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CONTENTS
September 2020 VOL. 13 • ISSUE 13
28
CENTRAL FLORIDA YOUTH IN AGRICULTURE: A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY FOR POLK COUNTY’S YOUTH Cover Photo By Blair Buchanon | Pictured Leland Monroe PAGE 5 Agvocating for Youth
PAGE 33 National Recognition
PAGE 10 Business Up Front
PAGE 35 News Briefs
PAGE 12 Ranchers Daughter
PAGE 36 John Dicks
PAGE 14 Fishing Hot Spots
PAGE 37 PCCW
PAGE 16 Blue Calamintha Bee
PAGE 38 Endangered Species
PAGE 18 Delectable Dills
PAGE 39 Research Funding PAGE 41 A Closerr Look
PAGE 22 Rocking Chair Chatter
PAGE 42 Casey Harper
PAGE 25 Cherimoya
PAGE 43 Rick Williams
PAGE 26 Literary Time Machine PAGE 30 Tracter Review PAGE 31 From The Scientific Field
Hey Readers!
Hidden somewhere in the magazine is a No Farmers, No Food logo. Hunt for the logo and once you find the hidden logo you will be eligible for a drawing to win a FREE No Farmers No Food Sticker. Send us your business card or an index card with your name and telephone number, the number of the page which you found the logo and where on the page you located the logo to the address below
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InTheField® Magazine P.O. Box 5377 • Plant City, Fl. 33566-0042 *Winners will be notified by phone. You Too Can Be A Winner! INTHEFIELD MAGAZINE
September
P.O. Box 9005 • Drawer HS03 Bartow, FL. 33831-9005 President – Dave Tomkow 3305 US Highway 92 E Lakeland, FL 33801-9623 (863) 665-5088 dave@cattlemens1.com Vice President – Ken Sherrouse 13475 Moore Rd Lakeland, FL 33809-9755 (863) 698-1834 kensherrouse@yahoo.com Secretary/Treasurer - Justin Bunch PO Box 849 Highland City, FL 33846 (863) 425-1121 justin.bunch@cpsagu.com State Director – David McCullers 1000 Hwy 630 W Frostproof, FL 33843 (863) 635-3821 crookedlakeranch57@gmail. com Ray Clark 4484 Swindell Road Lakeland, FL 33810 (863) 640-0719 rclark@tampabay.rr.com Donald Conroy 3882 Wolfolk Rd Fort Meade, FL 33841 (863) 412-0790 Stuart Fitzgerald PO Box 1437 Lake Wales, FL 33859 (813) 478-8141 stuartcattlellc@yahoo.com Kevin Fussell 4523 Fussell Rd Polk City, FL 33868-9676 (863) 412-5876
PAGE 32 PCSO
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David Hunt 9699 Alt Bab Pk Cut-Off Rd Bartow, FL 33830 (863) 287-1835 Dhunt285@aol.com Scott Shoupe 6130 Allen Lane Lakeland, FL 33811 (863) 581-7593 Scott_shoupe@hotmail.com Carlton Taylor 9875 Hancock Road Lakeland, FL 33810
(863) 858-1771 L2brangus@aol.com Dr. Lujean Waters 8750 Shreck Rd Bartow, FL 33830 (863) 537-1495 Lujean.waters@gmail.com Standing Committee Chairs: Membership Events- Kevin Fussell Trade Show- Bridget Stice Rodeo- Fred Waters PO Box 463 Alturas, FL 33820-0463 (863) 559-7808 Website – Adam Norman 2115 West Pipkin Rd Lakeland, FL 33811 (863) 944-9293 Adamnorman1977@gmail. com Cattlewomen – President, Missy Raney PO Box 453 Homeland, FL 33847 (863) 205-3977 Raney747@gmail.com Extension – Bridget Stice PO Box 9005, Drawer HS03 Bartow, FL 33831 (863) 519-1048 bccarlis@ufl.edu Sheriff’s Dept. – Lt. Paul Wright 1891 Jim Keen Blvd. Winter Haven, FL 33880 (863) 557-1741 pw5281@polksheriff.org Sgt. Tim Sanders 1891 Jim Keen Blvd. Winter Haven, FL 33880 (863) 656-6119 brusso@polksheriff.org Warner University – Casey Wingate 7155 Wauchula Rd Myakka City, FL 34251 (941) 600-5772 Casey.wingate@warner.edu
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Agvocating for Youth
by Payge Dupre So far this year, those of us in Florida have been lucky enough to not have a major hurricane hit. That doesn’t mean everyone was so lucky! Last year at this same time, we were spared from Hurricane Dorian who instead sat over the Bahamas and nearly destroyed the island. This year we were spared from Hurricane Laura. The hurricane nearly destroyed an area about 50 miles wide and 100 miles inland coastal Louisiana. In cooperation with Lake Gibson High School and Cattlemen’s Livestock Market, we were able to raise enough funds and donations to fill a cow trailer that was hauled to Louisiana. Many of the families that were impacted have 4-H and FFA families. There has been a group started called the Hurricane Laura Junior Brahman Influence Relief Fund that has been putting together cattle, embryos, semen, hunting trips, and so much more. If you would like to help the Hurricane Laura victims, make sure you watch out for this online auction that will take place September 19-20 on bestcattlesales.com! With the Covid-19 pandemic still hot, the Polk County Youth Fair has had to seek other options for mandatory meetings. Both the Swine and the Market Steer Committees have both announced that meetings will be held virtually. Make sure you are on the lookout for more updates from each committee regarding dates, times, and how to access the meetings! If you are wanting to participate in the PCYF Horse show, you must own or lease your horse by October 1. Market hog tagging will take place October 3 from 6:30 AM to 10 AM. Archery competition online entries will be accepted until October 9, they will also be accepted October 10-16 with a late entry fee.
will take place October 2-4 at the Kissimmee Valley Livestock Show Arena. Make sure you watch for updates and entry forms from the Junior Florida Cattlemen’s Association. Of course, I am most passionate about the Brangus breed as I serve on the International Junior Brangus Breeders Board of Directors. There have been many Brangus breeders who have helped me make it this far in my life and a lot of those people are a member of the Southeast Brangus Breeders Association. The Southeast Association is very helpful in so many aspects of the Juniors’ lives. This past month, I had the opportunity to attend the Southeast Field Day at Phillips Ranch in Bunnell, FL with some of my fellow Juniors. We were able to see the process of flushing embryos from a donor cow, hear many people speak from all aspects of the industry, and even watch a horse training demonstration by Clinton Anderson. This event was very well put together and the ranch was absolutely beautiful.
Florida State Fair exhibitors make sure your ethics certification number is up to date! If it is not, make sure you visit the Florida State Fair website to sign up for a workshop whether it be virtual or in person! However, if your ethics number starts with 18, your certification will be extended until May 2021. If you are interested in participating in the 2021 Florida State Fair, be on the lookout for entry forms and rules coming out the beginning of October.
With that being said, there will be a Southeast Brangus Breeders Association General Membership Meeting & Showcase Sale in Troy, AL September 25-26. There has been a great group of cattle put together for this sale coming from those who support our Juniors the most. There will also be a sale October 10 in Cullman, AL with more cattle from our Southeast breeders. If you are wanting to become more involved in the Brangus breed or show Brangus or Ultrablack cattle, these are two amazing sales that I highly recommend.
Anyone competing in the JFCA show series, the UF Judging Teams show will take place September 18-19 at the Union County Agriculture & Education Center. The Kowtown Classic
A lot of us are doing virtual learning this year. While I know we miss the togetherness of being at school, hopefully soon things will go back to normal! INTHEFIELD MAGAZINE
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STAFF
Letter from the Editor
Publisher/Photography Karen Berry Senior Managing Editor/ Associate Publisher Sarah Holt Sales Karen Berry Sarah Holt Melissa Nichols
September 22 is the first official day of Fall and with it comes the crisp refreshing Fall air! Oh, wait, that’s for the rest of the country. I mean they had snow in Colorado early in the month for goodness sake. Can’t we catch just a cool breeze? The more important note to make about Fall in Florida is the daylight hours start getting shorter. The first day of Fall, or the autumnal equinox, is the day when daylight hours and night are of equal length and everything is pumpkin spice. I think the better thing to do is just talk about the two seasons Florida actually has - the rainy season and the dry season. We are right in the middle (maybe a bit past that) of hurricane season. As of this writing, we haven’t had any major storms in our area. We all know that all it takes is a wind shift to send a hurricane our way and right now the Atlantic is very busy. Every farm and ranch should have a plan in place in the event of a hurricane. Have updated numbers for employees, veterinarian, neighbors, insurance provider, utility company and county extension offices. Fill your farm and family vehicles and top of farm fuel tanks. Purchase batteries. Stock up on feed. Be sure your chainsaws are in working order and have plenty of fence repair material on hand. These are just a few of the things you need to do in case of a hurricane. We’ve been lucky so far but we all know that can change in a split second. If you find yourself in a position to be able to take on a foster dog, please do so. Any rescue group worth being affiliated with will pay for everything your foster needs until the perfect home is found. There are so many unwanted dogs in shelters and on the streets that it seems to be a never ending battle. We may not be able to save them all but we can certainly help save some.
Creative Director/Illustrator Juan Alvarez Photography Karen Berry Melissa Nichols Staff Writers Al Berry Sandy Kaster James Frankowiak Sean Green Ginny Mink Breanne Williams Anita Todd Contributing Writers Woody Gore John Dicks Social Media Victoria Saunders
As you sit back and enjoy this issue of In The Field magazine, we hope you are imaging cooler weather.
Until Next Month,
In The Field Magazine is published monthly and is available through local Polk County businesses, restaurants, and many local venues. It is also distributed by U.S. mail to a target market, which includes all of the Greenbelt Property owners, members of the Polk County Catllemen’s Association.
The LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. - Numbers 6:25
Letters, comments and questions can be sent to P.O. Box 5377, Plant City, Florida 33563-0042 or you are welcome to email them to: info@inthefieldmagazine.com or call 813-759-6909
Stay safe!
Sarah Holt
Advertisers warrant & represent the descriptions of their products advertised are true in all respects. In The Field Magazine assumes no responsibility for claims made by advertisers. All views expressed in all articles are those of the authors and not necessarily those of Berry Publications, Inc. Any use or duplication of material used in In the Field magazine is prohibited without written consent from Berry Publications, Inc.
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Published by Berry Publications, Inc.
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We’ve made it to September without any hurricanes directly affecting us, even though we have had a higher than normal rainfall in some areas and these areas are currently very wet. We overall had a good summer and will take the rain versus a drought. The Covid issue is still a major concern for a lot of people including my family. I lost my brother in law to complications after he developed Covid. He was a great husband, father, brother in law and friend to many. Even with experiencing this I do not feel we have to panic, we just simply need to follow recommendations and think of others and their loved ones at home who may have underlying conditions. With experiencing this loss I do feel following the guidelines is important.
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The market has stayed pretty good with no changes in sight. As always I remind you a good health program improves your price at the market and helps improve the overall reputation of our cattle.
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Even small things like putting mineral out is vital to good calf health. We are still on track for a fall dinner in November and we hope to see you there. The PCCA board is always working on a meeting in October and mailed out a letter asking for feedback. Wwe hope to have several National Associations there to give us insight on what’s being done to help cow calf producers. As always I’m here to help and just a phone call away.
Dave Tomkow Polk County Cattlemen’s Association President
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Business Up Front
Vestaron GROWERS HAVE NEW TOOLS TO HELP CONTROL TROUBLESOME PESTS FROM ATTACKING CROPS By Jim Frankowiak
Crop protection is a critical need for growers and they now have new options provided by Vestaron Corporation and its Spear family of bioinsecticides based on a naturally occurring peptide and produced using the company’s proprietary fermentation platform. The company has been engaged in research and product development for more than 15 years and began commercialization of its products in 2018. Vestaron’s initial focus is on a class of peptides that kills insect pests efficiently, but is safe for humans, birds, fish, pollinators and the environment. The company has developed a proprietary platform for peptide optimization and fermentation-based peptide production that will allow development of a wide variety of biologic crop protection solutions. Vestaron is dedicated to improving the safety, efficacy and sustainability of crop protection through migration from chemical pesticides to biological peptides.
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Eric Hammons is leading this effort for Vestaron in the southeast with the launch of Spear and Spear Lep. “The Spear molecule was granted a new Insecticide
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Resistance Action Committee (IRAC) Group (32), the first in over 10 years,” noted Hammons, who is working with leafy vegetable, cucurbits, citrus, and blueberry and strawberry growers in the southeast. IRAC was formed in 1984 and is a specialist technical group of the CropLife industry association, providing a coordinated industry response to prevent or delay the development of resistance in insect ad mite pests. Within the southeast vegetable and specialty market, Hammons efforts concentrate “on lepidoptera and soft bodied insects, including aphids, thrips, spotted wing drosophila and two spotted spider mites,” he said. “Besides a new IRAC group that allows a balanced Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach while extending traditional chemistry, both Spear and Spear T are beneficial insect and pollinator safe, have a four-hour reentry time, zero post day harvest interval and are both measurable residue level exempt.” Vestaron has registered and released two formulations of Spear bioinsecticides in the U.S. The first, Spear-T, is a concentrated liquid formulation designed for contact WWW.INTHEFIELDMAGAZINE.COM
activity against a broad range of insect and mite pests in the greenhouse. Spear-Lep, the second domestic product, targets lepidopteran (caterpillar) pests in outdoor and indoor crops where a reduced rate of Spear is applied with a synergist (Bt) to achieve efficacy through ingestion. Vestaron products have gained significant recognition, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Green Challenge Chemistry Award for incorporating the principles of green chemistry design into chemical design, manufacture and use. This year, Vestaron was ranked among the top 50 growth-stage companies by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) at its Agricultural Outlook Forum and the company was also listed among 2020 Global Cleantech 100 companies, private, independent and for-profit companies best positioned to contribute to a more digitized, de-carbonized and resource-efficient industrial future.
The company continues “with local independent research and university data, and conducting more trials and demonstrations in the area,� said Hammons, A U.S. Navy veteran, with more than 24 years of experience in agriculture, including animal production, seed sales, biostimulants, fertilizer and crop protection. He and his wife Shelley have two children, daughter Sloan and son Lance. The Hammons are area residents.
Growers interested in learning more about the ways in which Vesatron products can help them may visit: www.vestaron.com, email Hammons at EHammons@vestaron.com or call Eric at (813)967-4284
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CONFESSION OF A RANCHER’S DAUGHTER By Marisol Tarango The rancher’s daughter has grown up with the gentle guidance of her parents, leading her through the trials of ranching and the obstacles of life. They were there in the beginning to tell her how to do things exactly, and then to offer advice when she was old enough to make her own decisions. In between these two stages of life the rancher’s daughter has realized that she appreciates the wisdom and knowledge of her parents (which were more often right than not), but she also has a few ideas of her own. The rancher’s daughter wants to preserve the old but advance with the new. She knows that her parents helped shaped her, but she wants to be her own person with original ideas.
These feelings changed slightly when I started college and had the liberty of driving myself where ever I wanted. At first it was great to go hang out at a friend’s house on the weekend or to get up early and go on an adventure with my friends, but that excitement changes very quickly after starting college and work. After a whole week of work, classes, homework, and club meetings, I did not want to get up and go anywhere but the kitchen for some coffee on Saturday morning. In fact, I would have been happy to stay all day in bed if I didn’t have to get homework done before Monday. Yes, you are a very changed person when you are more than satisfied with your only weekend outing being church on Sunday.
CONFESSION # 15: I am becoming my parents more ev- Even while helping with work on the ranch, I find myself imitat-
ery day.
When I was a little girl, I wanted to do everything like my parents. I was going to have a blue, stick shift, four- wheel- drive truck like my dad and wear pearls and sew like my mom. I refused to wear any pants other than the cowboy pants that my dad wore, and I always wanted my school pictures to be as beautiful as my mom’s. But there came a time in my teenage years where I realized that I didn’t want to be exactly like my parents. I wasn’t going to make my kids wash the dishes, I actually wanted an automatic truck (stick shift is harder than it looks), and I had some different ideas about how I was going to run my own place when I got older. At the very least, I was going to go out more on the weekend and not just stay home and take care of animals. But growing up can do a lot of scary stuff to you.
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Before I started college, I wanted to be part of the social scene. If there was any event, I was ready to be there and join the party. Usually we would go places on the weekends, visiting family, going to horse shows and rodeos, or even just to the park. However, there would be times when my parents just wanted to stay home for the weekend and us kids were left to our own devices for entertainment. In my earlier years that did not really bother me, but when you are sixteen and know that the world is having fun without you, that can be kind of depressing.
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ing my parents without deliberate thought. Sometimes I react to situations on the same level that my parents did, though I thought they were just being petty at the time. Like when I fuss at siblings for getting dirt on the seats of my truck that I just cleaned out. Or for not taking their things out the truck when we get home. But as an adult, I understand the frustration of my parents. I want my truck clean and but also my siblings are probably going to need whatever they left in the truck the next day, and who knows where I will be when they discover they do need it. There is also the stifled frustration when you call home looking for that critical item that you keep in your truck for occasions such as the one you find yourself in presently, but it turns out that your siblings good heartedly, but overzealously cleaned out your truck for you. (Probably as a result of the 4-volume lecture you gave them about leaving it a mess.) There are things that our parents teach us or imprint on us, that even though we may choose to go a certain way, we still can’t seem to shake. I prefer to drive a truck with an automatic transmission, but most of the time I feel that the transmission doesn’t shift at the appropriate times. I don’t like doing dishes, but I still wash them the same way my mom does (and will correct anyone who does otherwise). But that is what parents are for, to teach us how to go through life without having to make the same mistakes they did and showing us the Right path to stay on. WWW.INTHEFIELDMAGAZINE.COM
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Drift Sock- Sea Anchor Fishing Capt. Woody Gore An excellent method of targeting windy fall and wintertime inshore game fish is drift casting. And like other techniques, there are various strategies veteran anglers use to increase their success. Equally, drift fishing isn't a challenging method of fishing. It only involves a location that looks fishy, some long-distance casting, and sufficient patience. With gusty fall and winter winds and fast currents, drifting in front of a drift sock or sea-anchor can be a reliable method for adjusting boat speed and its angle of drift.
Drift Socks, aka Sea-Anchors: Initially
designed as safety devices to keep vessels bow to the wind if it lost power. This is a simple, relatively inexpensive tool that, when deployed, unfolds like an underwater parachute, creating pull or drag on that side of the boat. With relation to size and outstanding boat control, sea anchors also fold or roll up nicely for storage. When purchasing one, be sure and match it with your boat length and weight. I have never regretted buying the next larger size for my 24-foot Action Craft. Sea anchors often referred to as drift socks, play a vital role in safety, recreation, and tournament angling.
Drift Angles: Since most boats are unique to their manufacturer. And because most boats drift stern to bow, it is essential to find how yours reacts in different conditions. Occasionally by altering the position of the outboard motor (starboard or port), you can optimize the angle of drift. How it affects your perspective depends on where you place it. For example, if the desired direction is a bow to the wind, set the anchor on the windward front quarter of the boat. If you prefer drifting stern to the wind, place it on the stern or windward quarter. For a more sideways drift, put it somewhere
close to amidships. Ideally, you want to drift slowly sideways to the wind direction.
Drift Speed: Even if the vessel drifts ideally to the wind and current, a sea anchor is helpful to slow the speed of your drift. However you must remember, everything that is attached to your vessel reacts like a sail, so remove them; this may be all that's required to slow your speed. Drift Fishing: Remember, two things control a drift, one is winds the other is current. Being able to understand and forecast how the boat behaves in these conditions should help you achieve better positioning and a productive drift. When it comes to actual fishing, it's a good idea to cast away from the wind or toward the direction you're drifting. Try not to throw into the wind, especially with braided line. Fishing in the direction of the drift allows you to cover areas undisturbed by the boat. Drift Sock Forward Trolling Bow Control: Using two smaller drift socks, one on either side of the bow, keeps your boat straight. Use your forward bow cleats, or if you have two forward quarter bow cleats, one on each side. Ideal for trolling ship channels or rock ledges.
Let’s Go Fishing Tampa Bay - October 2020 Capt. Woody Gore
Snook: (Snook Closed) There are green-
backs at on the grass flats and at the Skyway. Net some, and there’s a good chance you can find a snook willing to eat them. Reports are coming in; they are hanging around the deepwater docks, passes, bridges, and there may still be a few on the beach.
Redfish: (Redfish Closed) There are
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Capt. Woody Gore (www.captainwoodygore.com)
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greenbacks on the grass flats and at the Skyway. Good Redfish days reported fishing the mangroves using sardines, cut bait, and shrimp on the north and south 2020
end of the bay. Live or dead bait under a cork, and you should get a good bite going. Attorney Natalie Khawam with beautiful redfish caught while fishing with Captain Mark Gore.
Spotted Sea Trout: (Trout Closed) Greenbacks on the grass flats and at the Skyway Fishing Piers. Favorable trout bites reported, and we should look to see it improve as we get closer to fall and winter. Some larger fish are hanging around shallow water potholes and the bridges. WWW.INTHEFIELDMAGAZINE.COM
“Give Me a Call & Let’s Go Fishing”
813-477-3814
I operate Tampa Bay Area’s #1 Outdoor Fishing Guide Service. Guiding and fishing the Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater areas for over fifty years, I offer first-class customer service, family-oriented charters, and a lifetime of memories.
Visit his website at www.captainwoodygore.com or send an email to fishing@captainwoodygore. com or give him a call at 813-477-3814. Member: FOWA-Florida Outdoor Writers Assoc., Member-SEOPA Southeastern Outdoor Press Assoc. CEO/President Sport-Fishing Unlimited & Outdoor Communications, Outdoor Writer & Speaker
Cobia & Sharks: Last week, the inshore cobia report was dismal; folks spent time looking only to come up emptyhanded. We might see it improve if and when the bay and gulf waters cool off, and they start the winter migration. It seems there are plenty of sharks, jacks, and ladyfish hanging around with the mackerel and they offer some first-class fall Tampa Bay fishing action.
Sheepshead/Snapper:
If you’re after these tasty fish, the fundamental places are bridges, rock piles, artificial reefs, docks, and deep oyster beds. Rig up with a #1 hook, small weight, and a piece of shrimp, oyster, or mussel, rock crab, and you’re in the game. Be ready, there are some really nice fish coming from around the bridges and deeper rock piles.
With every generation,
we get better at protecting our environment. Reclamation ecologists like Ashlee work to return mined lands to productive use as wildlife habitats, public parks and more—so future generations can enjoy these lands for years to come.
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The Blue Calamintha Bee, Rediscovered in Central Florida
by Cathy Butcher Master Gardener Volunteer UF/IFAS Extension Polk County
ing characteristics. Dr. Kimmel has devised a safe way to capture the bees that allows him to collect pollen samples from their bodies. The pollen will be tested to identify what other plants the bees may be visiting.
Who hasn’t heard about the rediscovery of the rare blue calamintha bee in Florida, most likely thought to be extinct? It would surprise me if you hadn’t heard because this little blue ball of wonder has generated a global buzz after being located again last March in Highlands County by Dr. Chase Kimmel. Dr. Kimmel is a Postdoctoral Associate with the Florida Museum of Natural History. He found the native bee in three of its previously known four locations in the southern portions of the Lake Wales Ridge. The fourth location has since been developed. In 2015 a petition was submitted to add the Osmia calamanthae to Federal Listing as an Endangered or Threatened Species. But more information was needed to determine if the bee would qualify. The State of Florida reached out to Dr. Jaret Daniels, a University of Florida insect conservation specialist and Kimmel’s mentor. More information was requested on the bee’s biology, ecology, and distribution. Two years of grant funding for research allowed Daniels and Kimmel to jump into action. They devised a plan to survey a large portion of the Lake Wale’s Ridge where the bee’s main food source, Ashe’s calamint, grows. Thousands of hours of surveys resulted in a promising discovery. The bee was found in seven additional locations. This expanded the known range from about 16 square miles to over 200 miles.
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The endemic Ashe’s calamint grows in pine scrub habitats. Those habitats have been disappearing rapidly due to development and agricultural use. Herbicide and pesticide drift also create problems for the habitats. Flowers of Ashe’s calamint are thought to be the main food source utilized by the bees for nectar and pollen. It is a known fact that the blue calamintha bee has a unique way of gathering that pollen. Sticking its head within a flower it bobs up and down causing the pollen to be released onto facial hairs that collect and hold on to it. The facial hairs and bobbing technique are unique to the blue calamintha bee and are important identify-
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Nesting behavior hasn’t yet been observed in the blue calamintha bee. Osmia species are known as solitary bees. They do not raise their young in colonies like honeybees. Instead the females choose protected hollow tubular cavities in which to lay their eggs. Dr. Kimmel set up 42 nest boxes at various sites that collectively have about 300 different choices for nesting materials and cavity sizes. The boxes are made from untreated wood with pre-drilled holes of various diameters as well as PVC pipe and reeds of different sizes. The boxes have become occupied but it will not be known what species has used them until the adults emerge in the spring of 2021. Dr. Daniels shared these updates with the Polk County Master Gardeners in July via a Zoom meeting. He enthusiastically exclaimed surprise at the attention this discovery received from media coverage around the world. Soon after the news came out, thousands of emails from all over the country began arriving at his office expressing interest and curiosity. Many writers atWWW.INTHEFIELDMAGAZINE.COM
tached photos of “blue bees” from their yards wishfully hoping they also had one of the rare creatures in their vicinity. Unfortunately, not. Even though it is unlikely for those of us living in Central Florida to have this rare creature visit our yard I urge people to get out and start looking anyway. You may never see the blue calamintha bee but the least that could happen is you would learn more about the fascinating world of nature taking place in your own back yard. Rachel Mallinger, an associate of Dr. Daniels, has created a clear and helpful guide for identifying the blue bee and other similar bees that you might encounter. Visit her site at: http://blogs.ifas.ufl.edu/entnemdept/author/ rachelmallinger/ Open her post entitled Which Blue Bee is Visiting my Florida Landscape? Have fun! Photo credits used with permission: Blue Calamintha Bee specimen from Florida Museum of Natural History; Ashe’s calamint (Calamintha ashei) and bee nest boxes. Photos by Chase Kimmel. This article was written by Master Gardener Volunteer Cathy Butcher under supervision of the Master Gardener Volunteer Coordinator and Residential Horticulture Agent Anne Yasalonis. For more information, contact UF/IFAS Extension Polk County at (863) 519-1041 or visit us online at http://sfyl. ifas.ufl.edu/polk. The Plant Clinic is open Monday-Friday, 9:00 am-4:00 pm to answer your gardening and landscaping questions. Visit us in person, give us a call, or email us at polkmg@ifas.ufl.edu. If you are not in Polk County, Contact your local UF/IFAS Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Plant Clinic. The Florida Master Gardener Volunteer Program is a volunteer-driven program that benefits UF/IFAS Extension and the citizens of Florida. The program extends the vision of the University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, all the while protecting and sustaining natural resources and environmental systems, enhancing the development of human resources, and improving the quality of human life through the development of knowledge in agricultural, human and natural resources and making that knowledge accessible. An Equal Opportunity Institution.
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DELECTABLE DILLS
Doug Zonner started his career in the food industry when he was in 10th grade. He was hired as a dishwasher and started paying close attention to how things were being run. “I was amazed at watching the line cooks work their magic during rush hour service,” Zonner said. “After much prodding and promising, the owner gave me a shot at the cook’s position. This would be the corner stone to the rest of my foodservice career. It taught me how to manage time, meet deadlines, multitask and still produce a quality product.” After a few years in the restaurant business, Zonner altered his career course and went to work for a commercial food distributor as a salesman. “The training was intense and continuous,” Zonner said. “It was the was my job to learn everything from food purchasing and preparation, presentation with tableware and disposal to utilizing the correct equipment and refrigeration for proper cooking and storage. Throughout my career in sales I have worked with literally hundreds of chefs and restaurants developing menus and supplying the products to produce some amazing culinary experiences. This has been my passion for the last 34 years.”
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Little did Zonner know, but his career path was about to change by a simple birthday gift from his son. His family knows Zonner is passionate about pickles, so for his birthday in 2015, his son gave him a pickling kit. “My son and wife know how much I love pickles,” Zonner said. “I would stop and buy a half gallon jug of pickles and eat them on the drive home from our cabin in Georgia. So, it was the love for pickles that
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By Libby Hopkins
started this whole gifting process. I bought me a Ball canning book, Ball canning salt and some jars. I work for U.S. Foods, so for me it was easy for me to get a bulk box of cucumbers. If you were going to try to buy cucumbers not in bulk, you would go broke.” This gift was a surprise to Zonner but it also enlightened him on a new career path. “My father-in-law is a retired Navy and his 20-year culinary training in the Navy and then his knowledge from being a dietician in the medical industry was priceless,” Zonner said. “He remembered canning with his mom in Virginia on a wood stove and how they would boil the jars. His taste buds were what I needed the most and when you combine our abilities for food, that is how we got the pickles started.” The first pickles were called “A Family Favorite. We now have to call this one ‘Spicy’ because someone fed them to their child and said, ‘Hey, this isn’t my family favorite,’ so then it had to be called ‘Spicy’.” Family friends started making pickle flavor request to Zonner, so he obliged them by creating more flavors. “One of our church friends wanted a jalapeno flavored pickle, so we made it,” Zonner said. “My wife tried and said, ‘These aren’t spicy pickles, these are cowboy pickles because only a cowboy would eat these’ and that’s how the name was coined to be a cowboy pickle.”
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As time went on, more pickle flavor request came in from family and friends. Zonner has a complete line of flavored pickles. It was time to offer theme to the general public. He started out doing little pop-up market events around the Plant City and Lakeland area. As sales started to increase, Zonner knew he had to be able to make more pickles. “In 2017 we secured a commercial kitchen with more equipment to increase storage space and moved production out of our house,” Zonner said. “This was when The Pickle Patch was officially born. I started developing partnerships with local farmers to keep our product fresh and locally grown. We also wanted to be good stewards of our environment. We encourage all who bought our pickles to bring back the empty jars so we could recycle them.” Obliviously, keeping things local is very near and dear to Zonner and his family’s hearts. “Keeping things local is imperative,” Zooner said. “We work with local farmers because their produce is fresh and that’s what we want to pack which is fresh pickles. I would also like to partner with other famers or growers in the area because helping local farmers is extremely important to me and my family.” If you would like to learn more about The Pickle Patch and the different products they carry, you can visit their website at www. picklepatchfl.com. I did some journalist research into The Pickle Patch’s pickles for this story and let me tell you their “Garlic Lovers” pickle tasted amazing while I was writing this story!
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In eastern Africa you can buy beer brewed from bananas. A giraffe can clean its ears with its 21-inch tongue. Australia was originally called New Holland. The sentence “the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog” uses every letter in the English alphabet. The Grand Canyon can hold around 900 trillion footballs. All the blinking in one day equates to having your eyes closed for 30 minutes. The average human brain contains around 78% water. Your brain uses between 20 - 25% of the oxygen you breath. 1 nautical knot equates to 1.852 KPH (1.150 mph). If you add up all the numbers from 1 to 100 consecutively (1 + 2 + 3...) it totals 5050. A sponge holds more cold water than hot. Lightning strikes the earth 6,000 times every minute. Fire usually moves faster uphill than downhill. Cats have over 100 vocal chords. Camel’s milk doesn’t curdle. Elephants sleep between 4 - 5 hours in 24 hour period.
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Growing Old I have finally accepted the fact that I am getting old. I take the stairs one step at a time. I get the same sensation from a rocking chair on the front of Fred’s market in Plant City that I once got from the roller coaster at Disney World. It’s also apparent that I’m aging when I fall down I wonder what else I can do while I am down. Now I choose my cereal for the fiber, and not the toy. And as for eating health food, forget it, I need all the preservatives I can get.
oil is made from vegetables, then what is baby oil made from? Why do toasters always have a setting that burns the toast to a horrible black crisp, which no one will eat? Why is it that when someone tells you that there are over a billion stars in the universe, you believe them, but if they tell you there is wet paint on the chair you have to touch it to make sure? I have often wondered why Goofy stands erect while Pluto remains on all fours? They are both dogs!
As a child I would help my mother hang the freshly washed clothes on the clothesline. I am sure many of you reading this that have never heard of a clothesline. This was before the washer and dryer was invented. It was simply a heavy wire strung between two poles about 30 feet apart.
My next-door neighbor, Mark Poppell, who loves to bar-b-que, said he can not understand why it is that one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box of matches and a bottle of lighter fluid to start a grill!
Wash day was always on Monday. My mother had certain ways of hanging her clothes up to dry. First, she would wash the clothesline before hanging any clothes. She did this by walking the entire length of the line with a damp cloth around the lines. She would hang the clothes in a certain order, and always hang “whites” with “whites,” and hang them first. The socks were always hung by the toes…not the top. All pants were hung by the bottom cuffs, not the waistbands. She would always hang the sheets and towels on the outside line so she could hide our “unmentionables” in the middle. One Tuesday morning I woke up to find my mother crying and really beside herself. During the night someone had stolen all of her sheets and towels off the clothesline. She said it was her fault for not taking the clothes down before dark. Dad took it in stride, and said, “Don’t worry about it Nita, get dressed and we’ll go to Rogers and Middlebrooks and buy some new ones.”
They tell me if you yelled for 8 years 6 months and 4 days you would produce enough energy to heat one cup of coffee. But, if you farted consistently for 7 years and 8 months, you would produce enough gas to create the energy of an atomic bomb. I know a couple of people in Plant City that are getting close to that level. Now might be a good time to move to the mountains. I have some questions for you to ponder! Most packages say “Open Here.” What happens if you open it somewhere else? Why is it that when you transport something by car, it’s called a shipment, but when you transport something by ship, its called cargo? If it’s called a TV set why do you get only one? Why is it called a “building” when it is already built? Why do they call them interstate highways in Hawaii? Why did kamikaze pilots wear helmets?
It wasn’t long ago the only hazardous material we knew about was a patch of sandspurs in right field on the baseball field. During those early years people generally lived in the same hometown with their relatives. So “child care” meant grandparents or aunts and uncles! It was the time when your grandma grew blackeyed peas in the back yard, and had a chicken yard behind the garage.
Did you ever think that maybe Presidential Candidate Donald Trump is on to something? A typical American starts the day early having set his alarm clock (made in Japan) for 6 A.M. While his coffeepot (made in China) was perking, he shaved with his electric razor (made in Hong Kong). He put on his dress shirt (made in Sri Lanka), designer jeans (made in Singapore) and tennis shoes (made in Korea). After cooking his breakfast in his new electric skillet (made in India) he sat down with his calculator (made in Mexico) to see how much he could spend today. After setting his watch (made in Taiwan) to the radio (made in Japan) he got in his car (made in Germany) and continued his search for a good paying American job. At the end of yet another discouraging and fruitless day, he decided to relax for while. He put on his sandals (made in Brazil) poured himself a glass of wine (made in France) and turned on his TV (made in Indonesia) and then wondered why he can’t find a good paying job in America.
Some things I still wonder about. For instances if you drive your car into a 50mph wind at 50mph, and stick your head out the window will you feel the wind? If corn oil is made from corn, and vegetable
Speaking of Presidents, did you know that President Thomas Jefferson invented the coat hanger, the hideaway bed, the calendar clock and the dumbwaiter. I guess Jefferson had more to do than play golf!
I have been trying to remember what life was like before dishwashers, TV and airplanes. Can you remember when all the makeup women had had to wear was powder?
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Editor’s Note: This Rocking Chair Chatter was originally printed in the August 2016 issue
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FLorida
Cherimoya
By Sandy Sun, M.S. Clinical Medicines, B.S. Nutrition Science
Fresh Florida cherimoya is a tropical fruit that is known for its unique delicious taste. Its flavor has been described as a blend of pineapple and mango with notes of banana, strawberry and peach. Native to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Chile, cherimoya is grown in tropical regions throughout the world, as well as in Spain and Italy. In the United States, this fruit is produced in Florida, California, and Hawaii. Cherimoya is also called custard apple because of its rich, creamy texture. The fruit is especially delicious when chilled and eaten with a spoon, which has earned it another nickname, the ice cream fruit. In fact, in Peru and Chile, cherimoya is commonly used to make ice cream and yogurt. A related fruit, atemoya, is a hybrid of the cherimoya and sugar apple.
had a lower risk of stroke. Potassium can also enhance bone health. Some studies suggest that potassium can counteract some of the effects of high sodium diets and slow the rate of calcium loss from bone. A serving of cherimoya also offers a good boost of calcium.
Fiber Eating cherimoya and other foods high in dietary fiber can help decrease the risk of coronary heart disease and help prevent atherosclerosis. Additionally, cherimoya contains both insoluble fiber that adds bulk and decreases constipation, and soluble fiber which lowers cholesterol levels.
How to Select and Store
The fruit itself resembles a green pine cone, about 10-20 centimeters long, with a conical shape. The outer peel consists of scales and is green when unripe. As it ripens, it turns to a brown color. The inner white flesh of the cherimoya contains multiple inedible hard black seeds.
Choose fresh cherimoya that is green, firm, and without blemishes. Avoid any fruit with dark spots and soft spots. Once harvested, cherimoyas will ripen at room temperature for a few days until softened. They are ripe and ready to eat when they yield to slight pressure. They can then be stored in the refrigerator for up to four days.
Nutritional Profile
How to Enjoy
Although fresh cherimoya is creamy, the fruit is virtually fatfree and also low in calories and sodium and rich in potassium other nutrients. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, one fresh cherimoya (235 g) contains 176 calories, 3.7 g of protein, 1.6 g of fat, 42 g of carbohydrate, and 7 g of fiber. It provides 60% of the Daily Reference Intake for vitamin C, 36% for pyridoxine (vitamin B6), 28% for dietary fiber, 22% for riboflavin, 14% for folate, 13% for manganese and magnesium, and plentiful amounts of iron, zinc, copper, and calcium.
Ripe cherimoya is delicious eaten out-of-hand, and has a sweet, tropical flavor. After slicing in half and discarding the seeds, the flesh can be scooped out with a spoon and eaten. Serve cold for the best taste. The pulp may also be diced and added to fruit salads. Other ways to enjoy cherimoya include: • Puree and add to cake or muffin batter • Strain and mix with milk or yogurt and ice for a cold beverage • Freeze cubes of cherimoya and add to your favorite drink • Puree the pulp for use as a salad dressing or sauce • Freeze pureed pulp with sugar to make a sorbet, or mix with milk or cream for ice cream. • Use the pulp for making jam, jelly, or syrup. Enjoy fresh Florida cherimoya today. These unique tropical treats are sweet and creamy, as well as good for you!
Potassium Fresh Florida cherimoya is high in potassium, an important electrolyte for heart and bone health. The high potassium content coupled with low sodium content in cherimoya is beneficial for maintaining normal blood pressure and optimal heart function. Several research studies have established the beneficial effects of potassium foods in effectively lowering blood pressure. Additionally, people who ate foods high in fiber and magnesium, as well as foods high in potassium,
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Selected References
By Ginny Mink
Ornamental Gardening in Florida Welcome back, dear friends, to our next trip on the Literary Time Machine. These voyages always promise to bring us a wealth of information about historic plants and those that we might want to consider adding to our own landscapes. Journeying back to 1926 with Mr. Torrey Simpson is certainly an adventure and each of us is sure to learn a thing or two. This month, we will finish up on orchids and then move on to his chapter entitled, Aquatic and Wet Land Exotics (that section might be especially good for those of you in North Lakeland where it seems to stay quite damp).
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Why not start this month with the Schomburgkia tibicinus? He describes it as, “A noble orchid with large pseudobulbs as much as eighteen inches long and hollow, with two or three large, very thick leaves. The flowers are borne on a stem five to seven feet long that arises from the top of the pseudobulb. These are many and large, white, pink and chocolate.”¹ Apparently, this is an orchid that hails from Honduras, but the size of it is what grabs our attention most.
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According to an article on the American Orchid Society site entitled, Farewell Schomburgkia, things have changed since Mr. Torrey Simpson last wrote about them nearly a hundred years ago. The author writes, “Certain tropical orchids are wellsuited and often used as landscape subjects in frost-free areas of Florida. Schomburgkia tibicinis… was one of them. I say “was”, because although the orchid is still around, the name isn’t.”² This has seemed to happen a lot with the plants we’ve read about in Mr. Torrey Simpson’s book. Thankfully, it is only the name, not the orchid itself, which has disappeared! These plants are now known as Myrmecophila tibicinis due to a certain attraction from ants.² Strange reason to change names in our minds, but scientists often do odd things. So, since the previous orchid wasn’t an indoor type, we decided we might as well introduce another outdoor orchid for those of you with lack of porch space. That is the Vanda. He says it, “is a climbing plant with long leaves arranged distichously. It sends out very large, arched roots which fasten to limbs, trunks or other vines in such a way that though the WWW.INTHEFIELDMAGAZINE.COM
support may be much moved about by the wind the roots and plant will give and be uninjured. The splendid flowers are in long racemes, each three or four inches across, and a fine light blue.”¹ He admits that the V. caerulea, is the best Vanda he has tried. And with the winds we often experience, it seems like it might be a cool plant to add to your outdoor landscape. And now we arrive at the next chapter, Aquatic and Wet Land Exotics. He begins the chapter by stating, “In this chapter on wild gardens I have urged that cultivators of ornamental plants should attempt the growing of our wild aquatics and bog plants in and around natural or artificial pools or lakes. No garden of any extent is complete without at least a few of the choicer aquatics and wet land exotics…By this means we can easily change many of the unsightly rock pits and excavations made in mining phosphate into things of beauty.”¹ In fact, the first plant he suggests, Aponogeton distachyus, or Cape pond weed, sounds like a viable option. He pens, “An interesting submerged plant from the Cape of Good Hope whose leaves have long stems and the flowers are in twin spikes at the emersed (immersed) ends of long scapes. They are odd and quite fragrant, being produced throughout the entire season. This plant is hardy generally and should prove so all over Florida.”¹
There are so many amazing aquatic plants to discuss next month and we look forward to telling you all about them as we take our next trip on the Literary Time Machine. But for now, happy gardening! And we’ll see you next month! Stay dry (unless you are going to attempt to plant these aquatics!). Resources: ¹ Simpson, Charles T. (1926). Ornamental Gardening in Florida. Published by the Author; Little River, FL. Printed by J.J. Little and Ives Company, New York. (p. 210-212). ²Alikas, G. (2009). Farewell Schomburgkia. American Orchid Society. https://www.aos.org/orchids/collectors-items/ farewell-schomburgkia.aspx Photo Credits: Scott Zona. (2008). Myrmecophila tibicinis. (Flickr). https://flic. kr/p/4VxfhX Kerry Woods. (2005). Nuphar advena (sometimes folded into N. lutea). (Flickr). https://flic.kr/p/e2xCfw
THE
We’ll talk about one more aquatic as we are running out of space this month. That being the Nelumbium. Mr. Torrey Simpson writes, “A splendid genus of aquatics with large, handsome leaves and magnificent flowers. N. lutea, American lotus…a species widely distributed in the eastern part of the
United States whose immense leaves are raised well above the water, cupped in the center and often two feet wide. The pale sulfur yellow flowers may be ten inches across and they are followed by large, flat-topped receptacles containing the seeds. One of our noblest native plants and it might probably be grown over a considerable part of the state.”¹
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CENTRAL FLORIDA YOUTH IN AGRICULTURE: A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY FOR POLK COUNTY’S YOUTH By: Lauren McNair
America’s first livestock show dates back to 1896 when the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo held a livestock exhibition to encourage interest in the area’s cattle. It’s doubtful that it included sawdust, freshly starched shirts, Mom’s best recipe in the Crock-pot, or lining your showbox up with your best friend’s. But it was a start…a start to an American agricultural tradition that teaches young people the value of hard work, the responsibility of caring for a living being, and the process of providing food for a growing world. In Polk County, a group of parents, former showmen and industry professionals are busy making plans for a new concept in Central Florida’s livestock shows. Central Florida Youth In Agriculture, a 501(c)(3) organization that seeks to provide support and education to young people in agriculture, will hold its first livestock show March 25-27, 2021 at Koren’s Quarters Show Facility in Plant City. For Laura Lee Taylor and her husband Carlton, the president of the organization, the idea for an exhibitor support organization came to fruition rather quickly. The idea had been tossed around for several years, she said, but no one had acted on it. “If a kid has interest in that field, it’s expensive to get in and play the game,” Taylor said. “It’s not like just going and buying a baseball bat and a glove.” When she posted the idea one night on Facebook, parents quickly expressed interest. At the exploratory meeting in late February, 40 to 50 parents attended, she said. A couple weeks later, COVID-19 hit the United States, altering the direction of the group. What was initially intended to be a financial and educational support organization turned into a cattle and swine show that will provide a venue for educational opportunities.
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“When we got this going, all these shows around the country were cancelling,” Taylor said. “We felt like this was an opportunity to keep things going.”
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Because the organization is a private non-profit, its organizers have more flexibility in regulation than those connected to any state or government entity. For board member Andy Mason, who serves alongside 10 others on the board of directors, the organization also aims to fill a void where time and progress have eliminated some of the area’s larger shows. “A lot of opportunities that existed even when I was showing don’t exist anymore, and part of that is the urbanization of Polk County,” Mason said. “The Citrus Festival property, formerly one of the largest shows in Central Florida, is now a Starbucks and a Chick-fil-A. Some of these historical shows are no longer in existence.” For Mason, Taylor and many others, the show is an opportunity to bring young people together with their families to expand their livestock knowledge and skills or even start at the very beginning. “Our goal is to bring in speakers and provide resources on nutrition, grooming, showmanship and more,” Taylor said. “Eventually, we want to do scholarships for college or to other show clinics.” In addition to growing the knowledge base of its exhibitors, the group also intends to extend the education opportunities to its supporters. “Polk County is one of the fastest growing places not just in Florida but in the entire country,” said Mason. “One of the goals of this organization and event is to try and connect some of those business and industry folks who don’t know what these kids are doing and try and share that message.” Official sponsors of the event, no matter their donation level, will be provided with tickets to a supporter dinner where exhibitors can network with industry professionals and sponsors can learn first-hand what it takes to prepare animals for the world’s consumption.
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“We don’t just want their money,” said Mason. “We want them to show up, see these kids, see their projects, understand what they’re doing, buy into the mission and really expand that pool of supporters.” Because the show’s organizers emphasize the educational aspect of the event, the rules, eligibility requirements and opportunities are slightly different than many other shows of its kind. Cattle exhibitors will range in age from eight years old to 19, and swine exhibitors will range in age from five years old to 19. While recommended, exhibitors are not required to be members of 4-H, FFA or a breed organization.
“The whole purpose is for everyone to be able to work together and help their kid,” said Taylor. For those interested in participating in the show, cattle entries can be submitted Sept. 15 through Dec. 1., and there are no weight requirements. Swine entries are currently being accepted through Feb. 1 or when the number of entries reaches 150. There are also no weight requirements on swine. “If people want to be involved, we will find them a place where they can serve,” said Taylor. “We need everybody working together to promote our industry in this day in age.”
“The reason we’re not requiring it is so we can make them aware of those opportunities if they’re not already connected,” said Taylor. In addition, exhibitors can decide individually if the show is to be a prospect show or a final show for both their swine and cattle projects. If they choose the prospect side, the show functions as a practice opportunity for later shows. If they choose the sale side, market ready animals will be sold for consumption in a live auction that organizers plan to also stream live online. All other animals in the sale will be sold to other exhibitors for show or to producers for commercial or breeding purposes. While only one animal can be sold in the sale, exhibitors will also be allowed to market other animals they’re hoping to sell. “We really want to make it unique in that it gives the kid the option to keep it or sell it,” said Taylor. “There are also kids who are producers who may have four or five other steers they’re trying to market, and it gives them an avenue to display those animals they may want to sell through private treaty.” Every exhibitor will have opportunities to earn premiums, buckles and champion banners. “The goal is, if we raise enough money, we hope to give the $25 entry fee back to them and more,” said Taylor. When choosing a venue, organizers found what seems to be an ideal location for the organization’s inaugural event. “Despite the size of Polk County, the number of covered arenas is pretty slim,” said Mason. “Even though it’s not in Polk County, Koren’s Quarters is just over the county line, is still very accessible from anywhere in Polk County, is a good size now and for future growth and is very costeffective for our first year.” But more than premiums, trophies or even scholarships, organizers are determined to provide one opportunity more than any other: family time. Former livestock exhibitors can look back on their time in the show ring and say that livestock shows more than any other extracurricular activity provide time for families to work, learn and make memories together, all while preparing for one common goal.
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For more information on being an exhibitor or a sponsor of Central Florida Youth In Agriculture’s livestock show and program, please visit www.youthinagriculture.com.
ANTONIO CARRARO
A SPECIALTY CROP DESERVES A SPECIALTY TRACTOR
Antonio Carraro, located in Campodarssego, Padua, Veneto region of Italy, was founded in 1910 by 20-yearold Giovanni Carraro when he built the first multipurpose agricultural machine. From there, Antonio Carraro developed into a worldwide leader in the production of compact tractors for specialized agriculture work. The 20 to 100 hp tractors are a perfect fit for niche agriculture and ground maintenance. The smaller tractor with smooth lines of the cab and body, glide easily between the rows of blueberry trees, citrus groves and other crops so that precious limbs are not broken in passing but are gently pushed aside. “I was looking for a tractor for working a blueberry farm,” said Marcelo Estrada, owner of Peace River Farms, who has been using the Antonio Carraro tractor for two years. “What I found out that is very useful is these tractors are articulated, the radius to turn around is smaller and shorter than a tractor that is not articulated.” “Not in the blueberry industry, but in the citrus industry, which we’ve been a part of forever,”said Robby McKeeman, with Grove Equipment Services, “we’ve noticed a lot of changes going on with greening and space. Land is valuable. It’s getting sold off. Being able to fit more product on a smaller piece of land is important and we can’t do that with the current equipment we are using right now.” That is just one of the advantages of the Antonio Carrara brand of tractor. “Some
implements you can see what is going on up front,” said Estrada. “Specifically when we do the pruning at the end of the season. So perhaps the pruning is the most important of the year because it has to be done once a year. You have only one chance to do it right, so that’s why I was looking at this tractor.” The shape of the cab lends itself to protection of the crop. “At certain time of the year at certain ages of the bush, it covers the row and every time you get inside you start hurting the branch,” said Estrada. “The cabin, I would say, is softer. It has good visibility. You have to get used to be at a lower height. Usually, in most of the tractors, you are looking at the crop from above. Here, you look at the crop face to face. You are more able to see better the plant.” I see a huge opportunity with this equipment to get more trees on smaller pieces of land,” said McKeeman. “And then we’ve got the under shade or under cover stuff and that’s where the height of the tractor comes in to play. If that’s going to be the future, there’s not much else that can do it.” Though small in stature, the tractor is powerful enough for the equipment needed. “The T100 or T99 has 100 hp, is double traction, articulated, is powerful enough to disc and pull equipment that requires at least 50 hp,” said Estrada. “The small one that’s 40 hp, is the one that we mainly use to do the pruning, but we also have a boom sprayer that doesn’t require a high horse power capacity and we use it for spraying as well.”
Max Carraro is one of the shareholders of the company started by his grandfather. Prior to moving to the United States he was primarily in the Research and Design Department, developing new tractors and marketing the new products. When the company needed a U.S. base almost four years ago, he packed up and moved. “For me it was a not a big change because my wife is American,” said Carraro. “I have three daughters and they also speak very good English.” Although breaking in to the Florida market as been a challenge, it’s one Carraro is ready to take on. “For us, the Florida market is a big challenge because they know from us the history of the morphology of the terrain in California and Washington, especially for the steep slopes, so now, thanks to customers like Marcelo, who show the advantage of these tractors, we started having good results.” “With things changing in the industry we’ve got to adapt and change with it and this has been working in Europe forever,” said McKeeman. “They are a 110 year old company.” “I am very positive that we can add something to the market,” said Carraro. The company has more than 450 employees located between the Italian headquarters and commercial branches in Australia, Spain and Turkey. They have 600 importers, dealers and resellers all over the world.
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FOR MORE INFORMATION on Antonio Carraro, contact Grove Equipment Services at 863-537-1345 or 813-759-8722. You can also visit the Antonio Carraro web site at www.antoniocarraro.it/en/
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FROM THE SCIENTIFIC FIELD
By J. Scott Angle
We at UF/IFAS believe there should be more, not fewer farmers developed more than 50 videos since March, both in English in Hillsborough County and Polk County. That means reaching and Spanish to continue our mission of extending our resourcout to people who traditionally may not have had equal access es during COVID-19. to the educational materials a beginning farmer needs. Gonzalez had long wanted to be in farming, just like her grandOpportunity is baked into our land-grant mission as a univer- father was in Garrochales. She also just wanted to grow vegsity committed to access for all to higher education. It’s also a etables in her yard. But in her first attempts, her plants didn’t core value of ours to serve all Hillsborough and Polk residents, produce enough for the effort to be worth it. regardless of race, creed, nationality, gender, or who they love. Things changed when she discovered Rivera and connected Or whether English is their native language. Or whether they him to her native Garrochales in Puerto Rico, where a Facebook struggle with health. Chaidy Gonzalez, who lives in the Valrico group of residents was seeking expertise in small-scale agrineighborhood near Brandon, wants to be a farmer. But her culture because they could not get help from local authorities. halting English and her limited mobility due to her daughter’s and her own health problems long impeded her efforts to learn Rivera ended up giving via Facebook Live instruction to this how. group, called Garrochales Produce, whose leader is Marta Santos. Rivera taught them the basics on farming practices Then she found Spanish-language videos, dozens of them, and infrastructure. that essentially gave her a beginner’s education in agriculture. In addition, they were from a trusted source—a childhood Santos said it’s been a game changer for Garrochales. Memfriend. UF/IFAS Hillsborough County Extension small farms bers of the group are individually having small success and are agent Francisco Rivera had been her neighbor when she was now in discussions with a church about using some of its land growing up in Garrochales, Puerto Rico. Like her, he had come for a commercial-scale operation that could produce income to Tampa with dreams of working in agriculture. and economic development for a community still recovering from Hurricane Maria and now the pandemic. Rivera has already established a reputation for personal service. His work helping Dawn Altman establish a local farm with Gonzalez piggybacked on these horses and mini donkeys was chronicled in these pages earlier classes via Zoom from her home in this year. the Tampa area. She, too, now has great aspirations like her former He is also a founding member of the UF/IFAS Extension ini- neighbors in Garrochales to protiative called CAFÉ Latino. It’s a statewide network of agents duce on a scale that would allow dedicated to identifying and serving more of our customers – her to sell to markets. that is, everyone in Hillsborough and Polk County and indeed all of Florida. Their emphasis is on reaching people for whom That’ll be one more Hillsborough English is not their first language. farmer. Here’s to many more. Led by John Diaz, at the UF/IFAS College of Agricultural and Life Sciences in Plant City, CAFÉ Latino is an Extension initiative that equips agents such as Rivera to connect with more underserved would-be farmers. In collaboration with CAFÉ Latino members’ Farming in Times of Social Distancing initiative, Rivera and Jonael Bosques (who is also the UF/IFAS Hardee County Extension director) have
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Scott Angle is the University of Florida’s Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources and leader of the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS).
By Grady Judd, Polk County Sheriff
DON’T LET YOUR GUARD DOWN
Most everyone would probably agree that 2020 has been a year for the history books, so why would we expect this hurricane season to cut us some slack? NOAA predicted this year’s hurricane season to be “extremely active” with between 19-25 named storms – 11 of those expected to be hurricanes. Now, that’s simply a prediction, but it does cause a bit of a pause when there have already been 13 named storms, and we’re only halfway through the season (June 1 – November 30). We cannot let our guard down. Those of us raised in Florida get it, but there are quite a few new residents who might not understand just how significant these storms can be. Being prepared is vital, and there are quick and easy ways to do so. Check your supplies. Stock up on specific items that may become scarce when a hurricane is predicted to make landfall. Just like we saw several months ago with toilet paper shortages, bottled water and batteries become hot ticket items when a storm is looming on our shores. And don’t forget about your four-legged family members, extra food and water will need to be on hand for them as well. If you own livestock or property, make sure your files and brands are up-to-date.
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your hurricane supply kit is packed and ready to go if you are asked to evacuate. Hurricanes are an unfortunate reality – a price we pay to live in the beautiful Sunshine State. But hurricanes are not the only disaster to prepare for – ironically the Sunshine State is also the lightning capital of America. This means thunderstorms are a real threat, as is the loss of power. Having an emergency supply on hand is not only helpful, but will bring you and your loved ones peace of mind. Even as I write this, Hurricane Laura is bearing down on the Louisiana and Texas Gulf Coast. While Florida can exhale a sigh of relief, people in the soon to be affected areas will need our support. Those of us in law enforcement stand ready to deploy resources when and where needed. You can help, too, by checking on your neighbors and lending a hand during the clean-up process. Polk County is better when we all work together to make a positive difference. For more information on disaster preparedness, please go to www.floridadisaster.org, and to sign up for Alert Polk to receive important information during a disaster, please go to www.polk-county.net/emergency-management. WWW.INTHEFIELDMAGAZINE.COM
UF Researcher Earns National Recognition Early in Career By Ruth Borger LAKE ALFRED, FLA. – She’s early in her career, but Yu Wang, a University of Florida food scientist, is making great strides in her research. Recognizing Wang’s work, the Agricultural and Food Chemistry division (AGFD) of the American Chemical Society (ACS) recently named her a fellow. Wang, a food chemist with the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Citrus Research and Education Center, may be the first assistant professor in the division’s history to receive this prestigious award. The award is presented to scientists who have made significant contributions in the areas of agriculture and food chemistry. Wang may be one of the only fellow recipients who have received the award so early in their career and before they have earned tenure from their institution. This award will be officially announced at the virtual ACS meeting late in August. “I joined the AGFD division when I was a Ph.D. student. Back then I was always wondering if someday I could receive the fellow award from the division as other scientists did,” said Wang. “To be recognized as a fellow so early in her career is a testament to Yu Wang’s commitment and contributions to the body of scientific knowledge,” said Michael Rogers, director
of the UF/IFAS Citrus Research and Education Center. “She is certainly creating a national reputation for excellence in the field.” Wang, a flavor chemist, earned degrees from Hefei University of Technology, Louisiana State University and Rutgers, and also worked as a post-doctoral researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She worked as a flavor chemist at Mars Chocolate before coming to UF to work with citrus. “If you want to study flavor, you want to study citrus flavor,” noted Wang. Citrus is one of the most widely studied flavors and scents and used in many industries such as food and beverage, household products and perfume. Discoveries made in citrus flavor and scent research reach consumers around the world. The Agriculture and Food Chemistry division of the ACS focuses on agriculture, renewable resources, food composition, food quality, food processing, nutrition, biochemistry, food safety, food flavor, biotechnology, natural products, pharmaceuticals, green products, chemical raw materials and feedstocks, bioenergy, and sustainability. Objectives of the division are to encourage the advancement and understanding of agricultural and food chemistry.
The mission of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) is to develop knowledge relevant to agricultural, human and natural resources and to make that knowledge available to sustain and enhance the quality of human life. With more than a dozen research facilities, 67 county Extension offices, and award-winning students and faculty in the UF College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, UF/IFAS brings science-based solutions to the state’s agricultural and natural resources industries, and all Florida residents. INTHEFIELD MAGAZINE
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NEWS BRIEFS
Compiled by Jim Frankowiak
USDA FORMS NEW TEAM TO SERVE BEGINNING FARMERS AND RANCHERS The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced a new team that will lead a department wide effort focused on serving beginning farmers and ranchers. Katrina Moseley has been selected as the USDA Beginning Farmer Rancher state coordinator in Florida and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
USDA offers a variety of farm loan, risk management, disaster assistance and conservation programs to support farmers, including beginning farmers and ranchers. For more information, visit: farmers.gov/newfarmers or contact the Plant City Service Center, 201 South Collins Street, Plant City, FL 33563. Telephone: 813/752-1474. HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY FARM BUREAU ACHIEVES EXCELLENCE STATUS Hillsborough County Farm Bureau (HCFB) has again achieved Award of Excellence status in Florida Farm Bureau’s County Recognition Program. HCFB ranked at the top in all five program categories: Leadership, Public Relations, Organization, Education and Legislative, and is now a candidate for the annual President’s Award.
in for farmers with existing accounts; easy access to the Department of Labor’s Foreign Labor Application Gateway; the capability of allowing farmers to track time-sensitive actions taken in the course of Office of Foreign Labor Certification’s adjudication of temporary labor certification applications; and allowing farmers to access all application forms on-line. All information can be found at www.farmers.gov/manage/h2a . 2020 SWISHER SWEETS/SUNBELT AG EXPO HONORS TO BE PRESENTED AT 2021 EXPO The cancellation of this year’s Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition due to the COVID-19 has resulted in an amendment to plans for the 2020 Swisher Sweets/Sunbelt Ag Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year Winner. Due to current health concerns, the judging tour has been postponed indefinitely. The 2020 state winners will be recognized and an overall winner will be announced at the 2021 Sunbelt Ag Expo. COVID-19 RESOURCE PAGE AT FLORIDAFARMBUREAU.ORG Florida Farm Bureau has developed a COVID-19 Resources website page that includes a variety of agricultural and state and federal links related to the pandemic. The page, which is updated regularly, can be accessed at: https://www.floridafarmbureau.org/covid-19-resources.
UF/IFAS DISASTER HANDBOOK AVAILABLE ONLINE SAVE 15% ON GRASSHOPPER MOWERS A disaster handbook prepared by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension can be accessed at: disaster.ifas.ufl.edu. The handbook contents cover six categories: Food and Water; Mental Health; Homes Repairs; Landscape Repairs, Applying for Assistance and Farms. FLORIDA FARM BUREAU AG IN THE CLASSROOM MINIGRANT APPLICATIONS Florida Farm Bureau Agriculture in the Classroom (FFB-AITC) is offering a Mini-Grant program for educators during the current school year. This grant opportunity is a public/private partnership serving Pre-K – 12th grade classes with a goal of helping to increase the understanding of agriculture among students and educators. Grants of up to $250 are available with applications required by October 1. More information is available at: faitc.org. USDA INTRODUCES NEW FEATURES ON WEBSITE TO HELP FARMERS HIRE WORKERS The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has introduced new features on its Farmers.gov website designed to help facilitate the employment of H-2A workers. Those features include: a real-time dashboard enabling farmers to track the status of their eligible employer application and visa applications for temporary non-immigrant workers; a streamline log-
PROPANE DISCOUNTS FROM FERRELLGAS NO LONGER AVAILABLE Florida Farm Bureau members are no longer eligible to receive propane discounts with Ferrellgas. The partnership ended due to the nature of the discount and a restructuring of Florida Ferrellgas service centers. USDA IMPLEMENTS ADDED MEASURES TO HELP RURAL RESIDENTS, BUSINESSES AND COMMUNITIES AFFECTED BY COVID-19 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development has taken a number of immediate actions to help rural residents, businesses and communities affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. Rural Development will keep its customers, partners and stakeholders continuously updated as more actions are taken to better serve rural America. Visit www. rd.usda.gov/coronavirus for information on Rural Development loan payment assistance, application deadline extensions and more.
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Farm Bureau members receive 15% off the MSRP on Grasshopper mower makes and models, accessories and implements. Present your active Farm Bureau card to your local Grasshopper dealer at the time of purchase.
ULTIMATE HURRICANE PREP If I’ve got this right, the last time I wrote about Hurricanes, they blew right by us, leaving nothing but a little bit of rain. Hoping for such good fortune this year, let me write once again since the season I ignored them three years ago was when we were hit rather hard by Hurricane Irma. I suppose my mind in 2017 was preoccupied with the impending birth of my second granddaughter. Like a whirlwind of her own, she, JoJo we call her, was set to arrive in the stormy month of September.
by John Dicks
The logical thing to do in such a precarious situation of having a baby waiting to be born, would naturally have to been to abandon the folly of paddling a canoe through flooded streets, much less a distance of five miles that likely would become more as obstacles obstructed their way. The smart move, you might suggest, would have been, “get in the car and go now, while you can still drive to the hospital!” Smart moves, however, don’t always work out as we would like them to.
Coincidence or not, it was that same moment in time that Hurricane Irma chose to make her own appearance. She came blasting through Florida, first in the Keys as a Category 4 storm, but still blowing strong, bent on destruction as she worked her way north towards us.
The hospital, it seems, was fully focused on its own problems. Electricity outages were zapping through the grid and power was being forced through generators. The word from “admissions” was that no admissions would be made into the hospital until the mom had morphed full force into labor.
The father of JoJo is my oldest son, John. I consider him wise beyond his years and he proved it so by conjuring up an elaborate evacuation plan for JoJo’s delivery and birth in the event of a worst case scenario, should the hurricane arrive at the same time as did his daughter.
So, at home they sat; and waited. With a gassed-up car in the driveway and an outfitted canoe in the yard, anxiously they hunkered down while winds whirled and pressure dropped. Yet still no baby ready for birth.
The biggest concern was flooding since hurricanes are prone to deliver such on the streets surrounding his home. Sparing some of the details, his well devised scheme centered on stationing a canoe outside his house, with a friend at the ready, to paddle five miles of swamped streets north to the hospital. You can only imagine, two strapping and strong best friends, settled into the bow and stern of a fiberglass canoe, fighting the wind and waves while the fretful young mother was laboring (quite literally) in the middle. Hoping, of course, that this vision (or nightmare) would never develop into reality kept them, and us, glued to the tv anxiously tracking the path of the howling weather monster. Both a blessing and a curse with hurricanes is that you can see, hear and physically feel them brewing. Unlike earthquakes and tornadoes which pop, groan and rumble unexpectedly, hurricanes give you a warning.
Hurricane Irma screamed right along, banging into Marco Island with winds blowing at 115 mph and turning north. Suddenly, with the grace of providence and some shear good luck, the buzzsaw of a storm turned ever so slightly, soaking Crystal River and headed to Florida’s Panhandle. With that shift in trajectory, and as if right on cue, labor coincided with the calming wind enabling a safer, and drier, drive and an allowable admission to the hospital. JoJo’s delivery was smooth and relatively fast. She was healthy and beautiful and doted upon by her exhausted parents. Today she is smart, delightfully sweet and as full of energy as Hurricane Irma once was! A couple of weeks ago, just shy of her third birthday, JoJo hopped onboard with her Dad, John, for her very first ever canoe ride. The word was that she didn’t much enjoy it. No surprise there!
Still, they are unpredictable. You never know precisely for certain where and when they will strike and pummel.
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John Dicks is both a Lawyer and Businessman, including an interest in farming. He and his family have owned a Blueberry Farm and have Agricultural lands which they lease for cattle operations, as John says, “to someone who knows and handles cattle much better than I do!”. John is both a Gator, having received his undergraduate degree from the University of Florida, and a Seminole, with his Law Degree from Florida State University. John serves as Of Counsel to Trinkle Redman, a law firm in Plant City where he also served nine years as City Commissioner, including three terms as Mayor.
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Polk County Cattle Women
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PCCW recently attended the Florida Cattlewomen’s Beef Short Course in Cheifland, Florida. Our hosts were Quincey Cattle Company. They were gracious enough to lend their time and facility to us for the day. They walked us through all aspects of their operations as producers of Beef. We learned the pros and cons of the Beef Industry and best practices. We had a wonderful lunch and then it was time to step it up. Morgan Lightsey represented Polk County in the 2nd Annual Queen of the Rope competition. This year’s winner brought her “A” game from Desoto County, Savannah Nelson was crowned 2020 Florida Cattlewomen’s Queen of the Rope. It was a wonderful day of learning, fun, and fellowship. Thank you FCW for a great event. We are currently preparing for the Polk Cattleman’s Association Fall meeting/dinner and cake auction, November 12. PCCW will be announcing the recipients of our scholarships, as well as auctioning off our tasty treats for next year’s scholarship fund. You won’t want to miss it. For future events, updates, and meeting reminders, please join our Facebook page Polk County Cattlewomen. Upcoming events: Tampa’s Christmas Gift Market, Children’s Christmas Toy Drive, 2021 Polk County Youth Fair. If you are interested in joining, whether you have cattle or not, I invite you to attend one of our meetings. We generally meet the first Tuesday of every month. You can reach out to me at the number below to confirm. Please come and find out for yourself what we are about, how we help educate the community about Beef, and how you too can become a part of it. As always, PCCW welcomes new members. If you are interested in joining, we’d love to hear from you. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me, #863-205-3977.
Missy McLaughlin-Raney Polk County Cattlewomen President
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E n d a n g e r e d S p e c i es
Worth More than You Realize: The Four-Petal Pawpaw By Ginny Mink
Though this plant is not indigenous to our area, that does not make it less valuable when it comes to considering the endangered plants we have in Florida. The Four-Petal Pawpaw, or Asimina tetramera, is actually endemic to Florida, which makes it all the more important to save. Given the fact we are often overrun by invasive species, ensuring that we keep our natural ones safe here is imperative. The four-petal pawpaw is a deciduous shrub. It is generally between 3 and 15 feet tall with either one or several stems that arch. The leaves are long and yellow-green, about 2-5 inches, and have a leathery texture. They have pointed tips but are wider just above the middle. They produce an aroma with veins that are visible on both sides of the leaves.¹ Four-petal pawpaws are literally only found in Florida. Generally, if you are lucky enough to see them, they will be found in Palm Beach and Martin Counties. Since they are extremely rare, scientists have actually been able to count every single existing plant. The lack of natural habitat for them, coastal sandpine ridges in those two counties, has had a dramatic effect on their existence because these habitats are rapidly disappearing as well.² Unfortunately, this plant is not one people will be particularly drawn to protect. The stems are a grey-brown to a reddishbrown. It sprouts a deep taproot, but the real problem lies within the flowers themselves. They are a maroon color, which one would think would make the plant attractive. However, these flowers produce a fetid scent when they appear in late spring. Stinky flowers are not usually something people want around, but they only grow in Florida, as we stated before, and that in and of itself makes them worth investing in saving.³ The flowers themselves are relatively small, only reaching an inch across. While most of them have four sepals, they can have four to six petals, which makes the name a little strange. If they do have six petals the outer three petals are paler and longer than the inner three. Additionally, they produce fruit that can be as large as five inches long. They are bean shaped and lumpy. Inside you will find shiny, brown half inch long seeds.¹ Though you may have never heard of it, the four-petal pawpaw is a member of the custard apple family. It will produce more flowers and fruit when it is exposed to intense fires. The fires create more ground space for the plants to establish themselves. It also does better when there are other plants to overshadow it. However, when that happens, most of the plant’s energy is invested in photosynthesis rather than in creating flowers and fruit which then hinders its continued hope for growth expansion.²
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If you decide you want to go looking for these extremely rare plants most of their populations are found in 20 disconnect-
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ed areas. These include spots like Northern St. Lucie County, Jensen Beach, Savannas Preserve State Park, Jonathan Dickinson State Park (which is in Martin County), and in Palm Beach County all the way to the northern sections of Palm Beach Gardens.³ Though it is easy to understand why people might not be big fans of the four-petal pawpaw, it should be noted that it is a host to the zebra swallowtail butterfly. And even if the flowers stink, the fruit supposedly smell like bananas and are well loved by gopher tortoises and other small mammals to include the Florida mouse. These animals help propagate the plants which take the seeds they deposit up to eight months to germinate but they can germinate within a month when in the right setting.² As far as protection goes, about 10 of the known sites are on private lands. That leaves 10 more to be protected by three local parks in Palm Beach County and at Jonathan Dickson State Park in Martin County. If we desire to protect them, as we should, disking and other soil disturbances should be avoided, and their natural habitats should have prescribed burns or chopping provided in 20 to 50 year intervals. That may be hard to accomplish as controlled burns generally happen far more frequently.¹ The bottom line here is that the four-petal pawpaw is important to other animals and butterflies. As we know, gopher tortoises are listed as threatened here, and to prevent them from becoming endangered keeping the four-petal pawpaw as one of their food resources is necessary. And since they are the only host plant to the zebra swallowtail butterfly, this adds to their significance on the planet. Like we tell you every month, it’s our job to be good stewards of the plants and animals God provided here. That includes the four-petal pawpaw! Resources: ¹Florida Natural Areas Inventory. Four-Petal Pawpaw. https:// www.fnai.org/FieldGuide/pdf/Asimina_tetramera.pdf ²Wild South Florida. Four-Petal Pawpaw Asiminia tetramer. http://www.wildsouthflorida.com/four-petal.pawpaw.html#. X0vF0MhKiM³Smithsonian Marine Station at Fort Pierce. Indian River Lagoon Species Inventory. https://naturalhistory2.si.edu/smsfp/ irlspec/Asimi_tetram.htm Photo Resources: Bob Peterson. (2012). Fourpetal pawpaw (Asimina tetramera). (Flickr). https://flic.kr/p/cTA3Qs Scott Zona. (2018). Asimina tetramera. (Flickr). https://flic.kr/ p/29WM8iR
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UF/IFAS Faculty to use $141M in Research Funding
Scientists at UF/IFAS are using this year’s allotment of $141 million in research funding to develop better sweet corn, improve cow-calf breeding, make further progress toward controlling citrus greening disease and more. Robert Gilbert, dean of UF/IFAS Research and director of the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station, gleaned information from major grants from fiscal year 2019-2020 and sees many bright spots. “These grants illustrate the tremendous breadth and depth of UF/IFAS programs,” Gilbert said. “Our faculty are doing cutting-edge basic research and applying the results to make a tremendous impact in the lives of citizens of Florida, the nation and the world.” Much of this research helps Florida’s farmers save money, fertilizer, pesticides, water and other inputs necessary to produce their crops. Those crops and livestock support billions of dollars of economic activity throughout the state. During the fiscal year 2019-2020: • In horticultural sciences, Assistant Professor Marcio Resende and Professor Mark Settles received more than $4.3 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA-NIFA). Resende and Settles are investigating integrated technologies to improve sweet corn production and marketability. Sweet corn grown in Florida is worth $141 million, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. • In animal sciences, Assistant Professor John Bromfield, Associate Professor Raluca Mateescu and Distinguished Professor Pete Hansen received $350,000 each from USDA-NIFA to examine aspects of cow-calf breeding, genetics and management. Combined, the beef and dairy cattle industries and allied input and distribution services supported $16.8 billion in sales revenues throughout Florida’s economy, according to a 2017 report from UF/IFAS economists.
• In plant pathology, Professor Pamela Roberts at the UF/ IFAS Southwest Florida Research and Education Center garnered $1.9 million from USDA-NIFA to manage bacterial diseases in peppers. Sales of peppers in Florida in 2019 totaled $235 million, according to the US. Department of Agriculture. • In microbiology and cell science, Professor Nian Wang of the UF/IFAS Citrus Research and Education Center received a $560,000 grant from USDA-NIFA to use citrus immunity to combat citrus greening – also known as huanglongbing (HLB). Citrus is a multibillion dollar per year industry in Florida. • In the School of Forest Resources and Conservation, Professor Matias Kirst received an $850,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to perform pioneering work to introduce nitrogen fixation into poplar trees. Florida’s forest industry supports $12.55 billion of economic activity annually, according to UF/IFAS economists. The ecosystem services that Florida forests provide -- which forests can only support if they are healthy -- were estimated to be worth $24 to 32 billion annually in the most recent UF/IFAS report. • In entomology and nematology, Professor Dan Hahn received a $650,000 grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to suppress dangerous mosquito-borne diseases in Florida. COVID-19 is not slowing UF/IFAS researchers one bit. In fact, they’re applying for more grant funding, Gilbert said. From March 1- August 1, 2019, UF/IFAS faculty submitted $175 million in grant applications. During the same period in 2020, they applied for nearly twice that amount -- $338 million in grants. “This shows the dedication of our research faculty and bodes well for the future of our research enterprise,” Gilbert said.
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By Ruth Borger
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A Closer Look
by Sean Green
Paper wasps and office politics (Mischocyttarus mexicanus cubicola)
I am a born and raised Southerner; wasps are among the critters we just learn to live with and avoid. I recently had the opportunity to watch a new nest of tiny paper wasps form on the window of an office building. It was being built horizontally with the larval cells facing the horizon rather than vertically with the cells to the ground. From the very beginning a crowd of adult wasps gathered nearby while one or two wasps began construction of the basal stem of the new colony and the first larval cells. I often see these when hiking and can tell you they do not let me get close without attacking and often catch me by surprise when I am making my way through Florida scrub. Curiosity got the best of me and every night for about a week I watched the nest grow with new eggs being laid. To my surprised the budding nest was not in the least bit aggressive. The picture that accompanies this article were taken with my cell phone inches from the nest. Mischocyttarus is a new world genus of Neotropic eusocial wasps. The eusocial wasps are characterized by living in groups of cooperative adults that share the function of brood care. Reproductive functions are divided among the adult females that can lay eggs. In a eusocial colony, brood generations overlap and there will be variations in the biologic maturity of adults within the colony. Females that are not yet sexually mature will take on the duties of hunting, nest building and caring for brood. Mischocyttarus, is the largest social wasp genus with 189 species and 15 subspecies. We have two species in Florida, neither of which have a common name that I am aware of. Mischocyttarus mexicanus cubicola is found in Florida, Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina. Additionally, it is found in the Caribbean countries of Puerto Rico, Cuba, and the Bahamas. Mischocyttarus mexicanus mexicanus a sister species, has been seen in nearly every county of Florida except for the most northwestern counties of the state. Up until 2009, it was believed that there was a distribution barrier in the Florida panhandle prohibiting Mischocyttarus wasps from spreading west of Alabama, however, subsequent surveys confirmed populations of M.m cubicola and M.m mexicanus wasps in Louisianna, Texas, and even Missouri. In tropical environments, both M.m cubicola and M.m. mexicanus nest throughout the year. In temperate environments, the cold winters force Mischocyttarus wasps into hibernation, therefore it is unlikely that M. flavitarsis would nest all year. I have several Sabel Palm (Sabal palmetto) next to my place and can see them nesting there from my second story window. In the wild, I can reliably find these tiny wasps nesting on the underside of Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) and Scrub Palmetto (Sabal etonia) both of which are very abundant in Florida’s scrub environments. Marcia Litte,a graduate of Cornell University, has published detailed research on the biology and behavior of social wasps since the 1970’s. Her studies of the nesting behavior were conducted here in Florida at
Litte documented two different nesting strategies Mischocyttarus wasps can employ in response to circumstances that would otherwise threaten the colony. The single queen foundation that I thought was normal is more common with larger, more mature females and typically done in the springtime. The nests of Mischocyttarus can also be co-founded by up to 20 females. A nest that is co-founded can have more than one queen each taking turns in the reproductive functions of the nest. This strategy ensures the colony always has a working queen. If during an attack, the current queen is killed, another adult female will take over as queen and resume egg production while the nest is repaired. In a study of colony defense behavior published in the Journal of Insect Science Online (31 DEC 2009), simulated attacks suggested that aggressive defense behavior had a strong correlation to the age of the wasps. In the study, researchers concluded that older wasps, both workers and queens defend the nest more aggressively than younger wasps. In a University of California, Santa Barbara study published in New Scientist (3 MAR 2017) researchers conducted similar attack simulations. By poking and prodding the queen of the nest, researchers assigned a personality to the queen based on how readily she would abandon the nest to attack the simulated threat. Researchers found that when the queen of a colony was reluctant to leave the nest to defend it, the workers tended to mimic the queens’ disposition and likewise were reluctant to leave the nest to defend it. Nest aggression serves to protect the colony and though I have not yet found a specific study that can address my curiosity of why the office nest was not aggressive, I can form my own hypothesis. Nest aggression is a function of colony preservation. It would be safer for the queen to remain with the nest to protect the eggs and larvae than for the queen to leave the nest to enter battle with a predator. The workers, especially sterile workers, are far more dispensable than mature, egg laying female. The nest that I found, may have been a gathering of co-founding reproductive females. If that was the case, they may have had a biologic disposition NOT to leave the nest to defend it, but rather stay in the nest to defend her young. I will take a closer look in the wild and hope have an opportunity to document such observation more thoroughly. When you go out this month, I encourage you to take a closer look yourself, Carefully ! INTHEFIELD MAGAZINE
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the Archbold Biological Station at Lake Placid. The American Robin (Turdus migratorius), The Florida Scub Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens), and the Red Headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) are the three most significant natural predators of these wasps. Nesting typically begin in May and June. The nest I saw being built on the office window began the first day of August. As you can see in the photograph, there are several adults huddled near the nest while it is being built.
Casey Harper
Crowned IBBA Queen By Payge Dupre “I am forever grateful for the relationships I’ve established over the years with fellow breeders who have impacted my herd and its genetics tremendously.” Said Casey Delona Harper, current IBBA Queen. Casey was elected into this position Friday, July 17 at the National Junior Brangus Show. As queen, Casey will have the opportunity to travel to multiple Brangus shows throughout the country where she will represent the IBBA and IJBBA. Casey is a 22 year old from Haines City. She was introduced to the beef industry by her late grandfather, Von Ivey, of Choudrant, Louisiana. In 2006, when Mr. Ivey passed away, Casey and her parents knew that they needed to keep his legacy alive. They decided they would buy the entire operation to do so; this included the Angus herd and the farming equipment from his estate. Today, they still own and manage the operation, but have grown it even more. It is known as Harper Cattle & Timber. In 2012 Casey purchased her first Registered Brangus show heifer, participating in local, state, and regional shows. From this one year, she decided she wanted to become a Brangus producer. Casey and her parents attended her first National Junior Brangus Show in West Monroe, Louisiana. From then, Casey has made the commitment to travel from Florida each year to NJBS. After they made this commitment, they also made the decision to sell off the Angus herd and switch to just Registered Brangus cattle. Now, they have a herd of approximately 30 Brangus cattle and 180 acres of timber. “Some of you who know Casey may think she can be quiet at times but that’s just because she is watching and learning as do all great leaders. Being personable and easy to talk to are great leadership qualities we believe Casey possesses. Casey is someone who we are proud to say we know and is a great leader and mentor for our children. Casey’s determination to achieve goals and her clear understanding of the Brangus breed is a force to be reckoned with when leading the future of not only the IJBBA but other youth agriculture programs,” said Michael and Krista Ward of W5 Cattle. Through the past eight years being involved in the IJBBA, Casey has received 2015 Florida Premier Exhibitor, 2015 Florida Premier Bull Winner, multiple titles as every level, and Reserve Grand Champion Cow Calf Pair at the 2020 International Brangus Show in Houston. “As a Brangus Breeder, Casey has improved her genetic pool and from her cattle’s progeny she has become one of the breeders of choice for many local Ag directors/teachers to refer their students for the purchase of Registered Brangus Show Heifer prospects, Percentage Show heifer prospects, and even a strong source for Registered Bulls for ranches to purchase.” Said Lorie Pack of Pack Ponderosa.
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The number of shows that will occur this year is undetermined. Regardless, we are proud to have Casey not only represent Polk County and Florida, but also the IJBBA.
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BORN TO WIN
By Libby Hopkins
Rick Williams’ motto in life is “Winning may not be everything, but wanting to should be!” This motto and his vast knowledge of the show cattle industry has made him a respected mentor to many. Williams is a very humble man and he cringes when he’s called “a legend.” He didn’t think his life would make for an interesting story when I reached out to him to do the interview. “I’m not sure why you want to write about me,” Williams said. “I don’t think my life is the kind of stuff that wins Pulitzer’s Prizes!” His life may not win the magazine a Pulitzer, but it does make for some interesting reading.
walked by me, he said, ‘Son, them calves are meant to be eaten, not brushed!’ he did not deter me from doing what I was meant to do.”
Williams grew up in Griffin, near Lakeland. He went to Kathleen Junior High School and Kathleen High School. “My mom and dad weren’t ranch people at all, but I got involved with FFA and 4-H in school and that’s what got me interested in steers,” Williams said. “I don’t know, but something just attracted me to them.”
These club calves sales led to many more over the years and to his current RW Cattle Company Derby Day Jackpot show, which is in its ninth year. This also solidified Williams’ recognition as one of the “best show cattleman,” but this isn’t the only accomplishment Williams has on long list of life experiences. He is also singer, musician and songwriter, too. He taught himself to play guitar at age 12. The lyrics from his song, Don’t Burn My Flag were put into Congressional Record in the Library of Congress.
He got his first steer when he was 10-years-old. “We had a small place, but I got a cow and just fell in love with them,” Williams said. “I showed him with a cane that had this screw in it. I didn’t know much at that point but I knew I wanted to be around cattle. Once Williams finished school, he got a job working for The Florida Cattlemen’s Magazine. “I drove around the state of Florida writing stories and selling ads,” Williams said. “When we got ads back in those days, it wasn’t like how it is nowadays, we had to put the ad on a piece of paper and crop it by hand. It was like driving a Model-A compared to today’s ads.” Did I mention he has a great sense of humor? He does, trust me! This job gave Williams the opportunity to be around his beloved cattle. It also gave him the idea to hold his first club calf sale and the first one in the state of Florida. “I just wanted to sell show cattle to the youth of Florida and show them how to win, but I didn’t know how I was going to do it,” Williams said. “Little by little, people in the cattle business started to know me from going to different ranches. People would tell me I should do a club calf sale, but its one thing to say to do a sale and another to put on a sale when you’re flat broke!” As fate would have it, Williams stumbled upon the Sunny Acres Ranch in Polk County. It was a bit run down, but Williams saw potential in the ranch to be the perfect place to host his first club calf sale. “A lot of places wanted to show cattle but didn’t have enough cattle to do it,” Williams said. “So, I rented the ranch from the owner, put together about 60 head of cattle for the first sale and mailed out about 700 flyers to all the FFA chapters in Florida, Georgia and Alabama. Back then, we had to hand-address the envelopes, lick the stamps and manually put them on the envelopes.” Everyone thought he was crazy for hosting his club calf sale. “This old cowboy saw me tangling with this calf one time and as he
Williams has also performed at the legendary Blue Bird Café in Nashville, Tenn. “I really wanted to be a songwriter and have a few songs, but I didn’t work hard enough,” Williams said. “The Blue Bird thing is a whole other story and my Don’t Burn My Flag song lyrics are in the Congressional Record in the Library of Congress, which never made me a nickel, but it’s kind of cool I guess.” If you ask Williams what keeps him going after all these years, he’ll tell you the kids and his passion to win. “I like helping the kids who are coming up in this business,” Williams said. “I know when a kid has a passion for what they are doing and I enjoy working with them to develop their skills. I always wanted to win and still do. I could never get into the mentality of let’s go and have some fun. If I’m losing, how is that fun? I love showing cattle and that’s what I do best.” Winning is what makes him still a competitor today. If you’d like to learn more about Williams’ Ninth Annual RW Cattle Company Derby Day Jackpot show, you can visit Williams’ Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ groups/783219695490233. The event will be held on April 30 and May 1 of 2021 at the Florida Horse Park located at 11008 HWY 475 in Ocala, Fla.
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The morning of his first sale at Sunny Acres Ranch, only had a few locals poking about to see what he was up to on the ranch. “By one o’clock, we had more than 300 people at the ranch wanting to see what I had to offer,” Williams said. “My top steer brought in $900 that day and back then that was a lot of money!”
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October 23, 2020 at 1 pm Expecting 250 +/- HD Quality Crossbred Replacment Cattle (Bred-Open-Pairs) Located at 3305 Hwy 92 E Lakeland, FL 33801
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KubotaUSA.com © Kubota Tractor Corporation, 2020. This material is for descriptive purposes only. Kubota disclaims all representations and warranties, express or implied, or any liability from the use of this material. For complete warranty, safety, incentive offer and product information, consult your local dealer or go to KubotaUSA.com.
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