During the Plant Ag & Pesticide Regulation Committee meeting which took place as part of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture Winter Policy Conference on Feb. 24, a policy amendment for the promotion of hemp was presented by Vermont Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets ...

Sometimes it’s time for a change, and that’s what initiated a major lifestyle and location shift for the Burrello family. “I had a great desire to not raise my kids in an urban environment,” said Kristin Burrello, explaining the family’s choice to move from Chicago to rural Ashford, CT. “I wanted to...

Each year, growers are challenged with managing disease and insect pests, both of which are the focus of scouting programs. Emily Pochubay, tree fruit IPM educator at the Northwest Michigan Horticulture Research Center, discussed an important and potentially devastating orchard pest. “San Jose scale...

The USDA Final Rule on hemp goes into effect on March 22, and it includes some important changes from the previous rules on growing the crop. Alyssa Collins, Ph.D., director of Penn State’s Southeast Agricultural Research and Extension Center, discussed the permit and policy updates for growers. The...

The University of Maine’s School of Food and Agriculture was recently endowed with a grant from the USDA to assist tree fruit specialists evaluate strategies for producing peaches in the northeastern New England region. The grant was awarded by the USDA’s Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI). S...

More than 90 participants came together virtually for the All-America Selections organization update meeting in early February, which covered updates on 2020 activities and insights into planned 2021 events and activities. “It was an exciting but different year for AAS,” noted Jim Devereux, past pre...

To many retailers, the COVID-19 pandemic has proven a business killer. But for Briscoe White, owner of Richmond, VA-based internet herb grower the Growers Exchange, the disease that closed down thousands of entrepreneurs has proven a blessing in disguise. As customers fled the marketplace for the co...

High tunnels provide a practical way for growers of vegetables and cut flowers to extend their growing season and increase the profitability of their operation. Just as with open field production, however, soil health in high tunnels plays an important part in the cultivation of crops. Recently, NRC...

It’s always about the next big thing, whether it’s a new model of phone or the new “superfood.” The big thing in content creation and sharing right now is TikTok. The short, vertical videos on the app, often accompanied by prerecorded sound bytes or music, are dominating social media, but they’re no...

Strawberries are a valuable crop, and although protecting them from late winter freezes can be tricky, understanding the nuances of frost protection gives growers an advantage. Dr. Barclay Poling, Department of Horticultural Science at North Carolina State University, described advances in frost pro...

While high tunnels are generally seen as boons for extended growing seasons, they’re not without their issues. Diagnosing the problems that arise is the first step in correcting them, and that was the subject of the second session in the three-part webinar series, “High Tunnels After Dark: 2020 High...

When you Google Francesca Hand, you’ll find a plethora of results – nursery management, Ohio Lawn Care Association, Master in Plant Health Management, Pretty Plants Doc, ornamental plant pathology. In a 151-page book titled “Plant Pathology in Ohio,” we learn that she is double degreed (B.Sc. and M....

A wide variety of techniques have been used by growers to extend the growing season. More recently, growers have employed row covers, low tunnels and high tunnels because of their simplicity and effectiveness in protecting crops from low temperatures. Row covers and tunnels don’t offer the precision...

Peach viruses aren’t all equally prevalent across the U.S., with growers in some regions experiencing threats uncommon in other areas. In 1999, Pennsylvania, New York and Michigan growers experienced an outbreak of plum pox virus (PPV), which as of 2019 is considered eradicated from the country. Tha...

One way to increase profits no matter your type of nursery business is to decrease input costs. Inputs include materials, time and labor. If labor costs are reduced, but output is the same, then the cost of doing business drops. If it takes less time to do a given task, then more time is available t...