15.07.2015

Dominican Republic - Farmers Struggle, Crops Dry Up in Caribbean and Central America

Rice farmers in the Dominican Republic expect they could lose 80 percent of their crops this season given the dry conditions. Historic drought in the Caribbean is causing huge losses for farmers as the region suffers the driest conditions in more than five years.Rice farmers in the Dominican Republic's north west province of Monti Cristi expect they could lose as much as 80 percent of their harvests this season their rice crops, grown by maintaining flooded fields, are hard hit by dry weather."We want to tell the president to come to the aid of Monte Cristi, especially rice farmers,” said Quilvo Diaz, president of an irrigation board in the province, according to local newspaper Diario Libre. “Here, in one way or another, all households depend on agriculture.”“Drought is affecting rice cultivation in the Northwest Line (Dominican Republic), there’s substantial loss.”“Drought is affecting rice cultivation in the Northwest Line (Dominican Republic), there’s substantial loss.”Rice is a key source of livelihood for hundreds of families in Monte Cristi alone. But parched reservoirs and lack of rain has left irrigation systems thirsty, creating a difficult situation for farmers, who have called on the government to help avoid crop loss.According to farmers, the situation could provoke an “extraordinary famine” in the region.In Jamaica, the ministry of agriculture has already handed over 30 tanks of water to agricultural producers southwest of Kingston to help ward of the damaging impacts of months of drought. Meanwhile, drought in El Salvador is also impacting thousands of producers an over an estimated 100,000 acres of farmland sewn with maize, a major staple grain in the Central American country, Prensa Latina reported Tuesday.“Almost 50 manzanas (124 acres) of maize crops have been lost due to drought in Santa Barbara, Olovuilta (El Salvador).” To confront the crisis, the Salvadoran government will distribute hundreds of thousands of seed packages for farmers, including improved maize seed packets, bean packets, and sorghum. Authorities will also mitigate potential food shortages by importing 100,000 tons of corn for human consumption, analyst Cesar Villalona told Prensa Latina. According to Villalona, government support for agriculture has helped El Salvador increase maize and bean production in recent years despite experiencing significant droughts in 2011 and 2014 and major flood-inducing storms in 2009 and 2012.In the face of climate change, such government support and new policies addressing water, food security, and food sovereignty will only become more important as adverse weather conditions become more common, Villalona explained. Meteorologists have predicted a strong El Niño effect will disrupt regular climate patterns this year, as the climatic phenomenon originating in the Pacific Ocean triggers floods, droughts, and other extreme conditions around the world.While experts predict parts of Central America will continue to be hard-hit by drought, other parts of the region may be flooded by heavy rains. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has warned that adverse weather caused by El Niño could extend into spring next year. In the Caribbean, El Niño is expected to produce a calmer hurricane season than usual, withholding much-needed rain for the region, parching farmers' crops, livestock, and water reservoirs across the region. The Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology has predicted drought conditions will last at least until September this year.Source - http://www.telesurtv.net

14.07.2015

Казахстан - В Атырауской области бакланы погибли от птичьего гриппа H5N1

Казахстан - В Атырауской области бакланы погибли от птичьего гриппа H5N1

14.07.2015

World - Invasions out of center of diversity increase the risk of disease epidemics in wheat

Scientists have found that strains of the wheat pathogen causing severe yellow rust epidemics in Europe have their origin in the centre of diversity in the Himalayan region. This disease can have a great impact on wheat production in Europe, including organic crop production in Denmark.Wheat is the most widely cultivated food crop in the world. However, the global production of wheat is under constant threat from devastating fungal diseases. The ever more frequent and severe large-scale epidemics caused by these fungi pose a severe threat to global food security.Scientists are searching for - and finding - answers to how to protect cereal crops against the rust and powdery mildew diseases. A recent discovery is where the invasive strains of the yellow rust fungus have their origin in the Himalayas. This new finding was presented in a keynote talk at the 14th International Cereal Rusts and Powdery Mildews Conference 2015 held in Helsingør in Denmark July 5-8, 2015.The conference gathered leading experts in plant diseases from 33 countries from all over the world to discuss the challenges and reduce the risks of disease epidemics and crop losses. Speakers reported about the global landscape of the diseases, innovative control measures and their implications for integrated disease management via increased national, regional and international collaboration.Tracking the spread and originSeveral factors indicate that the centre of diversity of wheat yellow rust is in the Himalayan region.We have good evidence that the new invasion of yellow rust into Europe was spread by rust spores carried by the wind from Asia to Europe, possibly through the northern part of Central Asia. The yellow rust fungus is genetically very diverse in the Himalayas, where it can infect wheat and barley as well as common barberry, the sexual host of the fungus, says Sajid Ali, a visiting scientist at the Department of Agroecology in Aarhus University and scientist at the University of Agriculture, Peshawar, Pakistan.A team of scientists led by Aarhus University mapped the migration patterns, centre of diversity and population structure of this aggressive fungus using microsatellite genotyping of worldwide representative samples. There is a high genetic diversity of the fungus causing wheat yellow rust, Puccinia striiformis, in the Himalayan and near-Himalayan regions, i.e. Nepal, Pakistan and China, and a much lower genetic diversity in other parts of the world.In addition, the region contains the alternate host of several rust fungi, i.e. barberry. This plant species provides the fungi with a place to "hang out" in the absence of wheat and provides a potential for sexual reproduction.The invasive stains were already detected the first year they appeared in Europe using innovative diagnostic and information technology tools, which enabled an early alarm and preparedness to face the challenges, says Sajid Ali.Resistant crop varieties are a good toolThe combat of rust diseases, which have long-distance dispersal capacities, requires collaboration on a global scale and rapid sharing of information among world-leading researchers, plant breeders and extension workers.The early detection and responses was only possible due to long-term collaboration between Aarhus University in Denmark, the National Agricultural Research Institute (INRA) in France, the Julius Kühn Institute in Germany, the National Institute for Agricultural Botany in the United Kingdom, the International Wheat and Maize Improvement Centre Mexico, the International Centre of Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas, and the University of Agriculture, Peshawar, Pakistan, emphasizes Professor Mogens Støvring Hovmøller from the Department of Agroecology at Aarhus University, where he leads the Global Rust Reference Centre.The new strains have increased the risks of disease epidemics, in particular for organic farmers who do not have access to pesticides.Our goal is to keep the disease at a level that keeps crop losses at a minimum while protecting the environment with a justified use of pesticides. The most economical and environmentally friendly solution is to escalate the development of new crop varieties that are resistant to a wide array of plant pathogens, says Mogens Støvring Hovmøller and continues:When breeding for resistant varieties, plant breeders must consider pathogen diversity beyond national scales. This requires intensified collaboration between plant breeders and plant pathologists, which is one of the aims of the conference. There is a need for both innovative, durable disease resistance genes ad smart strategies for the deployment of resistant crop varieties.Source - http://pda.physorg.com/

14.07.2015

USA - California Drought Leaves Few Farmers Unscathed

As holders of some of the oldest water rights in California, many farmers and ranchers here in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta have never had their spigots turned off, a fate many of their counterparts in the parched state have endured.But under an order from the State Water Resources Control Board, the local Byron Bethany Irrigation District last month shut down irrigation to more than 160 farmers and ranchers in its 30,000-acre area.“Everything is in peril right now,” said Paul Simoni, as workers recently harvested corn on his family’s 1,900-acre farm. Mr. Simoni said crops, including tomatoes and alfalfa still in the fields, likely would be wiped out if they don’t get water soon.The district has filed suit in state Superior Court in Concord asking a judge to overturn the board order. Although that litigation is pending, a Superior Court judge in Sacramento on Friday ruled that the board’s notices of a similar cutoff against the West Side Irrigation District and three other districts in the Central Valley constituted a “taking” of their rights and temporarily suspended their enforcement.Officials for the Byron Bethany district said that ruling could lead to the overturning of the board’s cutoff orders in that and thousands of other farming districts—with both high- and low-priority access to water—since May. The water board issued a statement Friday that it considered the judge’s order “limited in scope,” and that it concerns only the form of its curtailment notice.California’s drought, now in its fifth year, is being felt statewide, with districts asking homeowners to do everything from stopping watering lawns to taking shorter showers. But it’s in the state’s fertile Central Valley that it’s causing the most economic pain. A preliminary study in May by the University of California, Davis, estimated the drought would cost 18,600 agriculture-related jobs and $2.7 billion in economic losses this year.Now, some holders of senior water rights—those with priority for supplies, even when there is a shortage—are concerned that the state has stricter and longer-term cuts in store for them that could reshape how and what they grow, said Doug Parker, director of the California Institute for Water Resources at the University of California.The shut-off of senior water rights could cause the losses to mount even more. Byron Bethany officials estimate, for instance, that their district will suffer more than $65 million in crop losses and lose more than 500 jobs unless the water is turned back on soon. “This is happening right in the middle of growing season…so it couldn’t come at a worse time,” said Rick Gilmore, general manager of the district.Byron Bethany is one of several irrigation districts in the state with water rights dating to before 1914 that the board ordered cut off as part of the overall state clampdown on consumption. The cutoff was ordered because a right to water claimed by Byron Bethany was “within a range for which the Board has determined no water is available at this time,” a water board spokesman said.During public meetings, board members have said they had to reduce water supplies for both urban and agricultural customers this year after a record low snowpack last winter.Many farmers with more junior rights already have had all or most of their water supplies shut off, from both state and federal reservoirs, during the past two years. To compensate for the shortfall, many are drilling wells into fast-depleting underground water reservoirs.As the drought wears on, its effects rippling throughout the state’s agricultural sector. Water-hungry cotton and rice acres are decreasing as some farmers fallow fields, and water is diverted to higher-value crops such as nuts and berries.Still, even high-value crops aren’t immune.Facing scarce water supplies, some growers are starting to uproot older but productive trees earlier than normal and considering diversifying into annual crops, Mr. Parker said. “The drought has really taught people that water supplies aren’t as permanent as they thought,” he said.Beyond the pain for growers, the water shortage also is hurting farm payrolls, particularly in small agricultural communities. Many of the crops losing acreage require more farmhands than their replacements.One of the conundrums senior rights farmers face is that many don’t have backup sources of water, such as wells, that growers with more junior rights have installed by necessity.At his family’s 700-acre ranch outside Tracy, 21-year-old Mario Arnaudo said irrigated water has been considered so reliable that the spread only has two wells, both for human consumption. But Mr. Arnaudo said his herd of 300 cows is surviving on water from those wells since a canal drained after the Byron Bethany shut-off last month, causing pastures to dry up.Said Mr. Arnaudo, as he toured the spread recently: “Basically, the whole ranch is at risk.”Source - http://www.wsj.com/

14.07.2015

Europe - Vegetable crops affected by weather

European vegetable canners and freezers in major producing countries are concerned over this year’s spring crops. After a cold spring, the countries in the central production area of Europe had an exceptionally low rainfall in May and June and whilst differences are noted between the North and South of Europe, certain regions had 40 to 50% less precipitation than normal.In addition, the first week of July has been tropically warm and dry with high winds, which intensified the dry-out effect. A heat wave was officially declared with record-high temperatures over 35°C. These meteorological conditions have affected major vegetable crops and shortages will occur for a number of vegetables:- Peas: the crop will be reduced by the dry and hot weather. It will be a very shortseason with a later than normal start and an early finish.- Spring spinach: after the cold spring the season has been moved up in time andnot all the planned hectares could be sown and processed. The extreme droughtand heat on top have further affected the crop.- Cauliflower: a reduced production is resulting from heat and drought.Beans: because of the drought the sowing of beans became extremely difficult tonearly impossible.- Rootcrops (carrots): the spring crop is late and lost its potential. Consequentlyconcerns arise over the seasonal production of canned mixes of peas and carrots.Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

14.07.2015

Canada - Deciding if you should spray canola for blackleg

The best time to spray canola with a fungicide to control blackleg is at the two- to four-leaf stage, but there are things farmers can do to avoid having to spray at all.“Blackleg becomes a greater risk when you have seen blackleg in your field in the past and you’ve seen yield loss,” said Anastasia Kubinec, an oilseed specialist with the Manitoba government.“If you do have good rotation — two, three, four years between canola — and you are not seeing blackleg… in the field, I would not be spending money on fungicide for blackleg because you do not have a higher risk.”Blackleg can cut canola yields by half, but unlike sclerotinia — another fungal disease that infects canola — longer canola rotations can reduce its incidence and severity.Kubinec said she has seen the benefits of longer canola rotations on her own family’s farm where they no longer spray for blackleg. A mistake last year underscored the value of a longer rotation, she said. A field was expanded and seeded to canola. One part of the field hadn’t been in canola for four years but another part had canola two years ago.“It was night and day the difference between the yields and the blackleg incidence in the field that was canola two years ago versus the field that was canola four years ago,” she said.It’s also important to switch canola varieties. Blackleg-resistant genes are specific to a variety.“If you’re growing canola in tight rotations, you can be setting yourself up for an epidemic because you are selecting for those genes in the environment that are still able to attack that canola and to survive,” Kubinec said. “You need to switch things up a bit.”Most canolas are resistant or moderately resistant to blackleg, however, sometimes that resistance breaks down.Blackleg infections spread within a crop through rain splash — raindrops splashing blackleg spores up on the plant.Crops damaged by hail or other means, especially early in the growing season, are more susceptible, but even undamaged crops are at risk if the pathogen is in the field and weather conditions are favourable. Blackleg incidence and severity tend to be higher under humid and warm conditions with frequent rain showers, the Canola Council of Canada’s website says.Sometimes blackleg will show up first as a creamy, black-spotted lesion on a canola leaf, or black spots on old canola stubble, Kubinec said.A number of fungicides are registered to protect canola and suppress infections, but not cure the disease and “they all work well,” Kubinec said.Source - http://www.country-guide.ca/

14.07.2015

India - Heavy rain ruins green gram crop due to excessive May rain

Farmers, who sowed green gram in Nadupalayam village, have nothing to celebrate after they registered a massive crop failure this year.According to the agriculture department officials, who visited these farms, the excessive rainfall in May and June led to the dire situation.A gloom settled over farmers of Nadupalayam, which is 25km from Pappampatti Pirivu, after their crops failed to sprout pods. These pods contain the mung beans which when harvested is dried, roasted and sold as green gram in the market.N Bhoopathy, 50, who owns a four-acre farm in Nadupalayam, had sown green gram in the first week of May. Despite majority of the crops growing to its full potential, no pods were sprouted in most of them."It is important for the crops sprout pods. Otherwise, we cannot harvest the mung beans," said the farmer, who has been cultivating green gram for over three decades in his land. Bhoopathy, who in fact bought the seeds from the agriculture department in the Sulur Panchayat Union office, said "I did not do anything different this season, but the harvest has failed on a massive scale."Another farmer in the area, N Ramasamy who cultivated green gram in his 1.25-acre farm said, "No pods sprouted in my farm either," he said. Both farmers have lost upto 5,000 per acre -- the investment made for the seeds, fertilizers, pesticides and labour. "We hope it sells for cattle fodder atleast," he added.According to them, farmers in Appanaickenpattipudhur in the district saw only 50% of sprouting in their farmlands. However, those who sowed Black-eyed peas and Urud Dal did not record any major loss.The assistant director of agriculture department in Sulur panchayat office, Jayashree, who inspected these farms, said, "We found that many farms, including Bhoopathy's, saw only a 30% crop yield and so we asked two TNAU scientists to discover what brought about the failure this year."According to these scientists, the heavy unseasonal rain in May led to water stagnation in many of these farms, she said. "Extra manure was piled up in the land and had gotten mixed with the rain water and the lack of sunlight facilitated vegetation to grow between the sown seeds that used up most of the nutrients. And this led to the crop failure," she said.Many other parts of the district have registered a good green gram yield, she added.Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

14.07.2015

USA - Cool, wet Northern weather ideal for crop blight

Anyone growing tomatoes or potatoes needs to be on the lookout for signs of late blight.As of late last week, this devastating disease has been found on potatoes in western New York and western Vermont. This means we are basically surrounded by it and the cool, wet weather we’ve been having creates ideal conditions for this disease. Only tomatoes and potatoes are affected by this particular pathogen.Anyone who had a garden in 2009 will remember the breathtaking speed that late blight spread across the state and beyond. This disease does not overwinter in New York state although it can survive on leftover, infested potato tubers. It moves up from the south each year on storm fronts or in infested seed potatoes. In 2009, it was spread on tomato transplants as well as the weather but that is not the case this year.Late blight is devastating because it kills tomatoes and potatoes within days of infestation and also because it spreads so easily and quickly from garden to garden. Home gardeners with just a couple of tomatoes may be tempted to abandon infected plants, but these plants will serve as a breeding ground and continue to spread spores throughout the neighborhood. This ‘hop-scotch’ ability of this disease is what makes it such a public problem. It’s bad enough that a gardener should lose their crop, but even worse if they allow it to spread to other gardens. Once late blight is confirmed please bag up infested plants and take them to the landfill. Larger scale plantings can be burned or buried deeply away from the garden.There is a lot of confusion about the various diseases tomatoes get, so I’ll review the common problems.Every year, we see many cases of early blight and Septoria leaf spot. These are both troublesome and in a wet year like this can really flourish and weaken plants. Early blight causes large lesions up to 2 inches across with concentric rings and Septoria causes many small, distinct round spots.The extended cold, wet, stormy weather we have had since mid-May has made growing conditions very challenging, especially for warm-loving plants like tomatoes. Many gardeners are reporting yellowed lower leaves, spindly growth and random spotting on the lower leaves.We hope those plants will grow out of it if warm, sunny weather arrives in time.To recap, once late blight is confirmed on your tomatoes or potatoes, please bag them up and remove them. But don’t bag up your plants until you’re sure it’s late blight. You may have one of the common, less severe diseases which don’t have to be removed. If you suspect late blight, please bring a sample to our office for confirmation. The Cornell lab is tracking which genotypes of the disease are showing up in which parts of the country, so they want to see every sample. There is no cost to you.Source - http://www.stwnewspress.com/

13.07.2015

USA - Rain washing away this year's crop profits

USA - Rain washing away this year's crop profitsRecord rainfall has damaged up to 40 percent of some area crops and created one of the worst growing seasons in local history. Crop-loss amounts vary across the Grand Lake area, according to local agriculture officials. Fields not tiled well or located near waterways have suffered major flooding and some remain submerged. Most of the crops planted in late April, early May have a good root system and are looking good. Those planted later, not so good.Record rainfall has damaged up to 40 percent of some area crops and created one of the worst growing seasons in local history. "In my lifetime ... when it comes to water damage, this is one of the worst I've seen," said Coldwater area farmer Dusty Uhlenhake, who also sells products for Stewart Seeds. Crop-loss amounts vary across the Grand Lake area, according to local agriculture officials. Fields not tiled well or located near waterways have suffered major flooding and some remain submerged, Uhlenhake said. "Most of the crops planted in late April, early May have a good root system and are looking good," he said. "Those planted later, not so good." Nearly 13 inches of rain was recorded in the Celina area during the month of June, breaking the 1958 record of 8.8 inches. The average rainfall for June is 3.86 inches. Local weather forecaster Dennis Howick measured another 2.65 inches of rain since Tuesday with more showers possible in coming days. Mercer County farmers have lost 15-20 percent of their corn, estimated county Farm Services Agency executive director Chris Gibbs. "Along the Beaver (Creek), Wabash (River), St. Marys (River), in those low spots many crops have been destroyed," he said. "If farmers have their whole crop in those areas, it's devastating. There's no recovery. I hope they have crop insurance." Reimbursement through crop insurance is the only action farmers can take to ease the revenue loss because a disaster declaration hasn't been made, Gibbs said. He is more optimistic about soybeans, which "don't like cold, wet feet" but are more resilient than corn. "Some beans look lethargic right now but they're patient. They have the ability to wait (for drier weather)," he said. "I don't want to speculate on soybean losses. The jury's still out." Due to excessive muddy soil, many farmers were unable to get into their fields for about 35 consecutive days, Gibbs said. That means no nitrogen or herbicide applications were completed to help salvage damaged plants, he added. "There's just been no opportunity to do field work. It's so saturated, no sunshine and overcast," Gibbs said. "I can't remember a time when there was just no movement at all like this." Auglaize County Farm Service Agency Executive Director Anita Green estimated corn yield losses at 30 percent and soybeans at 40 percent or higher in the neighboring county. "What's unique and notable about this year is it's (damage) widespread. In the past, we've had isolated spots," Green said. Profit margins for some farmers are tight and this year's harvest - coupled with higher costs and lower commodity prices - could have a big impact, she explained. "We have it bad but there are areas that are worse," she said, adding northern Ohio counties such as Paulding, Hardin and Logan experienced more severe flooding. "Some of those farmers never got their fields planted." Local farmers scrambled over the Fourth of July weekend to get wheat harvested, she said. Due to the wet fields, only about 20 percent was harvested in Auglaize County, Green said. "We typically have 70 percent in by this time," she said. Officials said grain quality related to the excess moisture also is an issue many fear. "We're hearing about lots of things like head scab, vomitoxin (fungus) and molds. They're testing for vomitoxin but I haven't seen results yet," Green said. Uhlenhake said corn is vulnerable to grey leaf spot and northern corn leaf blight. He recommends fungicide applications. Uhlenhake said the crop situation isn't looking good but he's optimistic Mother Nature will ultimately cooperate with sunshine and warmer temperatures. "I'm not giving up hope yet," he said. Source - http://www.dailystandard.com/

13.07.2015

Tunisia - Fire destroys 10 hectares of citrus orchards

A large fire began in the afternoon on the 8th July in fields between Kaboudi and El Kabou in Nabeul. The flames destroyed about 10 hectares of farming land, mainly citrus orchards and some small farms. It took civil protection services about 2 hours to control the fire, of which the origin has yet to be determined.Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

13.07.2015

USA - More rain is bad news for Hoosier farmers

Thousands of acres of corn and soybean crops are already water logged. This could end up sinking your wallet.A Purdue University agriculture economist said crop losses statewide have reached $480 million. That amount could rise because the growing season isn’t over.Ben Lawson, owner of Lawson Farms in Lebanon, Indiana said this year the crop turnout will be far from good in spots where 9 to 10 inches of rain fell in June. That is more than double the normal amount. A federal report released this year stated that 21 percent of corn and soybean crops throughout the state are considered in poor or very poor condition. Last year, that number was six percent.“On a good year we harvest 190 bushels to the acre of corn,” said Lawson. “This year, we are predicting to harvest 140 bushels to the acre of corn. I would call this a disaster. Crop insurance will keep us afloat even though we will continue to farm.”Failed crop areas of greater than 20 acres are eligible for federal crop insurance. Eighty percent of the state’s corn and soybean acreage damaged by flooding will also be eligible to file a claim.The Farm Service Agency is in the process of assessing the damage. To qualify for disaster assistance there has to be at least a 30 percent loss in production.Agricultural economist Michael Langemeier, who specializes in crop systems, said, “It’s too late to consider replanting corn. Yet soybean farmers could decide to start over with reduced insurance coverage. Coverage would drop 1 percent per day during a late pay period that would end July 15.”Source - http://wishtv.com/

13.07.2015

USA - Extensive crop damage in Hill County from July 4th storms

Over the Independence Day weekend, communities on the Hi-Line were hit by ferocious hail and powerful winds.The storms knocked out power to thousands of people, downed trees and utility poles, dropped large hail, and damaged buildings and structures in Hill County, Liberty County, Chouteau County, and other areas.In Havre the signs of damage were everywhere but after the streets and yards of town were cleared, a greater damage remains for many farmers whose fields were flattened.Nicole Gray, Hill County Extension Agent, said "Some of them have taken other precautions such as hail insurance crop yield insurance for example are just a couple to name that do help out farmers a little bit but of course they're not going to recoup their entire loss. But with a drier year than normal some producers were hit with a one two punch."Farmer Ryan McCormick said, "Many producers who do typically carry hail insurance weren't carrying it this year because the value of the crop wasn't as significant as we've seen in recent years, and so they will feel a greater economic loss."With early season storms, crops have a good chance of recovery and regrowth, but getting hit this hard this late in the season is a big blow for everyone.McCormick said "We were really close to harvest and it's always tougher when you're really close to getting harvested and getting that wheat money in the bin."The damage to fields is clear but the financial impact could go far beyond the farmer's bottom line.McCormick said, "The field behind me was actually contracted with a local seed company so that's actually lost revenue for them, which also turns into in the end-loss revenue for main street. I think that's probably part of the story that isn't seen in the field it's not impacting just farms it's impacting the region."Source - http://www.krtv.com/

13.07.2015

Spain - CHG cutting irrigation resources strawberries, almonds

The Association of Irrigation Communities of Andalusia, Feragua, has denounced the "cuts on irrigation resources" established by the Hydrographic Confederation of the Guadalquivir (CHG) for strategic crops in the region in its draft revision of the Hydrological Plan, which defines water uses and allocations for agriculture for the next six years (2015-2021).The irrigators have submitted a number of claims, showing their disagreement with the net water allocations established by the document for crops such as olives, strawberries, almond, corn, cotton, alfalfa and poplar trees, among others, "whose quality and production volumes will be directly affected by the deficit, consequently taking a toll on the wealth and jobs generated by such activities," said Feragua general secretary Pedro Farias.These restrictions hint at "a poor appreciation of the agricultural sector as a secondary economic activity for the Basin," so the association considers it "essential" for the CHG to thoroughly assess the demands from the growers and come to terms with the crops' needs.In this sense, Feragua explains that "the net provision is the water needed to bring the crop's cultivation to fruition," and clarifies that "this water demand does not vary as a result of the modernisation or improvement of the irrigation system."The project of the Guadalquivir Water Plan establishes provisions of 4,500 cubic metres per hectare (m³/ha) of water for strawberries and other berries, 1,500 m³/ha for olive groves, 2,000 m³/ha for almonds, 4,500 m³/ha for alfalfa and poplar and 5,000 m³/ha for cotton.These "are absolutely insufficient amounts," so irrigators propose different net provisions based on data from an agronomic study on the crops' needs carried out by the group Wats Technical Engineering SL.The report concludes that, in the case of strawberries, between 5,000 and 6,000 m³/ha are needed (compared to 4,500 m³/ha established by the CHG). In the case of olives, between 1,290 and 2,500 m³/ha are required for traditional cultivation, between 2,000 and 4,000 for intensive cultivation, and between 2,500 and 5,000 for super-intensive cultivation (compared with only 1,500 m³/ha in the Hydrological Plan).For almonds, an expanding crop in Andalusia, the Plan foresees a net provision of 2,000 m³/ha in a unitary manner, when, according to the report presented by the irrigation sector, between 2,000 and 3,000 are needed in intensive cultivation and between 3,500 and 6,000 in super-intensive. In this sense, Feragua clarifies that "current market trends are leading Andalusian growers to introduce almonds in irrigation areas, following the production model of California; that is, with intensive cultivation and very similar irrigation needs to those of other fruits." It is therefore "an irrigated crop, not rainfed, and as such it should be treated, so that it can yield a quality production that can be competitive in the global markets."Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

13.07.2015

USA - Texas Ag report - July 12, 2015

■ Small grains: Winter wheat harvest was moving toward completion with areas of the High and Low Plains remaining to be combined. Oat harvest was also closing in on completion and was 95 percent complete, down 4 points from the previous year.■ Row crops: Cotton reached the squaring stage in areas of the Trans Pecos, while in South Texas plants were setting bolls. Corn and sorghum harvest was underway but precipitation slowed progress in the Lower Valley. Sorghum was maturing quickly in South Texas while sugar cane aphids were beginning to show up in the Blacklands. Corn was suffering from too much water in areas of the Blacklands and Southeast Texas but making good progress in the Plains. Peanut and soybean development continued, as peanuts entered the pegging stage in South Texas. Cotton planting was nearly complete at 99 percent, 1 point behind normal.■ Fruit, vegetable and specialty crops: Vegetable harvest continued in areas of Northeast Texas, with pecans progressing in areas of the Northeast, Trans-Pecos and South Texas.■ Livestock, range and pasture: Range and pasture continued to progress, with some reports of flooding in Northeast Texas. Livestock continued to benefit from adequate pasture.■ South Plains: Crops in most of the region were off to a good start due to all the early season rains but needed more moisture soon to keep progressing. The Bailey County wheat harvest was ongoing with excellent yields. Cochran County cotton progress ranged from five to 12 true leaves. Even with the dry conditions, Cochran County corn and grain sorghum were making excellent progress. Peanuts were also doing very well. Lubbock County growers began irrigating grain crops as soils dried out. Many Lubbock County cotton fields were squaring, and grain sorghum ranged from just planted to the early boot stage. Early planted cornfields were tasseling, and sugarcane aphids were detected. In Garza County, cotton was progressing well in most areas despite high weed pressure. No insect pressure was reported. Rangeland and pastures were in excellent condition. Mitchell County cotton was growing fast and showed signs of squaring in early planted acres. Weeds were a problem in cotton fields there too. Shortly after a sand fighter cultivator was run over a field, new weeds emerged. Scurry County cotton was a little behind but was expected to catch up soon.■ West Central: Days were hot and windy with warm nights. There were a few scattered showers, but the wildfire potential increased as tall grass in fields dried out. The wheat harvest was completed in most areas, with fair yields reported. Row crops continued to make good progress with plenty of moisture and good growing conditions. Summer forage crops were being harvested for hay with very good yields. Grain sorghum fields looked good. Cotton planting was mostly finished in all areas, and most of the planted crop had emerged.Producers were spraying cotton fields for weed control and scouting sorghum fields for sugarcane aphids. Some had to spray to control the pest. Hay producers continued cutting and baling, with good yields and high quality. Some hay fields neared being ready for a second cutting. Rangeland and pastures further improved due to recent rains. Livestock remained in good condition. Flies continued to be an issue, and small grasshoppers made their appearance. Pecan trees were doing well.Source - http://lubbockonline.com/

10.07.2015

Fiji - Cane council gives priority to dried up crop

SUGARCANE farmers with dried up crop will be given first priority, says the Sugar Cane Growers Council.CEO Sundresh Chetty said canegrowers who had been severely affected by the prolonged dry weather spell would have their crop harvested and processed first as the industry embarked on measures to reduce the impact of inclement weather on cane production."We are pleading with gang officials to review their harvest schedule and prioritise the cutting of cane from farms most affected by the dry weather," he said."It is critical that harvesting be conducted in this manner to reduce the impact of the extended dry weather on cane production and we are urging gang officials to work with affected farmers to get this done as soon as possible."Mr Chetty also called on growers who had been severely affected to make this information known to gang leaders and field officers from the SCGC immediately."We cannot afford to lose large amounts of cane to the dry weather so the quicker this information is made known, the faster we will be able to assist growers who are suffering losses."Farmers from across the Western Division have reported losses of up to 25 per cent in areas such as Ba and 50 per cent in some parts of Tavua because of the prolonged dry spell.Source - http://www.fijitimes.com/

10.07.2015

USA - Montana hail insurance claims available for policy holders

Recent severe weather with hail has impacted farmers in the north-central regions of the Montana.Some areas reported up to golf-ball-sized hail that completely decimated some fields. Producers with state hail insurance should file a loss claim regardless of other insurance, and it must be mailed to the program within 14 days of the event.“The State Hail Insurance Program is here to assist producers who have been impacted by hail and this year is no exception. The program has a strong history of providing producers with the needed coverage to protect them when hail damages their crops,” said Bureau Chief Kim Falcon.When a hail loss claim form is received by the program, a hail adjuster will be assigned to the claim and they will work with the producer to schedule a convenient time to inspect the crop loss.Producers can still purchase state hail insurance to protect their crops until Aug. 15. Applications for coverage are available online or at Montana State Extension, Conservation District, and county revenue offices.Source -http://www.agweek.com