Post-Harvest Practices to Preserve Watermelon Quality
June 20-21, 2025 marks the 69th year of celebrating the Panhandle Watermelon Festival in Chipley, Florida where you can enjoy free family friendly entertainment and compete in the Big Melon Contest for cash prizes. Whether you are a home gardener or a commercial...
Long Periods of Drought or Excessive Rainfall Can Negatively Affect Herbicide Efficacy
Ed Borgato, UF/IFAS Weed Scientist, West Florida Research and Education Center – Jay A suitable variety planted in the appropriate window, with fertilizer applied in the appropriate timing, at the required rate for desired yield, plus weeds, insects, and diseases...
Southern Rust Confirmed in the Florida Panhandle – June 2025
Dr. Nick Dufault, UF/IFAS Plant Pathologist; Dr. Ian Small, UF/IFAS Plant Pathologist; Ethan Carter, UF/IFAS Extension Regional Specialized Agent Row Crop IPM; Dr. Bob Kemerait, UGA Plant Pathologist Southern rust has once again been confirmed in Panhandle corn...
May 2025 Florida Cattle Market Update – Livestock Slaughter & Beef Production
Livestock slaughter in the first quarter of 2025 (January-March) totaled at 7.38 million head, down 4% from the first quarter of 2024. Cow slaughter, beef cow slaughter, and heifer slaughter in the first quarter were all lower year-over-year. Beef cow slaughter...
Nutrition for Small Flock Egg Production Seminar – June 24
Nutrition for Small Flock Egg Production Tuesday, June 24, 2025 10 AM - Noon Central Time Come join us at the Walton County Extension Service for a fun and educational event focused on keeping your backyard or small farm egg-layers healthy and happy! Learn about the...
Friday Feature: High Quality Legume Hay Production – Virtual Tour of Conrad Farms
This week's featured video was published by the Panhandle Ag Extension Team. Bill Conrad, Jackson County, was selected to present at the Perennial Peanut Producer's Association Field Day, that was held on Friday, June 6, in Marianna. Part of his presentation was a...
Lesser Cornstalk Borers in Seedling Peanuts
Dr. Mark Abney, University of Georgia Crop Entomologist This week I received two reports of lesser cornstalk borer (LCB) in seedling peanuts. LCB infestations in peanut in May are not uncommon, but these reports underscore the importance of scouting fields on a...
Mycotoxins in Florida Pastures and Hay Fields: Monitoring, Risks, and Consultation Resources
Hui-Ling (Sunny) Liao, Cheryl Mackowiak, Ann Blount, Robbie Jones, Joseph Walter, Brittany Justesen, Anna Paulette Tomlinson, Doug Mayo, Carissa Wickens, UF/IFAS Univeristy of Florida Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by fungi that may cause harm to...
2025 Cotton and Corn Variety Trials Underway in North Florida
Gabrielle Alves Comitre, Graduate Research Assistant, Sudeep Sidhu, Assistant Professor-Agronomy Department, UF/IFAS North Florida Research and Education Center, Quincy Variety evaluation plays a key role in helping growers select the best-fit variety for their farms....
Automating Irrigation of Suwannee Valley Crops Saved 164 Million Gallons of Water in 2024
Megan Winslow, Public Relations Specialist, UF/IFAS Communications May is peak watermelon season in North Florida, and farmers are busy tending to their crops as they anticipate harvesting around Memorial Day. Rather than painstakingly twisting water valves,...