealing with close cotton ro-tations. Trying to managenematodes can be challeng-ing, especially after losing amanagement tool like

Temik. In order to helpgrowers manage nema-todes, we’re looking at seedtreatments, resistant cottonvarieties and crop rota-tions,” Kichler said. “Whenyou have an infrastructurethat’s dedicated to cotton,it’s hard to change to othercrops.”Kichler believes an effec-

tive management practicefor Extension agents is toeducate growers during the

fall by conducting nema-tode sampling after harvest.Having nematode samplesanalyzed allows countyagents to evaluate how bigof a problem producershave with nematodesstatewide.“Nematode sampling

will tell growers what typeof nematode and what levelof nematodes are present intheir field. If we have thatinformation, then they can

go to their county agent andsay, ‘I have this level of ne-matodes and this type ofnematode, what are mymanagement options? Canwe go with a seed treatmentnext year, or do I need to gowith Telone?’” Kichler said.“Right now we’re kind of insurvival mode. We’re tryingto figure out what inputswill make us the most mon-ey while cutting cornersand not affecting yield.”


Nematode management a priorityfor Georgia cotton farmers

PAWAN KUMAR | UGA

Cotton roots infected with root-knot nematodes swell in response to the infection. These knotsserve as feeding sites where nematodes (microscopic worms) grow, produce more eggs andstunt the plant's growth.


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