The Panhandle Ag Extension Team would like to thank our email subscribers and social media followers for your interest and support of Panhandle Ag e-News in 2022. Keep sharing those emails, posts, and tweets to help us spread the word, so more farmers and ranchers sign up for this service. The Panhandle Ag e-News project began in 2012. Over the past 11 years, 2,365 articles have been published that are searchable by topic area, keyword, author, or by using the search box provided at the top right-hand corner of the website.
In 2022, the Panhandle Agriculture Extension Team was made up of 21 county agents and 21 state specialists that serve the agricultural industry in Florida. This team published 217 articles that provided timely information to farmers and ranchers related to farm management, pest management, best management practice recommendations, interesting videos, plus numerous announcements of educational events and assistance programs. In 2022, links to the most recently published articles were shared through 41 weekly electronic newsletter issues (emails) to 5,527 subscribers, as well as through Facebook and Twitter Accounts. There were 933 new subscribers added to the database in 2022, a 20% increase from 2021.
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Reader’s Choice Awards
At the start of each year, the statistics are compared for the articles that were published on the Panhandle Ag e-News website over the previous year, with the authors of the most popular articles given recognition with Reader’s Choice Awards. There were a number of the articles that were very popular this year, but there were several that really stood out. The following are the top 30 most popular articles published by our author team members in 2022. Congratulations to the following authors for putting together excellent information and practical recommendations.
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1st Place
Producing or Buying Hay in 2022 – Considerations Going Forward
Mark Mauldin, Washington County Extension, had the most popular article published in 2022. His article, published May 10, discussed the issues of producing or purchasing hay with high fertilizer costs and with forage quality with reduced fertilization rates. – 2,210 page views
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2nd Place
NFREC Faculty Tribute to Arnie Forrester
Josh Freeman, Vegetable Specialist, Sudeep Sidhu, Regional Specialized Extension Agent, Water Resources, Barry Tillman, Professor of Agronomy, Peanut Breeder, and Mathews Paret, Associate Professor of Plant Pathology provided a tribute article to Arnie Forrester, a prominent Panhandle farmer, who tragically lost his life in a vehicle accident. – 1,365 page views
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3rd Place
Liquid Lime: Is it Too Good to be True?
Jennifer Bearden, Okaloosa Extension, responded to questions regarding the use of liquid lime to save money on amending the soil to raise the pH. – 1,291 page views
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Honorable Mention
Animal Vaccines – Principles, Types, and Important Points to Know
João Bittar, Large Animal Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, & Juan M. Campos Krauer, Wildlife Ecology and Conservation. Cervidae Health Research Initiative. University of Florida discussed key management practices for using vaccines to protect livestock health. – 1,215 page views
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Other popular articles written in 2022 included:
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5 – Grow Your Own Nitrogen Fertilizer Using Forage Legumes – Jose Dubeux – 1,085 views
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6 – Why Buyers Pay More for Castrated Calves? – Kalyn Waters – 810 views
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7 – Which Nematicides are Effective for Managing Nematodes in Field Corn? – Zane Grabau – 670 views
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8 – Winter 2021-22 Weather Summary and Spring 2022 Drought Outlook – Doug Mayo – 618 views
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9 – Florida Pesticide Applicators Can Now Take Licensing Exams Online – Samantha Murray – 584 views
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10 – Ornamental Rhizoma Perennial Peanut for Groundcover or Alternative Turf – Ann Blount – 506 views
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11 – The Pollinating Power of Bumble Bees – Molly Jameson – 501 views
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12 – Long-Term Cost Savings from Adding Perennial Peanut to Grass Pastures – Daniel Leonard 487 views
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13 – Tomato Varieties for 2022 – Josh Freeman – 483 views
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14 – Know the Signs of Botulisim in Horses – Sally DeNotta – 449 views
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15 – When Grasses Collide – Centipede vs. Bahiagrass in Your Pasture – Evan Anderson – 435 views
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16 – Marketing Feeder Cattle at 6-Year Highs in 2022 – Chris Prevatt – 427 views
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17 – Growing Native Yaupons for Tea Leaf Harvest – Ashley Stonecipher – 390 page views
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18 – Che Trejo wins 2022 UF Top Rancher Challenge at FCA Convention – Chris Prevatt – 385 views
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19 – Cool-Season Forages – A Pasture Perspective for 2022 – Ann Blount, Marcelo Wallau, Esteban Rios, Joe Vendramini, Jose Dubeux, Ali Babar, Kevin Kenworthy and Ken Quesenberry, UF/IFAS Agronomy Department– 374 views
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20 – Chill Hours: What are They and Why They Matter to Panhandle Fruit Operations? – Daniel Leonard – 365 views
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21 – Grazing Management – Making the Most of the Available Forage – Doug Mayo – 361 views
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22 – Be Careful of Residual Herbicides When Selling Hay/Straw for Vegetable Mulch or Compost – Kacey Aukema – 350 views
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23 – Honey Processing Regulations For Both Small & Commercial Operations – Ray Bodrey – 340 views
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24 – Impact of Limiting or Eliminating Fertilization of Bahiagrass Pastures – Cheryl Mackowiak – 335 views
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25 – Self-feeding Systems for Silage Bags Reduces Labor for Cattle Operations – Nicolas DiLorenzo – 326 views
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26 – What is Soil Health and How is it Measured? – Kacey Aukema – 322 views
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27 – Southern Rust Identified in Corn – Be Vigilant & Scout – Ethan Carter, Regional Crop IPM Agent, Ian Small, UF/IFAS NFREC Plant Pathologist, and Nick Dufault, UF/IFAS Extension Pathologist – 314 views
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29 – Beef Herd Essential Management: Herd Health Protocols – Doug Mayo – 309 views
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30 – Navigating A Particularly Challenging Winter Feeding Season – Mark Mauldin – 298 views
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The top 10 Featured Videos of 2022
In addition to the articles shared each week, a short YouTube video was shared under the title of “Friday Features.” In general, these videos related to some form of agricultural issue, farming techniques, new innovative tools and equipment, or farm humor. The following were the top 10 videos shared in 2022:
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1 – The Eulogy of a Cowboy for Baxter Black – 561 views
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2 – Wheelman Autosteer Kits for Existing Tractors – 473 views
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3 – Lee Bigham, Jackson County, 2022 Young Farmer & Rancher Award Winner – 394 views
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4 – Agrivoltaics – Farming Under Solar Panels – 368 views
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5 – McArthur Farms’ 2022 Peanut Harvest – 291 views
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6 – Aero Recon Ultralight Aircraft for Farmers – 288 views
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7 – Peanut Harvest with a 360° Camera – 250 views
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8 – The Rat Buster – 244 views
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9 – The Weed Zapper Annihilator – 234 views
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10 – Sheep Drive Through the Streets of Madrid – 225 views
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You might want to scan through the complete library of 246 videos in the Friday Feature Archive. If you come across an interesting, inspiring, humorous or something new and innovative related to agriculture, please send in a link, so we can share it with our readers. Use the share button from the YouTube or Facebook video you like and send the link via email to: Doug Mayo
demayo@ufl.edu - 850-482-9620
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@UFCowman