HURRICANE KATRINA UPDATE: Storm damages southern Florida floral nurseries and avocado crop
HURRICANE KATRINA UPDATE: Storm damages southern Florida floral nurseries and avocado crop
Charles H. Bronson, Florida's commissioner of agriculture, will visit the Homestead area of southern Florida Tuesday, Aug. 30, to view the damage that Hurricane Katrina wreaked on the states nursery industry.
"The strong winds, heavy rain and loss of power have combined to wallop our nursery industry in south Florida," said Commissioner Bronson. We will do all that we can to assist our growers.
The most heavily affected categories are said to include decorative plants, shrubs, bushes, trees and sod. Besides the wind damage, the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Service reported that the many plants flooded by the heavy rains associated with the storm may not recover, driving the damage estimates even higher over the next few weeks.
Heavy wind damage to approximately 7,000 acres of avocado groves was also reported. Winds blew avocados off the trees in most cases, and many trees are sitting in flooded groves. Trees can begin suffering with root rot as soon as two days of severe waterlog, an d long-term damage cannot be known for months, or when those trees begin to wilt and ultimately die.
In more northern areas of the state, however, the soaking delivered by Katrina was somewhat beneficial. Susan Howard, director of corporate communications for A. Duda & Sons Inc. in Belle Glade, FL, said that the companys vegetable farms in Belle Glade and Lake Placid were spared the wrath of Katrina, which headed further south.
We actually got some much-needed rain from the system, she said. We are also grateful that because our citrus groves are north of the route Katrina took, we did not get the wind and rain that could have potentially spread the citrus canker inoculum any further. Also fortunate are most other produce farmers in the state. The majority had not yet begun to plant the bulk of winter row crops such as tomatoes, peppers and beans. The storm also hit at the end of the fruit-picking season, and most of those crops have already been harvested.
(Additional updates on the impact of Hurricane Katrina will be posted on this web site as information comes in. A full report will appear in the Sept. 5 issue of The Produce News.)
"The strong winds, heavy rain and loss of power have combined to wallop our nursery industry in south Florida," said Commissioner Bronson. We will do all that we can to assist our growers.
The most heavily affected categories are said to include decorative plants, shrubs, bushes, trees and sod. Besides the wind damage, the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Service reported that the many plants flooded by the heavy rains associated with the storm may not recover, driving the damage estimates even higher over the next few weeks.
Heavy wind damage to approximately 7,000 acres of avocado groves was also reported. Winds blew avocados off the trees in most cases, and many trees are sitting in flooded groves. Trees can begin suffering with root rot as soon as two days of severe waterlog, an d long-term damage cannot be known for months, or when those trees begin to wilt and ultimately die.
In more northern areas of the state, however, the soaking delivered by Katrina was somewhat beneficial. Susan Howard, director of corporate communications for A. Duda & Sons Inc. in Belle Glade, FL, said that the companys vegetable farms in Belle Glade and Lake Placid were spared the wrath of Katrina, which headed further south.
We actually got some much-needed rain from the system, she said. We are also grateful that because our citrus groves are north of the route Katrina took, we did not get the wind and rain that could have potentially spread the citrus canker inoculum any further. Also fortunate are most other produce farmers in the state. The majority had not yet begun to plant the bulk of winter row crops such as tomatoes, peppers and beans. The storm also hit at the end of the fruit-picking season, and most of those crops have already been harvested.
(Additional updates on the impact of Hurricane Katrina will be posted on this web site as information comes in. A full report will appear in the Sept. 5 issue of The Produce News.)
