Posted in farmer/grower, media, tagged Chris Worden, Eva Worden, Worden Farm on March 16, 2010|
Chris and Eva Worden of Worden Farm in Punta Gorda were recently featured on NBC Nightly News.
Click here for the Nightly News archives page.
Then, go to March 2 and click on the link “Organic Farm Markets Draw Crowds.” The video will pop up in a separate window.
Posted in farm, location, media, photo, tagged avocado, laurel wilt, redbay ambrosia beetle, UF/IFAS on March 10, 2010|
Avocado tree infected with laurel wilt. The fungus carried by the beetle causes entire branches to turn brown and die. Photo courtesy UF/IFAS.
If you have avocado trees growing in your yard, heads up! The feared redbay ambrosia beetle has surfaced in west Miami-Dade County, in Emerald Lakes. One beetle was caught in a trap on March 2. Scientists are testing the captured bug to see if it carries a fungus that kills avocado trees (and others in the bay family) by causing a fatal wilt. There was a scare last summer, but that proved to be a false alarm. This time it looks like the real threat has arrived.
Florida Dept. of Agriculture recommendations for homeowners:
The public can help prevent the spread of the redbay ambrosia beetle and laurel wilt disease by following these simple suggestions:
— Become familiar with the signs of laurel wilt disease and redbay ambrosia beetle and be on the lookout for evidence of the pest/disease on your trees. http://www.doacs.state.fl.us/pi/enpp/pathology/laurel_wilt_disease.html
— Use local firewood only. Do not transport firewood from other states because destructive pests and diseases, such as redbay ambrosia beetle and laurel wilt, can hitchhike into Florida on infested firewood. http://www.doacs.state.fl.us/pi/videos.html
— Do not transport host trees (redbay, swamp bay, avocado, sassafras, pondspice, pondberry and others in the Lauraceae family) unless purchased from a registered nursery.
— If your Lauraceae-family tree dies, use one of UF/IFAS’s recommended methods of disposal.
People who suspect their trees might be infected with laurel wilt or think they have found a redbay ambrosia beetle are urged to contact the DPI helpline at 1-888-397-1517.
People who would like to submit a plant or insect sample, visit this web site for sample submission instructions http://www.doacs.state.fl.us/pi/enpp/pathology/laurel_wilt_disease.html
Know your foe: redbay ambrosia beetle. Actual size is about half a grain of rice. Courtesy UF/IFAS.
Last summer, there was a premature announcement of the presence of a tiny beetle that has the power to spread fungus that can severely damage avocado trees. That turned out to be an unfortunate mistake, triggering some growers to cut down and burn trees and apply pesticide.
This month, there’s no mistaking it: One redbay ambrosia beetle was found in a trap in west-central Miami-Dade County on March 2.
But scientists say a single beetle shouldn’t scare Miami-Dade growers — whose trees cover nearly 7,000 acres of South Florida — just yet.
“It’s not cause for panic, thank God,” said Jonathan Crane, a tropical-fruit plant specialist with the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agriculture Sciences in Homestead.
Posted in farmer/grower, interview, media, tagged Christine DiMattei, Margie Pikarsky, Miami Herald, Niala Boodhoo, WLRN on February 28, 2010|
Farmer Margie was recently interviewed by Niala Boodhoo of WLRN/Miami Herald about the economic impact of last month’s freeze. Two reports originally aired on WLRN last week, and the second one is by reporter Christine DiMattei.
If you weren’t lucky enough to catch them on the radio, you can listen to and/or download them from the Miami Herald web site. Scroll down the page and look for these headlines:
02/20 FBR – South Dade farmers and the freeze
02/23 Two-week cold snap brings season of worry to local farmers
Posted in farmer/grower, food, media, tagged Gabriele Marewski, Miami Herald, Paradise Farms on January 29, 2010| 3 Comments »
Oyster mushrooms have been a welcome addition to the CSA shares so far twice this season. They are grown at Paradise Farm, and are for sale on Saturdays at the Paradise tent at the Coral Gables Farmers Market, and also on Sundays at the Redland Organics tent at the Pinecrest Gardens Farmers Market. The following article was published in the Miami Herald on Thursday. Nancy Ancrum did a great job, couldn’t do better myself. Enjoy!
BY NANCY ANCRUM
nancrum@MiamiHerald.com
It was an e-mail that just screamed to be spiked. It came from an African country; it mentioned something about a “lottery;” it hinted that there was a wonderful, enriching opportunity to be had.But Homestead farmer Gabriele Marewski didn’t delete the message. She read it. It wasn’t a scam; it was the world working in mysterious ways.
“Those scam e-mails go right into the spam box. But this one had that first sentence that was intriguing,” Marewski says. “It said, ‘I won the lottery to come to the United States.’ The other ones say, ‘You won the lottery, give us an account number.’ ”
She went from intrigued to hooked when she got to this line: “I can show you how to grow oyster mushrooms.”
“This was too bizarre; so bizarre I had to respond.”
Read the rest of the article here:
http://www.miamiherald.com/living/top-stories/story/1448132.html
Redland Rambles 