News Stories - Page 204

Pruning young pecan trees is a necessity and, if done properly, can save farmers the hassle of pruning older, much larger trees, according to University of Georgia Cooperative Extension pecan specialist Lenny Wells.

Commodity updates for high-value row crops like peanuts and cotton highlight this year’s Georgia Ag Forecast meetings, which are currently being held statewide.

Georgia is due for another blast of arctic air this week and, while Georgians themselves might be groaning about the cold weather, it’s beneficial for the state’s peach crop. These chilly days provide the cold temperatures that Georgia’s fruit crops need for healthy production this summer.

Hundreds of people get sick each year from inappropriate pesticide use, but those who don’t deal with pesticides daily may not think about it very often. Of the 11 states participating in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) pesticide safety program, workers reported 853 serious injuries from pesticides in 2011, according to the CDC.

Tax time is stressful for many Americans, but this year, Georgians in more than a dozen counties can visit their University of Georgia Cooperative Extension county offices for help filing their income taxes through UGA Extension’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program.

The University of Georgia connects military veterans to farming through Farm Again, a program that assists farmers who have chronic health conditions and disabilities. Farm Again provides a wide variety of services, including one-on-one technical assistance and resources for adapting farming tasks to make them easier.

Nestled just south of the world’s busiest airport, there’s a 38-acre camp where generations of young Fulton County, Georgia, residents can connect with nature. For the last 10 years, Camp Fulton/Truitt 4-H Center hasn’t received much attention, but now a team of volunteers from south Fulton County and University of Georgia Cooperative Extension agents are working to make it an oasis once again.

The University of Georgia has received a $14 million grant from the U.S. Agency of International Development to manage the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Peanut Research, known as the Peanut Lab, a global peanut research program that works to alleviate hunger by helping farmers in developing countries grow healthy crops. The agreement builds on UGA and USAID’s long-standing partnership on global peanut research dating to the 1980s.

In the aftermath of World War I, with a nationwide food shortage raging, the doors of the University of Georgia were opened to women. Ultimately, the demand for technically trained female teachers and home demonstration agents dissolved the resistance to women enrolling at UGA.

University of Georgia entomologists advise farmers to kill crops capable of hosting whiteflies after the crop is harvested a final time. Crops left in the field could continue to serve as hosts.