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Below you'll see everything we could locate for your search of “freeze events”
By Clint Thompson Two straight seasons of spring freeze events has one Alabama blueberry farmer ready to modify how he manages his blueberry crop. Jimmy Ferguson said this year’s late-season freeze impacted between 30% and 40% of his rabbiteye crop and about 20% of his highbush. That followed the freeze in 2023 that completely wiped out his 25-acre farm. “We’ve …
By Clint Thompson Crop insurance is a necessity that all growers need to utilize. Alabama’s specialty crop producers need only to look back at March to see how one weather event changed the outlook for an entire crop. Blake Thaxton, executive director of the Alabama Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (AFVGA), said the sub-freezing temperatures over multiple days especially impacted …
By Clint Thompson Peach lovers already know there will be slim pickings with this year’s crop. Unfortunately, that equates to about 5% in middle Georgia, estimates Jeff Cook, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension agriculture and natural resources agent for Peach and Taylor counties. “We really don’t have anything to harvest. If we have peaches, they’re going to be mid-June to …
By Clint Thompson The impact on Georgia peaches from two March freeze events is still under review, though trees were negatively affected. There was no way they couldn’t have been, especially with the unseasonably warm temperatures in February. “It’s been bad as far as the cold. It’s not what we need, it’s what I was afraid was going to happen. …
By Clint Thompson Florida’s conventional blueberry growers dodged the proverbial disease bullet this past season following a late January freeze event that impacted the Southeast. Georgia’s producers were not so fortunate with a mid-March freeze event, says Phil Harmon, professor and Extension plant pathologist at the University of Florida. “The big story early in the year was the late freeze. …
By Clint Thompson Weather events last Christmas and this fall have made Christmas tree production difficult this year, according to one Alabama producer. “The production was a challenge. That’s my best word, and I think I’m probably speaking for every Christmas tree grower in our neck of the woods, in this part of the Southeast,” said Steve Mannard, with Fish …
By Clint Thompson The volume of Georgia’s strawberry crop is down this year. The frigid temperatures experienced during last Christmas is a big reason why. Jeff Cook, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension agriculture and natural resources agent for Peach and Taylor counties, explains why multiple days of sub-freezing temperatures had a detrimental effect on the state’s crop this year. The …
By Clint Thompson Late spring freeze events have become predictable across the Southeast. Unfortunately, that has not been good news for the region’s blueberry producers. Blueberries are susceptible to sub-freezing temperatures this time of year. They are starting to bear fruit and are on the cusp of another harvest season. The danger has intensified in recent years as bushes bloom …
By Clint Thompson Specialty crop producers should not be fooled into thinking freeze events are in the past. If history is any indication, another severe cold snap is likely in our future. “Remember last year, March was really warm and February was warm, and then we had frost in April in some locations. You just never know,” said Pam Knox, …
By Clint Thompson Though rattled by sub-freezing temperatures during the Christmas holidays, Georgia’s blueberry crop was not severely impacted by prolonged temperatures in the 20s. Jonathan Oliver, University of Georgia (UGA) assistant professor and small fruits pathologist, says freeze events that occur later in the season are much more impactful. “For the vast majority, this freeze was not as big …
