Vegetables

Arizona Veg IPM: lettuce insecticide use, Fusarium wilt and melons, weed identification

Fri, 25 May 2012 16:09:00 +0000

In general, the most commonly used insecticides in fall and spring lettuce correspond directly to the key pests that typically occur during these growing periods.

Transgenic tomato sat on shelf 20 years

Wed, 23 May 2012 20:33:00 +0000

Brian Wallheimer, Purdue University

In the early 1990s, horticulture professor Avtar Handa developed a transgenic tomato with a thicker juice that yields 10 percent more tomato paste than parental, non-engineered tomatoes. Commercial producers were interested but weren't ready to bring a transgenic tomato on the market.

Healthy eating doesn't have to cost more

Tue, 22 May 2012 19:43:00 +0000

Dr. Andrea Carlson of the Economic Research Service, co-author of the “Are Healthy Foods More Expensive?” details her findings that eating healthy isn’t necessarily more costly.

Audio File:

healthy.MP3

Health and convenience driving fresh vegetable market

Tue, 15 May 2012 16:32:00 +0000

Fresh vegetable market set for growth

Rabobank

Health and convenience will be the leading drivers of increased demand for fresh vegetables in the next five years. A new report recommends that produce firms put more emphasis on creating value-added products that are not only healthy, but easy to prepare.

Produce farmers want seat at farm bill table

Thu, 10 May 2012 12:38:00 +0000

Western Growers

Agriculture producers who grow the nation’s healthy fresh produce want a seat at the table for the major federal food and farm legislation — the farm bill. Fresh produce farmers are under constant pressure from crippling rules, regulations and the lack of immigration reform that’s made for a shaky and uncertain labor supply — the workers who harvest the healthy food the nation needs.

Price tumble for fresh market vegetables

Tue, 08 May 2012 13:57:00 +0000

A steady supply of fresh-market vegetables is causing price reductions for farmers. While it is expected that demand for fresh vegetables will continue a “slow growth” as consumers continue to improve their diets, prices are not expected to climb, which doesn’t bode well for growers in the short term.

Boron important in sugarbeet production

Mon, 07 May 2012 20:22:00 +0000

Steven Poindexter, Michigan State University Extension

In recent years there has been an increase in the amount of sugarbeet fields that have exhibited boron deficiency symptoms. This nutrient has an essential role in promoting cell wall formation, carbohydrate metabolism, and has been associated with sugar translocation.

Arizona Veg IPM: insect and weeds, powdery mildew, herbicide applications

Sat, 05 May 2012 01:01:00 +0000

Several common weed species found in and around vegetable crops can serve as host plants to many insect pests that can later infest nearby crops.

US consumers rely on healthy spinach seed

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 19:41:00 +0000

Matt Haugen, Washington State University

Fusarium is devastating: Once soil is infected, spinach can’t successfully be grown in that field for up to 15 years. The disease has been responsible for a decline in land for spinach seed production in the Pacific Northwest.

Arizona Agri-Weekly: Durum wheat at 75 percent headed

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 21:22:00 +0000

Cotton planting increased 9 percentage points from the previous week to 47 percent complete, ahead of the five-year average of 43 percent.