USDA Summarizes ’09 Pecan Crop; Average Grower Price Increases
Even though the 2009 pecan crop was 100 million pounds larger than the 2008 crop, according to USDA, the average price paid to the grower went up by three cents per in-shell pound. Most industry sources attribute this to the strong demand from the Chinese export market for pecans. The strong prices were limited to...
Read moreCounty Field Day Surveys Important To Agrilife Extension
It is hard to believe that the 2010 season is just around the corner and with the start of this new season comes a Texas pecan tradition — the county pecan field day. These field days held during the spring across the state offer producers the chance to hear the latest in horticultural practices, IPM,...
Read moreDupont Crop Protection Launches Tank Mix App For iPhone
DuPont Crop Protection recently announced an innovative application to help customers—a “TankMix App,” created for iPhone and iTouch users. The DuPont Information Technology’s (IT) Innovation Office, under the leadership of John Puckett, director, IT innovation, sponsored the project. The TankMix App provides basic math calculations for the amount of product and water needed per tank...
Read moreShellers Recap ’09 Crop, Hear Good Nutritional News
The National Pecan Shellers Association gathered for its Mid-Winter Meeting, Feb. 18-20, in New Orleans just as the city was winding down from a two-week celebration encompassing Mardi Gras and a Super Bowl victory for the Saints. However, some of the shellers were not feeling very victorious about their 2009 pecan-buying season as export markets...
Read morePrepare To Fertilize!
The drought of this past year and previous years is but a distant memory today in most folk’s minds as many completed harvest in and around rain events. It is hard to believe exactly how dry 2009 really was. When you get to doubting how dry it really was, all you need to do is...
Read moreTree Space Management In Pecans
When pecan trees crowd they should be cut down, attached to a tractor with a chain, pulled to an open space, cut into small pieces, piled, allowed to dry for one year, and burned. This is a simple operation. A team of 3 men can thin one acre per day if trunks are less than...
Read moreScab: Pecan Enemy Number One
In the Southeast, the number one enemy of pecans is the fungus disease pecan scab. Growers were painfully reminded in the 2009 season of the severity and damage caused by this disease. In 2007, an on-year crop but a very dry season, Georgia produced 150 million pounds of pecans. In 2009, an on-year crop but...
Read moreGrowers Who Plan Can Save On Headline Purchase From Basf
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC, February 17, 201—Growers using Headline® fungicide may be eligible to receive $75 per gallon back on purchases from authorized BASF retailers made by May 15, 2010. “Growers always want to get the most out of every acre,” said Reed Barrett, Market Manager for BASF. “In these economic times, it’s also important to...
Read moreOne Observer Says, “Be Careful What You Wish For!”
Change is inevitable. As General Eric Shinseki, Chief of Staff, U.S. Army once noted, “If you don’t like change, you’re going to like irrelevance even less.” During the last century, the pecan industry has experienced a number of changes — the change from hand to mechanical cracking, the grafting of better-yielding varieties, the introduction of...
Read moreTree Hedging In The Southeast
By way of some background information, we started renovating or converting many of our old orchards to new varieties as many as 20 years ago. The orchards we are farming were planted in the early 20th century, around 1920, give or take. Of course, without the fertilizer, pest control and irrigation methods of today, they...
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