Farmers love tools. The prospect of a fully stocked tool shed ranges from badge of honor to true obsession.  Plants, too, can be used as tools. Integrating cover crops into a farmer’s toolbox can offer many benefits – and it’s a tool given to us by nature! Getting farmers to adopt cover crops as various tools can be hard. To do that, …

Cherry tomatoes are a staple in home gardens, farm fields and local food markets, but growing them can be a challenging undertaking. Now, a new variety from Cornell AgriTech provides improved yield and shelf-life while enhancing both visual and culinary appeal. A cross between heirloom tomato varieties, Cherry Ember was developed by Phillip Griffiths, associate professor of horticulture in the School of Integrative …

California leads the nation in vegetable production, accounting for 39% of the U.S. vegetable acreage. The value of California’s 2020 utilized vegetable production dropped 0.9% to $7.68 billion compared to 2019’s value of $7.74 billion according to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Pacific Regional Field Office. Despite the decrease in state’s overall total value of utilized production, crops showing an increase …

The Government of Argentina recently announced adjustments to export taxes on many specialty crops, including apples, pears, citrus fruits, blueberries, tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, nuts, and alfalfa intended to improve the international competiveness of these products. Argentine Government Seeks to Boost Exports of Specialty Crops: On Thursday, December 31, 2020 the Government of Argentina published Decree 1060/2020 which made adjustments to …

USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientist and director of the Western Regional Research Center (Albany, CA), Tara McHugh and her team in the Healthy Processed Foods Research Unit are experts at solving food-manufacturing problems. Using cutting-edge processing technologies, they have helped numerous small businesses, such as Ripple Foods, turn ideas into products for the consumer. ARS is helping Ripple Foods optimize its current pea protein drying process to …

In my conversations with growers, plastic mulch has been a leading topic of both interest and concern. There are so many benefits to using it, including moisture retention, weed control, and soil warming, but the environmental impact is hard to ignore. It’s estimated that in the US alone, farmers use around 1 billion pounds of plastic annually. In this article, I’ll review …

The Cucurbit Coordinated Agricultural Project (CucCAP), a multi-institution, nationwide research and outreach initiative led by Michigan State University and dedicated to cucurbit crops — cucumbers, squashes, melons and watermelon — has been awarded $7.1 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Specialty Crop Research Initiative. The new funding extends the project that began in 2015 for four years. The goals …

Plant breeders are constantly working to develop new bean varieties to meet the needs and desires of the food industry. But not everyone wants the same thing. Many consumers desire heirloom-type beans, which have great culinary quality and are visually appealing. On the other hand, farmers desire beans with better disease resistance and higher yield potential. The bean varieties that …

Two of the nation’s great agricultural regions are the focus of new research that aims to head off emerging threats and improve sustainability. Scientists with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) are joining colleagues to create and use artificial intelligence to help farmers in the Colorado River Basin and Salinas Valley, CA, improve their management of irrigation, fertilization, and pests. USDA’s National Institute of …

Western Growers (WG) is pleased to announce the addition of Robert Medler as Arizona Government Affairs Manager. Medler brings nearly 15 years of government relations experience and will represent the most influential specialty crop producers in the fresh produce industry in the Arizona State Capitol. “We are very excited to have Robert joining Western Growers’ State Government Affairs team,” said …