News Stories - Page 45

Despite a low supply of Georgia-grown pecans, Georgia producers are faced with lower prices for what remains of the pecan crop after Hurricane Michael. 

Pumpkins are a staple of the fall season. Some people like pumpkins baked in pie, and some like them carved and lit up on their front porches for Halloween. Georgia 4-H’ers, on the other hand, like them to weigh hundreds of pounds. 

With the state’s late summer and fall vegetable crop close to harvest, Georgia vegetable farmers estimate more than $480 million in losses from Hurricane Michael.

Georgia’s pecan industry was forever changed by Hurricane Michael’s path of destruction through the southwest part of the state on Oct. 10-11, according to Lenny Wells, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension pecan specialist.

Hurricanes, tropical storms and severe rainfall events are commonly seen among states in the Southeast U.S. These natural events most often occur during summer or early fall and may cause severe problems for urban and agricultural areas of Georgia. As of this week, it appears that we have another hurricane poised to strike Georgia. University of Georgia Cooperative Extension wants all of its agents — and the fruit, vegetable and nut growers they serve — to be as prepared as possible for the effects of the storm.

Row covers, material used to protect plants from the cold and wind, can also protect squash from disease-carrying squash bugs and other insect pests, according to University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Plant Pathologist Elizabeth Little.