Farmers preparing for cold temperatures
Florida farmers are dealing with cold temperatures once again. FOX 13’s Heather Healy shares the impact that it could have on your wallet at the grocery store.
POLK CITY, Fla. – We have yet another cold snap for the next few days, which is not good news for our crops and our farmers.
Especially our citrus fruits. Did you know in the last 15 years, orange production in the state of Florida has dropped 90%? A majority of it is because of citrus greening, which is a bacterial disease that kills citrus trees usually within a few years of infection.
But the harsh cold weather that we’ve had on and off here the past couple of months has not made crop production any better.
Here at Ever After Farms in Polk County, where 40% of their 17-acre orange crop was destroyed by the hard freeze we had just a couple of weeks ago, Senator Ashley Moody was even given a tour of the devastation just last week. From surveying the damage herself, Moody says this will be a long road to recovery.
What they’re saying:
“From some of the firsthand accounts from those that have been farming for generations here, they’re saying the freeze that we saw, they don’t remember it ever in their lifetime, certainly not since the 70s or 80s. And so this is really something that we’re going to be dealing with for some time, not only in addressing recovery and the resilience of our farms, but going forward, what does that look like for Florida?” Moody said.
Moody also pointed out 40 of the state’s 67 counties are likely to be eligible for a disaster declaration, helping with federal loans and grants.
Gary Park, the co-owner of Parkesdale Farms in Dover, says with cold temperatures and the strawberry crop, losing that crop during the growing season hurts. It has a big economic impact that’s hard to recover from.
“They make all their money in 16 weeks of football. We kind of make all of our money in roughly four months to five months of harvest, so when you lose one of those months it hurts a bit,” Park said.
PREVIOUS: Florida citrus growers fear another freeze after statewide crop losses
The cold weather also has plant owners wondering what they need to do to make sure our plants will be okay and thrive in the spring.
Professional gardener Edna Kane says one of the worst things that you can do is start to start pruning your plants—after cold snaps, patience is what will help you. And there are a few steps to take to make sure your plants thrive after the cold:
Deeply water your plantsAssess the damage that’s been done: scratch a branch and look at the color. If you see lime green, it is very much alive and well.Do not pull off the dead leaves: that’s actually protection for your plant. If they’ve already fallen off, or they’re slimy and mushy, remove them right away.Check your timing when it comes to pruning.Do not forget to fertilize.Have patience, it’s going to take time for things to grow.
Kane says don’t be too aggressive on the pruning too early.
“I’m optimistic that you know everything’s going to come back and everything is going to be just beautiful again,” Kane said.
The last frost, she says, is typically in March.
By the numbers:
The Florida Department of Agriculture estimates more than $3 billion has been lost in multiple areas:
Tomatoes: $164,273,849Strawberries: $306,965,897Watermelons $65,437,343Sweet Corn: $255,363,251Sugarcane: $1,152,122,146Bell Peppers: $108,380,389Potatoes: $79,065,000Cabbage: $21,800,280Squash: $24,522,275Blueberries: $78,512,400Greenhouse and Nursery: $240,000,000Citrus: $674,660,336
Sugar cane has been hit hardest so far with over $1 billion lost, along with strawberries, melons and other vegetables.
Moody, along with 22 members of Congress, signed a letter to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, writing in support of Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson’s request for a disaster declaration for counties impacted by the freezing temps we had.
The Source: Information for this story was gathered from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, United States Congress and statistics from The Florida Phoenix.