Peach Producers Have Limited Options Against Late Freeze

 

Now that fruit crops have received plenty of chill hours, farmers are starting to think about what they might have to do if an average or late frost brings killing temperatures back to the Southeast. Unfortunately, once the blooms arrive, options for protection are limited. You can read about some of the options in Vegetable and Specialty Crop News at https://vscnews.com/peach-producers-frozen-georgia-alabama/. You can also find information about freeze protection for commercial fruits and vegetables in UGA Extension Bulletin 1479. So far, the long-range forecasts don’t show much chance of a widespread outbreak through early March in southern and lower elevation locations, but those forecasts can change a lot over time, so it is too soon to believe that frost is done for the year. With the effects of the Sudden Stratospheric Warming finally waning and a more typical La Nina-like pattern emerging, that does give us some hope that the really cold and wet weather is behind us.

 

Video: Why Invest in Canada’s Seed Future? | On The Brink: Episode 3

Darcy Unger just invested millions to build a brand-new seed plant on his farm in Stonewall, Manitoba so when it’s time for his sons to take over, they have the tools they need to succeed.

Right now, 95% of the genetics they’ll be growing come from Canadian plant breeders.

That number matters.

When fusarium hit Western Canada in the late 90s, it was Canadian breeders who responded, because they understood Canadian conditions. That ability to react quickly to what’s happening on Canadian farms is exactly what’s at risk when breeding programs lose funding.

For farmers like Darcy, who have made generational investments based on the assumption that better genetics will keep coming, the stakes are direct and personal.

We’re on the brink of decisions that will shape our agricultural future for not only our generation, but also the ones to come.

What direction will we choose?

On The Brink is a year-long video series traveling across Canada to meet the researchers, breeders, farmers, seed companies, and policymakers shaping the future of Canadian plant breeding. Each week, a new story. Each story, a piece of the bigger picture.

Episode 3 is above. Follow Seed World Canada to catch every episode, and tell us: Do you think the next generation will have the tools they need to success when they takeover? How is the future going to look?