The Week in Florida Agriculture
April 20-26, 2009
Peanut planting under way in the Panhandle, with 9 percent completed. Corn crop and some peanuts have been planted. Onions, ryegrass and clover hay are being harvested. Some millet and sorghum has been planted to help with the forage shortage. Corn and tobacco planting nearly complete. Peanut planting is under way. Planting of cotton and peanuts is beginning. Growers are preparing fields for planting peanuts in May. Strawberry harvest continues. Growers preparing land for spring planting. Blueberry harvest continues. Producers harvesting oats and rye for hay. Potato harvest has begun. Cabbage harvest continues. Vegetable harvest increased with tomatoes, peppers, squash, cucumbers and watermelons being harvested. Peppers, cucumbers, eggplant and squash being harvested in Pompano City. Seafood: Florida yellowtail snapper, red snapper and golden tilefish are plentiful. Vegetables: Field work continues in the western part of the state with growers preparing land for cotton and peanuts. Watermelon and tomato growers experienced severe damage from earlier rainfall. Other vegetables marketed include beans, celery, sweet corn, endive, escarole, and lettuce. Livestock and Pastures: Pasture condition has been hindered by cold and flooding in the Panhandle and northern counties and by drought in the central and southwest counties. In the Panhandle, pasture condition is poor to good. Permanent pasture grass is providing some grazing while winter small grain forage has declined seasonally. Hay feeding has declined. Cattle condition is poor to excellent. In the northern areas, pasture condition is poor to good. The condition of pasture has been reduced by recent near-freezing temperatures. Ryegrass and oat forage is nearly finished for the season. Some hay feeding continues. Planting of millet and sorghum is helping alleviate the forage shortage. Supplemental hay feeding continues. In the central areas, pasture is very poor to good with drought and hot, dry wind hindering forage growth. Livestock producers are feeding supplemental feed. Cattle condition is very poor to good. Pasture condition in the southwest is mostly poor to fair due to drought and hot winds. Statewide, cattle condition is mostly fair. Citrus: Florida’s complete citrus belt was very warm and dry with little rainfall in any of the producing areas. Rainfall totals are deficit everywhere and in many places stand at only one-fourth to one-half the normal for the year. Dry weather is having an effect on surface soil moisture and on the trees, with slight tree wilt reported during the heat of the day. As drought conditions continue, varying stages of water restrictions are in effect. Generally, next year’s fruit is between pea size on late oranges and marble size on early oranges. Irrigating is being done, but other production practices are limited. Harvest of Valencia oranges for processing remains very active. Grapefruit harvest has slowed with most of the fruit coming from the east coast. Very few honey tangerines, early oranges, and Temples remain to be picked.
