Cotton farmers need to be wary of diseases like target spot and bacterial blight

Posted on June 23, 2017 by southernipmcenter

by Clint Thompson, University of Georgia

In addition to root-knot nematodes and target spot disease, Georgia cotton farmers should be prepared to fight bacterial blight, said University of Georgia Cooperative Extension plant pathologist Bob Kemerait.

Kemerait advises producers, specifically those who farm in fields with a history of bacterial blight, to consider planting resistant varieties and managing the residue from last year’s crop. Farmers could also rotate the affected field away from cotton for at least one season. Continue reading →

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How can we save the pollinators?

Posted on June 23, 2017 by southernipmcenter

Original article with photos at http://oxford.ly/2tsBiw1

Also in The Connection.

by Louise I. Lynch and Doug Golick, Department of Entomology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

An often-cited estimate is that one-third of the food you eat comes from insect pollinators. Many of the fruits and vegetables that you enjoy develop their fruit and seed primarily through insect pollination services. Other sometimes overlooked benefits of pollinators are the ecological services that they provide. For example, insects pollinate many plants that provide erosion control, keeping our waterways clean. Ground-nesting bees, meanwhile, can help aerate and mix soil. And yet another benefit is simply the aesthetic beauty that many pollinators have. Striking swallowtail butterflies, bustling orange-tailed bumble bees, rubicund milkweed beetles, and metallic green sweat bees beautify our landscape. Can you imagine a world without these creatures? Continue reading →

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Two positions: Ag Stewardship (soils, horticulture) in SE New York; Ext. Veg Specialist at UConn

Posted on June 23, 2017 by southernipmcenter

The Northeast region is advertising two agricultural specialist positions:

Agriculture Stewardship Specialist with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County, based in Riverhead, NY

http://ccesuffolk.org/jobs/agricultural-stewardship-specialist Continue reading →

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