Vegetarian Newsletter 6
Vegetarian 99-03
March 1999
 Rimsulfuron (Shadeout)
Labeled on Tomatoes
Rimsulfuron has been
labeled for use on tomatoes under the trade name Shadeout. Shadeout may
be applied preemergence to tomatoes.
For preemergence applications
to the crop, apply after seeding at 2.0 oz. product/acre. If weeds are
present at application, use a nonionic surfactant. For activation, best
results are obtained if treatment is made to moist soil and moisture is
supplied by rainfall or sprinkler irrigation no later than 1 week after
application. For mulched row middle applications, adjust the equipment
to keep the applications off the mulch and use proportionally less mixture
based on the soil area actually sprayed.
For postemergence
applications, apply Shadeout at 1.0-2.0 oz. product per acre to young,
actively growing weeds after the crop has reached the 2 leaf stage. Usually,
small weeds (less than 1" in height or diameter) are most easily controlled.
Use a nonionic surfactant at a rate of 0.125-0.25% v/v with all postemergence
applications.
Applications may be
applied preemergence followed by single or multiple postemergence applications.
Do not exceed 2.0 oz. product/acre applied preemergence to the crop and
2.0oz. product applied postemergence in the same growing season. Do not
apply Shadeout within 45 days of tomato harvest.
Tank mixtures of Shadeout
plus Lexone are labeled for postemergence applications. This tank mix
may be applied for a broader spectrum of weed control.
Read the label and
follow all directions and precautions.
(Stall, Vegetarian 99-03)
World Vegetable Production
The area harvested
(1000 ha), yield (kg/ha) and total production (1000 MT) of the world's
most important vegetables according to the FAO Production Yearbook are
shown in Table 1. In terms of area
harvested, dry bean, potato, and cassava are the most important crops,
whereas artichoke, green bean, and cauliflower are relatively unimportant.
Highest yields are obtained from tomato, cabbage, and carrot. The dry
legumes (bean, chickpea, and lentils) produce the lowest yields per ha
because of their low moisture content. Total world production is highest
for potato, sweet potato, and cassava; the root crops that provide massive
amounts of energy and that can be stored for extended periods to provide
foodstuff when otherwise unavailable. Vegetables entering into commerce
on a global basis are harvested from over 118 million ha and produce more
than 1 billion MT. Since much of the population in developing countries
is engaged in subsistence farming where farm produce, including vegetables,
does not enter into traditional commerce it is clear that total world
wide production is much greater than that reported.
The ranking of the
primary countries in production (MT) of vegetables also according to FAO
is shown in Table 2. This listing
is related to the size of the country, its population, presence of a favorable
climate for vegetable production and ethnic culinary habits of the population.
Even a casual examination of Table 2 will reveal the overwhelming importance
of China as a vegetable producing country. Of 25 vegetables or vegetable
groups listed, China ranks first in 15. India, the next most frequent
listing appears four times as the leading producer. According to data
developed by the Chinese Ministry of Agricultural Statistics in1991, the
21 major vegetables in China were grown on 4, 365,000 ha which produced
more produced more than 142 million MT. 
|
Table
1. World Vegetable Production. Principal Vegetables,1996.
|
|
Vegetable
|
Area
Harvested
(1000
ha)
|
Yield
(kg/ha)
|
Production
(1000
MT)
|
|
Artichoke
Cabbage
Cantaloupe
and other melons
Carrot
Cassava
Cauliflower
Chickpea
Chillies
and pepper, green
Cucumber
and gherkin
Dry
bean
Dry
broad bean
Dry
pea
Eggplant
Garlic
Green
bean
Green
pea
Lentils
Onion,
dry
Potato
Pumpkin,
squash, and gourd
Sweet
potato
Taro
Tomato
Watermelon
Yam
|
106
1974
994
770
16322
681
12009
1271
1424
27470
2355
6515
722
986
491
806
3389
2204
18353
768
9156
1016
3094
2393
3173
|
10836
23632
16283
21396
9983
18681
742
11064
16182
679
1499
1680
16589
10549
7376
6467
832
16174
16065
12789
14662
5650
27435
16601
10435
|
1150
46656
16190
16477
162942
12725
8908
14068
23051
18639
3531
10945
11981
10401
3620
5214
2819
35644
294834
9822
134244
5739
84873
39725
33110
|
|
Total
|
118442
|
-
|
1007308
|
| Table
2. World Vegetable Production. Leading countries. 1996. |
|
Vegetable
|
Rank
|
| 1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
| Artichoke
Cabbage
Cantaloupe
and other melons
Carrot
Cassava
Cauliflower
Chickpea
Chillies
and peppers, green
Cucumber
and gherkin
Dry
bean
Dry
broad bean
Dry
pea
Eggplant
Garlic
Green
bean
Green
pea
Lentils
Onion,
dry
Potato
Pumpkin,
squash, and gourd
Sweet
Potato
Taro
Tomato
Watermelon
Yam
|
Ita
Chi
Chi
Chi
Nig
Ind
Ind
Chi
Chi
Ind
Chi
Fra
Chi
Chi
Chi
USA
Ind
Chi
Chi
Chi
Chi
Gha
Chi
Chi
Nig
|
Spa
FRus
Tur
USA
Bra
Chi
Tur
Tur
Iran
Bra
Egy
Ukr
Tur
R
Kor
Tur
Chi
Tur
Ind
FRus
Ukr
Indon
Chi
USA
Tur
Ct
Dv
|
Arg
Ind
Iran
F
Rus
Zaire
Fra
Pak
Nig
Tur
Chi
Ethio
Can
Jap
Ind
Indon
Fra
Can
USA
USA
Tur
Ugnd
Nig
Tur
Iran
Gha
|
Fra
R
Kor
USA
Pol
Thai
Ita
Ira
Mex
USA
Mex
Mor
Chi
Egy
USA
Spa
UK
Bang
Tur
Pol
Mex
Viet
Ct
Dv
Ita
USA
Ben
|
USA
Jap
Spa
UK
Indon
UK
Aus
Spa
Jap
USA
Ita
FRus
Ita
Spa
Ita
Ind
Syr
Jap
Ukr
Egy
Rwn
Jap
Egy
RKor
Togo
|
(Maynard,
Vegetarian 99-03)
Grape Tomatoes
Grape tomatoes are a
new type of specialty tomato being grown in Florida and elsewhere that seems
to be quickly gaining some market share. When I say market share, I'm not
sure where it is taking market share from. Is it California grapes, or is
it Florida cherry tomatoes? By now most of you have seen them and they are
mostly the shape of a Thompson seedless grape and about that size, sometimes
a little larger. Grape tomatoes are much smaller than cherry tomatoes and
are oblong, at least the ones I've seen. Richard See, Seed Sales Manager,
Seedway, says the tomatoes are much sweeter than cherry tomatoes and that
even the children enjoy eating them just as they do grapes. The ones I've
tasted do not taste like a grape and as far as I know the flavor characteristic
was not where the name "grape" came from, obviously it's the shape. They
are somewhat sweeter than cherry tomatoes and seem to have a more edible
texture. I've had some at a few salad bars and have made one visit to a
commercial field of grape tomatoes in the Jennings, Florida area which is
about as close to Georgia as you can get when traveling I-75.
The grower of the Jennings
area grape tomatoes came to the Gadsden Tomato Forum on December 3 last
year and invited me to come visit the field. The following week I got a
chance to go and I was somewhat astonished at what I saw. They were just
getting through with the last harvest which had been going on for two months
and were in the initial stages of field clean-up. The tomatoes had been
transplanted in early August and here it was December 9. Keep in mind 1998
was the year for hurricane weather, particularly in North Florida. The grower
said that they had 18 inches of rain in September. Back in Gadsden County
(Quincy area) the Fall tomato crop was down about 40% from average yields
due to the wind and rainy weather. Bacterial spot disease and other pathogens
took a toll. Fruit set ran about 3 weeks late and with the shorter days
and cooler nights that came when the plants finally set fruit, the Quincy
tomato crop was about a month late in harvest. That same sequence of events
was mostly what these grape tomatoes had been through. However, unlike a
bunch of ragged late season tomatoes, these grape tomatoes looked incredibly
good and tolerant to bad weather conditions. Frost generally comes prior
to December 9 in North Florida, although one time in Gadsden County I picked
a red ripe tomato on January 2. Most of the time November brings a killing
frost and North Florida tomatoes are long gone before Thanksgiving. The
grower said that the variety he had planted on this 44 acres was an exclusive
and he didn't know the exact name of this grape tomato variety. According
to Richard See, there are not many grape tomato seed distributors and his
company imports the seed from two different companies, Makata (China) or
Mikita (Japan). Seedway supplies three varieties; Juliet, Santa Clause and
Red Cherry (no Florida research data and no variety claims as to yields,
reliability, etc.) The grower did not know where his company had obtained
seed. These Jennings area tomatoes were extremely tall, taller than most
cherry tomatoes. The grower was using 72 inch stakes and was talking about
going to 84 inch stakes next year. You would think he would have been on
6 foot row spacings in order to get some sunlight. He was on 5 foot spacing
and was well pleased and was not anticipating going to wider row spacing,
in spite of his plans to grow a taller crop next year. There were still
plenty of tomatoes on the bushes and they were quite tasty.
Grape tomatoes do grow
in a cluster, although it is not near as tight as a Thompson grape cluster.
Of course you're thinking that's how they are harvesting these grape tomatoes,
in clusters. The recent gaining popularity of the greenhouse cluster tomatoes
would lead you to believe his would be the only way. Harvesting grape tomatoes
in clusters may be a good idea, however, these were picked individually.
Another drawback in harvesting grape tomato clusters appears to be that
these tomatoes are not firmly attached and are easily dislodged. The tomatoes
were harvested in strawberry harvesting containers and then loaded on trucks
in (approximately 20 lb.) Containers and were then trucked to a strawberry
packing facility in the Palmetto-Ruskin area and packaged in clear plastic
clam shell type containers before shipping. Harvest costs are much higher
than for conventional tomatoes, even if you didn't have to make such a long
haul to the packinghouse. The grower was not at liberty to say what his
yields were, although he did say the crop was quite profitable and they
were pleased with the yields.
Grape tomatoes appear
to be a viable alternative crop. Dr. Steve Olson, NFREC Vegetable Specialist
has obtained two grape varieties for his variety trials this spring. He
said the seed was hard to come by and the salesman gave him only a few seed.
Steve has another (first-timer) interesting new type variety in his 1999
spring trials in Quincy. This is a field grown cluster tomato from Israel.
If this variety does good it may make some of the greenhouse folks in Colorado
and Canada a little nervous. I was noticing last week in Winn Dixie where
they were getting an extra dollar per pound for greenhouse cluster tomatoes
compared to regular tomatoes. It appears that consumers like them because
about 25% of their shelf space was devoted to cluster tomatoes, in spite
of the higher price.
(Castro,
Vegetarian 99-03)
Chemical Stimulation of Plant Growth of Vegetables in Florida
Florida farmers cultivated
over 290,000 acres of vegetables in 1997, forty three percent of which were
established from transplants. While possibly best known for tomato production,
FL sweet corn, potato (fresh and chipping), watermelon and snap bean acreage
all rival that of tomato. Like farmers everywhere, FL growers want healthy
plant growth and development that is free of disease and insect pressure.
To raise better crops, FL growers often avail themselves of chemical opportunities
to stimulate plant growth and increase yields. The following discussion
will focus on chemical plant growth regulators (PGR's), often called biostimulant
products (seaweed extracts and various hormone mixtures) as opposed to classical
uses such as ethylene for in-field fruit ripening or anti-GA's for growth
control.
In December 1998, FL
vegetable extension agents were asked to contact 2 growers who used PGR's
to help document crop use acreage and satisfaction with the products. The
survey, while admittedly limited in scope, revealed that PGR's were used
in all major vegetable production areas throughout the state with the exception
of a corridor from Gainesville northwest to Quincy. PGR products were used
on all the major vegetable crops on a total of about 12,300 acres and satisfaction
ranged from poor to fair. Products that appeared repeatedly in the survey
results included Acadian Seaweed (Acadian Seaplants, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia),
Early Harvest (Griffin Corp., Valdosta, GA), Folizyme (Stoller Chemical,
Houston, TX), Goemar (Agrimar Corp., Atlanta, GA), Key Plex (Morse Enterprises,
Miami, FL), and Triggrr (Westbridge, Vista, CA).
A survey of three local
purveyors of these products in the Immokalee/Homestead area documented sales
on over 40,000 acres of vegetables treated with PGR's in south FL alone.
These figures in conjunction with county agent survey results would bring
the total vegetable acreage treated with PGR's to slightly over 52,300 or
approximately 17% of FL's total vegetable acreage. It is suspected this
number is an under estimate.
Phrases that surfaced during discussions with growers, suppliers, and
agents about the performance of PGR products included:
-
"inconsistent
results from year to year"
-
"better
performance under stressful conditions"
-
"everybody
has one, but they are generally too expensive for regular use"
-
"snake
oil"
Csizinszky (1996), who has more published works than anyone in FL on
the subject, sums up five years of tomato PGR research on both spring and
fall crops thus:
-
inconsistent
results - increased fruit size and yield one year, but not the next
-
a
tendency to increase the uptake of micronutrients resulting in phytotoxicity
-
cultivars
vary in response to application
-
foliar
application is the most efficacious route
Our lab (SWFREC) has
documented crop to crop response variation with mode of application (Fig.
1), critical timing and rate issues that complicate efficacy (Fig.
2) and general non-significance across the board regarding yield.
With such a diversity
of variation in "controlled" trials (cultivars, mode of application, rate
and timing) one can see why researchers and growers alike have reached the
conclusion that these products are inconsistent. However, statewide use
figures seem to indicate some growers may still believe the beneficial effects
of PGR's outweigh the inconsistent results.
(Vavrina,
Vegetarian 99-03)
Vegetable Grower Profile: Osceola Organics
"Innovation
+ Business Savvy + Location = Success"
Osceola Organics is
a family owned and operated organic vegetable farm located in Vero Beach.
They have been steadily growing on their 10 acre farm since they opened
in 1993. Kevin and Wendy O'Dare are the owners, and produce fresh salad
greens herbs, edible flowers and solanaceous vegetables.
Their key to success
with such a small operation is to produce sufficient income during the season
to allow for startup capital for the next season, funds for reinvestment,
salary for a few seasonal employees and a profit to live on. They estimate
they earn $500-600 per week in gross sales during the season. The weather
this spring has been ideal for a longer than usual season; tomatoes have
been produced from November through the first of March.
Kevin feels his prior
retail business experience has been invaluable in knowing how to operate
his business. Too often people enter organic production with great enthusiasm
but lack knowledge of how to run a business. Another part of their success
is due to the location. They have discovered and developed a niche market
with local upscale restaurants and grow produce to meet market demands.
Indian River County has a significant tourist industry with many upscale
restaurants. While the idea of organic produce is desirable to the restaurants,
their primary requirement is that produce be extremely fresh and consistently
available.
Osceola Organics emphasizes
the production of pre-washed and cleaned salad greens. They rely on composted
yard waste, applications of composted chicken manures, and fish emulsion
as their sources for crop nutrition. Wendy and other farm employees deliver
80% of their daily production directly to about 20 local restaurants up
and down Indian River County's 20 mile long coastal areas.
The first two years
of their operation were a real struggle. Their original plan was to sell
produce out of a retail stand on the farm site. They first felt that salad
greens would be a small part of their production. An accidental bit of good
luck parleyed the operation in this right direction. The O'Dares inherited
a sizable assortment of seed from a fellow grower that could not make a
go if it. Part of the seed lot was a seed container with a mixture of many
different lettuce varieties. Kevin couldn't separate the varieties out,
so he planted this mixture in the seed bed. Up came a wonderful pre-mixed
salad product. It was well accepted by local eateries and health food enthusiasts,
and provided the direction for their direct marketed restaurant product.
Today he continues to
plant a lettuce variety mixture to create the product desired by restaurants.
Included lettuce varieties are green and red oak leaf, Lolla rosa, Rubin
Red Romaine, green romaine, Bibb and Tango Curly leaf. Weed control was
and is the biggest production challenge - soil solarization and plasticulture
has allowed them to stay ahead of the weeds without chemical herbicides.
Another change this season was to increase the size of their seedling trays,
resulting in a 25% increase in production.
Impediments to future
expansion are that the farm is located on a dead end dirt road and the farm
site lacks bathrooms. Such limitations have encouraged them to keep up the
restaurant market.
They are acutely aware
of urbanization, and strive to not only grow quality organic products but
teach people about their approach as well. Their farm is readily available
for tours and a small farm stand provides fresh product to an ever expanding
loyal customer base.
Kevin has been a real
asset to this county's extension office, is always willing to share his
knowledge with others. He recently spoke at the 1998 Florida Small Farm
Conference in Brooksville, and assists with an annual organic farming workshop
coordinated by the St. Lucie County Extension Agents Anita Neal, Jack Hebb,
and Sue Munyan.
(Culbert,
Vegetarian 99-03)
Certified Sweet Potato Plant Growers - 1995 Georgia
list (1999 update)
Many of you agents will
be asked by gardeners and growers where to obtain sweet potato transplants
for the 1999 season. Since the Florida Department of Agriculture can not
certify Florida growers as a source of plants, we must rely on our neighboring
states (Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi) for plants.
The following list of
growers had plants in 1995 from Georgia farms. This list may be useful in
advising your growers of possible plant sources. If need be, you can contact
the Department of Agriculture in those states I mentioned for their most
current lists.
1995
Georgia Certified Sweet Potato Plant Growers
| County |
No.
Bushels |
Variety |
APPLING
COUNTY
James R. Cook
Rt 3 Box 501
Baxley, GA 31513 |
350 |
Georgia
Red |
Curtis
Herndon
PO Box 161
Surrency, GA 31563
(912) 367-3331 |
140
150
|
Georgia
Red
Alabama
Nuggets
|
W.
R. Lightsey
296 Johnnie Thornton
RoadOdum, GA 31555
(912) 267-6781 |
500 |
Georgia
Red |
BACON
COUNTY
Steve Hutchinson
Rt 1 Box 131-A
Nichols, GA 31554
(912)632-8875 |
38
78
|
Georgia
Jets
Georgia
Red
|
Troy
L. Johnson
Rt 1 Box 126
Nichols, GA 31554
(912)632-4907 |
24
16
|
Georgia
Red
Georgia
Jets
|
CRISP
COUNTY
Powers Farms
206 Powers
Rd.Cordele, GA 31015
(912)273-5874 |
200 |
Georgia
Red |
DOUGHERTY
COUNTY
Piedmont Plant Company
PO Box 224
Albany, GA 31708
(912)435-0766 |
|
|
IRWIN
COUNTY
Joey Veal
Rt 1 Box 545
Ocilla, GA 31774
(912)468-9526 |
1,200
180
|
Beauregard
other
varieties
|
LEE
COUNTY *
Leeland Farms
PO Box 690
Leesburg, GA 31763
(912)759-6523 |
14,700
3,200
|
Beauregard
other
varieties
|
LOWNDES
COUNTY
Steve Stalvey
Rt 2 Box 1290-9
Ray City, GA 31645
(912)247-5794 |
65
60
|
Beauregard
other
varieties
|
TIFT
COUNTY
Pond-O-Gold
PO Box 205
Omega, GA 31775
(912) 528-6767 |
9,000
5,000
|
Beauregard
other
varieties
|
| *
1999 - Update: as of March 1, 1999. The only source certified in
Georgia is: Leeland Farms (see address above). |
(Stephens,
Vegetarian 99-03)
|
