Agrimag October 2017

AgriMag

Down to Earth in Florida

Formerly: The Ag Mag

Chestnuts ‘Till the Storm Passes By Fence Rows Growing Food in Florida October is Nut Month Salvage Your Downed Trees

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Please Enjoy Volume II, Issue 8,October October 2017 2017 | 1

Farming Wonders of the World To the Mule Who clip clopped Over thousands of acres and countless years To open the soil For farmers and growers to Feed the nation

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From the Publisher A favorite adage of mine is, “People and Tea Bags are a lot alike.

You never know how strong they are until they are dropped into hot water.” Floridians have been doused in hot water lately, and the response to that chaos and damage has been amazing.

Following the hurricane came floods, so all our gardens, greenhouse, and processing facility are under water. We lost 99 per cent of our crops, and face several months of waiting for the ground to dry and to pass soil tests before being able to grow again. We moved our chickens to safe, dry land. The people who work on my farm showed their strength and resilience in all directions as we counted the damages and began working to recover. They have turned to new jobs and chores to do what needs to be done without a whimper or protest.

The crew that works here is not alone. Many, many stories are told of friends, neighbors, even strangers pitching in to help everyone get past the loss and trauma, even when they dealt with their own mess.

Stories of humans responding to other humans when they face upheaval and tragedy make me warm and serves as a powerful reminder of the decency and empathy that leads people to answer when fellow humans need our help.

We at AgriMag hope that your discomfort has been brief, and your heart has grown larger through responding to other human beings.

Please let us know of any way we can help in this crazy Florida weather. We would be honored to lend a hand while we all get back on track.

Jeri

AgriMag

Down to Earth in Florida

Formerly: The Ag Mag

Chestnuts ‘Till the Storm Passes By Something Wonderful -Jeri Salvage Your Downed Trees September is Nut Month Salvage Your Downed Trees

Cover Photo: Squirrel with a Chestnut Photo by Annabelle Leitner

AgriMag Volume II, Issue 6 ISSN 2471-3007

Publisher Jeri Baldwin Jeri@AgriMag.Press 352-209-3195 Editors Jeri Baldwin 352-209-3195 Marnie Hutcheson 352-207-6520 Contributors William K. Crispin Jan Cross Cubbage David Goodman Anabelle Leitner Melody Murphy Design + Production Marnie Hutcheson Marnie@AgriMag.Press Amy Garone Ad Sales Cindy Baldwin Cindy@AgriMag.Press Distribution Terri Silvola-Finch Founder Carolyn Blakeslee Contact Us & Subscriptions AgriMag Press info@AgriMag.Press 352-209-3195 P.O. Box 635 Orange Springs, Florida 32182 Websites http://AgriMag.Press https://www.facebook.com/ AgriMagPress/ Copyright ©2017 AgriMag Press All rights reserved

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Please Enjoy Volume II, Issue 8,October October 2017 2017 | 1

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Contents 2 3

| Farming Wonders: Mules | From the Publisher

6 | Chestnuts

by Annabelle Leitner 8 | ‘Till the Storm Passes By

by Melody Murphy 10

| Fence Rows

by Jeri Baldwin

12 | Salvage Your Downed Trees

by David the Good 14

| October is Nut Month Collage

16 | October is Nut Month

by Marnie Hutcheson 18 | Growing Food in Florida

by Jack Payne 20 | Swiss Chard

by Jan Cubbage 22 24 25 26

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In Season Recipes NEW AG: Cashew Apples Calendar of Events AgriMag Briefs

Rainbow Beetle on the Fence Photo by Marnie Hutcheson October 2017

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Chestnuts

by Annabelle Leitner

Chestnuts. What do you think of when you hear that word? Nat King Cole singing “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire,” always seems to be one of my first thoughts.

Growing up on a farm in extreme Northwest Marion County, we only heard about Chestnuts in songs, or from neighbors who had moved south.

Seems the only place I ever saw a Chestnut was in movies or photographs.

My first encounter with Chestnuts was in the summer of 1974 on our first trip to the mountains.

It also was the first time seeing those huge old trees that had been felled by a fungus blight, first identified in 1904. Within 40 years the American Chestnut had been wiped out. It seemed hard to believe the sprouts growing from the base would never become a mature tree. The Chestnuthad been one of the most important food sources for bears and birds in the wild, provided food for humans and domesticated livestock, as well as a cash crop for growers.

In December 1990, Chestnuts came to our farm.

We had pecans and hickory nuts…but Chestnuts are totally different; they have been interesting to learn about. They have several nicknames on our farm: I call them “porcupine nuts” and our nephew calls them the “devil tree” since his first introduction to them was when several of the

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“porcupine nuts” slapped him in the face as he mowed around them.

Although our Chestnuts are not the majestic American Chestnuts of the past, they are those that were developed by Dr. Robert T. Dunstan, a plant breeder, in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Dunstan received bud wood from an American Chestnutgrowing in Ohio that seemed to be blight free. He grafted the scions onto Chestnutrootstock and the trees grew well. He then cross pollinated those with three superior USDA released Chinese chestnuts and over the years continued to work with the trees. The second generation of those Chestnuts trees were moved to Alachua County.

Our trees are offspring of those Alachua County transplants. Known as the Dunstan Chestnut, they grow very well not only in North Central Florida, but can be found throughout the country.

We have enjoyed watching our little grove of Chestnuts grow. At first we (my sister & I) did not pay much attention to them since they belonged to our father, who loved all plants. After his death they became ours, so we decided to do something with them.

We learned very quickly that we had to beat the bears, deer, turkey and wild hogs to the chestnuts that had fallen from their hulls. At times you

could hear the wild visitors among the Chestnut trees having a feast and a good time beating us to it. Next, we learned to never pick up a Chestnutthat is still in its hull! --Since the hulls are covered with spiny thorns that will stab your hands. Bar-b-que tongs are now my choice as the Chestnutpicker upper. Our native squirrels must have lips and mouth of steel, because they will gather the chestnuts, then sit at their gathered pile and gnaw through spiny hull and all, to get to the nut.

Harvest season sometimes begins in August and continues for about six weeks. Every day chestnuts that have fallen from the trees must be picked up. At maturity, estimated at 20 years, an

acre of planted Chestnuts can bear between 1,000 and 2,000 pounds of Chestnuts.

Even though we have been growing the Dunstan Chestnut for over 25 years, it always amazes me to learn a new use for them. Sometimes Chestnut trees are referred to as “the cradle to the grave tree,� because of their wide variety of uses. Fresh Chestnuts have about 180 calories which come mostly from carbohydrates.

Culinary uses of Chestnuts include: eating raw, roasted, milled into flour to prepare breads, cakes, pies, pancakes, pastas and as a thickener.

The nuts can be eaten candied, boiled, steamed, deep-fried, grilled, and used to stuff vegetables, poultry, fowl, and other edibles. Other uses of the Chestnut tree include lumber, Chestnut tannin for tanning leather, fuel, and more.

Chestnuts have not started falling from our trees yet this year, but they are getting close. Now is the time to gather all the tools used to free the fresh chestnuts: pliers, butcher knife, bar-b-que tongs, and buckets. Time also to start daily checks to make sure we beat all the critters to our share of Chestnuts!

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‘Till the Storm Passes By

by Melody Murphy

Well. That was quite the hurricane we had.

You almost didn’t get to read this. My electricity went out on Sunday night as Irma was sending her calling cards ahead, and it didn’t come back on until the following Monday night. Eight days without power. And, as the house I was living in at the time has a well, that means no water, either. Because when the electricity goes out, so does the well.

The next morning, after Irma had passed over and headed north, I went out to assess the damage. The house was fine, but the property, a very wooded acre and a half, was a mess. It took me six hours and 17 big piles of branches on Monday to clear debris from the circle drive in front of the house so it could be driven on.

There is a towering old live oak just behind the house. So many big limbs had fallen from it, creating a crown of branches on the roof and a wall of green along the back porch, that no one could open the screen door.

Farther back on the property, another live oak had dropped a limb so huge and heavy that it wouldn’t

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budge when a strong man tried to lift one end.

I’ve picked up actual trees that weighed less. It took six of us to try to pick it up and move it before I decided, you know what, this is as good a place as any for it to rot. And unless someone decides to take a chainsaw to it, that’s exactly what it will do. Looks like a nice apartment dwelling for bugs, skinks, lizards, and the like.

This house is southeast of town, outside the Ocala city limits, in an area that up until a few years ago was a maze of dirt roads. Some are still so narrow that you have to pull over and let oncoming vehicles pass. Zoned for agriculture, there are plenty of pastures out that way: cows, horses, donkeys. Lots of neighbors have chickens. Some even have pigs. Kids in 4-H raise lambs and take them for walks down the street. It’s a lovely area with lots of trees.

Unfortunately, those big trees also mean it’s a prime location for storms to wreak havoc. We tend to lose power in that area when there’s a strong breeze, so when a hurricane comes through, you know it’s going to be a while before the charms of electricity are yours once more. Trees fall at the slightest provocation around there;

true to form, several big ones came down across the road in the hurricane and blocked one end of my street.

Just two blocks away, you could clearly see the path of the tornado that went up the main road.

Huge live oaks and power poles were snapped in two like pencils. Jagged, twisted tree trunks lined the streets. Power lines lay across the road in a tangled web. One end of the road, toward 441, was flooded.

I used to think it was dark “out there in the country” at night. Until the first night without electricity as far as the eye could see. The first night, when there was still a good breeze coming through the open windows, wasn’t too bad. And it was kind of nice, listening to the frogs and owls and crickets. Peaceful. But by the third night, I was ready to go – and did – when a friend with a guest room called and said they had their power back on.

I had ample time to think, as one does under these conditions, about living life the old-fashioned way: life on the farm, when you went to bed with the cows and got up with the chickens, because daylight and candlelight were your two options by which to see. Having to haul in buckets of water for use in the house. Coming to terms with the fact that a bath might not be a regular

occurrence because you can’t just step into the shower and turn a knob.

Having to preserve everything or prepare it fresh because there is no refrigeration. Relying on open windows and praying for a breeze to cool yourself, or sitting on the porch for its intended purpose: because it is cooler out there, and to pass the time of day with your neighbors.

Spending your daylight hours outside wielding a pitchfork instead of inside sitting at a computer. Eating supper by the light of a kerosene lamp.

It’s charming when you’re watching Little House on the Prairie, but in reality when you’re accustomed to life on the grid: not so much once the novelty wears off.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Farmers are a stronger breed than I. But farmers back in the day? Stronger than all of us.

Maybe even stronger than Irma.

Melody Murphy has never been so happy to flip a light switch and turn on a faucet in her life.

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Fencerows

by Jeri Baldwin Framing an accurate mind’s eye picture of a fencerow is as easy as picturing an auto accident when more than one witness gives their account.

Every view results in a different version. So with a fencerow. As many different pictures as there are folk giving their description describes a fencerow. Certainty likely is that each person’s recall usually hinges on their fondest memory of that land.

Small animals – rabbits, mice, bobcats, raccoons, fox - might fondly describe a fencerow as their home since the conglomeration of bush, weeds, vines, grasses, shrubs, and trees in a selfrespecting fencerow offer shelter, safety, and food for the creatures.

Lizards, frogs, snakes and other slithering creatures might list the rocks, crevices, and chinks found in fencerows as their choice of place for refuge and meals in that habitat.

Large birds – hawks, owls, and falcons – cruise fencerows for daily fare and places to light and rest while seeking – or eating - their next morsel.

Small nesting birds – cardinals, blue birds, woodpeckers, thrashers, and towhees – among dozens more, favor fencerows as ideal nesting sites because the shrubs, bushes, dead snags and trees offer favored places to find homes.

Fencerows also provide abundant food from the

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crickets, frogs, dragon flies, and smaller birds.

Many children believe that persimmons, chinquapins, and blackberries help form the ideal fencerow. Their memories could bring tales of early morning walks through dew laden grasses to the fencerow where they picked juicy, sweet blackberries into their mouths and buckets in equal amounts. They could clearly relate, even years later, the terrifying sound of a diamondback rattlesnake protesting about sharing space under the blackberries with the pickers who filled their containers. The rattlers staked out the ripe fruit in their search for small birds who enjoyed the berries.

Other memories of pickers would recount blackberries carried home to the nearest cook who accepted the ripe blackberries, disappeared into the kitchen, then reappeared at the dining table a couple of hours later with blackberries encrusted in pastry and sugar, turning the blackberries into pure delight in a warm cobbler with milk poured over.

Children also remember the lovely sight of clear, glass jars of blackberries canned and cooling on the kitchen counter. After they cooled, they were stored for winter cobbler or pie with canned berries, or pancakes or toast with blackberry jam.

Native persimmons presented different memories depending on when the ‘simmons were picked.

If gathered before a frost the fruit caused a mouth puckering, teeth grinding reaction and the resolution to never eat another persimmon.

After frost nipped the persimmons on the tree, no memory ever gave a better image of sweet, succulent taste as pudding, bread, or cake.

Farmers created fencerows to separate pasture from field from woods, thus allowing wide, wild space for many reasons.

In searching dictionaries, agricultural histories, and farmer’s almanacs, fencerows appear to have three characteristics necessary for land to be a fencerow.

1.) Fencerows had a fence; 2.) The land on both sides of a fencerow was not cultivated in any way; 3.) Fencerows were identical (nearly) on both sides of the fence.

The width of a fencerow depended entirely on the inclination of the farmer.

Farmers first added fencerows to farm land as a windbreak from sweeping northwest storms which new and/or tender crops could not survive.

Fencerows helped prevent newly plowed ground from whirling away if planting and germination had not yet sprouted. Fencerows provided uncultivated soil around trees, shrubs, brush, and weeds to contain heavy rains and prevent pastures and fields from eroding.

the fencerow. Farmers who haven’t used animals in years to cultivate still halt their tractors and combines in the shade of a fencerow, and spend a few minutes in shade and quiet.

Though most farmers sighted a line for their fence posts and ran every post exactly on the line, the magic of fencerows suggests that they amble on their paths. This could be called an “old farmer’s tale,” though with some truth as fencerows spread wider to enclose a new sapling or stand of Brown-Eyed Susans or new growth blackberries.

It is not an “old farmer’s tale” that farmers were without question the first environmentalists and disliked destroying all wild land. So, the keepers of the land willingly left fencerows across their farms for home, food, and safety to wildlife and wild land.

“Progressive” agri-business severely criticizes farmers who reserve part of their acreage for fencerows. They sneer that wasting land for fencerows is counter-productive to best agricultural management practices, and thus, fail to grow maximum amounts of food for the world’s population.

Perhaps then, fencerows serve the most important function and truth in contemporary agriculture, those words penned by the brilliant Robert Frost years ago that “…Good fences make good neighbors.”

Jeri Baldwin

Fencerows also offered nearby ground on which farmers and their farm hands could dump rocks and, thus saving a long trip to remove rocks from cultivated lands to protect equipment, and from pastures to prevent horses, cattle, and sheep from stumbling or tripping on rocks and causing severe harm or death.

Fencerows also provided space for farmers and their teams - oxen, mule, or horses to rest and “blow” after a hard plow across uncultivated fields. They provided coolness, shade, and often the pleasure of watching wildlife living life in

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Salvage Those Downed Limbs

by David the Good Hurricanes are an unpleasant part of life in Florida.

As a child, I remember sitting in the dark as Andrew’s winds and rain lashed and beat against the aluminum storm shutters of my parents’ Fort Lauderdale home. When it was finally safe to emerge, it felt like we stepped into another world.

The watery sun rose over flooded streets and lawns, littered with leaves and shingles. Fallen trees were everywhere and the sound of chainsaws soon sang like devouring cicadas across the ravaged landscape.

After a storm, most of us think about how we can “get things back to normal” and press on. We see the fallen trees as a nuisance, not a resource. I know, because I’ve chopped up and burned my fair share of toppled oaks. No more, though! If you’re currently dealing with clean-up duty, I would like to offer some suggestions that will help you see those trees as more than dead weight to be dragged to the curb.

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Lumber Portable sawmills have to be one of the greatest inventions in recent history. Florida is loaded with oaks, hickory, pine, black cherry and other good lumber species. Our Cracker ancestors built their homes and barns from these trees – yet we chop them into chunks and put them by the road. I have considered going into the lumber business.

Think of the potential market for locally-grown wood. The trees are there for use after a storm – and with the cost of good lumber, you could almost name your profit. If you’re not personally interested in milling lumber, why not look up a local guy and have him cut you some boards from the fallen trees on your property?

Talk about untapped potential!

Biochar Ongoing experiments with adding charcoal to infertile soils have produced interesting results. I have one friend who has experienced huge increases in his garden yields after years of adding

crushed biochar to his growing beds. Though you’ll see expensive kiln systems and read lots of talk about making biochar “the right way,” at its heart it’s just charcoal.

Make a big fire, let it burn down to coals, then quench it. This is a good time to use nature’s rage to potentially improve your soil for decades.

Mushrooms Have you ever thought about growing shiitake or oyster mushrooms? The logs are everywhere – now is the time to order some spawn and start plugging.

Smoker Wood The first time I had a slowsmoked, homegrown, free-range chicken, I was hooked. Nothing compares to the mouth-watering goodness of tender, smoked meat.

The humble chicken is transformed into a taste of heaven.

Oak and hickory are both great woods for smoking. Many fruit woods are good as well. Since wood is everywhere right now,

why not pack some of it away in the shed for future culinary use?

Mulch Following the keening of chainsaws is the cacophony of chippers. As the power companies clear the lines and the cities and tree companies clear fallen limbs, mulch is being made at an incredible rate. Claim some for your yard. I used tree company mulch for garden beds, mulching my food forest as compost and even let some of it rot for a couple of years and then mixed it into the potting soil I used in my nursery. The soil in Florida can be greatly improved by adding mulch. Get it while it’s hot!

Garden Beds Fallen limbs and logs make nice informal borders for garden beds. I particularly like them because over time they rot and attract beneficial fungi and worms to my growing area, then eventually they rot into spongy humus I can add to the soil. If you’ve got the raw material, why not use it? I reckon logs are better for your garden and health than using pressure-treated wood. And cheaper.

method, there are plenty of gardeners that swear by it. The reason I never got serious about hugelkultur beds was because I rarely had enough wood to bury. Hurricanes change that. If you’re interested in the method, now is the time to give it a try.

Make beds now and you’ll be ready for spring.

Compost I’ve piled up limbs and logs in corners of my property and let them rot for a few years. What remains is some of the best compost you can get. It’s rich, earthy, fungally dominated material perfect for addition to the garden or the landscape. All it takes is time.

Conclusion Though no sane person enjoys seeing their homesteads battered by a storm, sometimes we can make lemons out of lemonade. Those fallen logs and limbs can gain a new life if you’re clever. Put them to work and you’ll find some solace in the loss of your trees. A little extra thought now generates rewards far into the future.

David The Good is a Florida native and the author of five books including Totally Crazy Easy Florida Gardening and the groundbreaking new release Push the Zone: The Good Guide to Growing Tropical Plants Beyond the Tropics. Find his daily gardening posts online at TheSurvivalGardener.com.

David The Good is a gardening expert and the author of five books available on Amazon, including • Totally Crazy Easy Florida Gardening, • Compost Everything: The Good Guide to Extreme Composting and • Grow or Die: The Good Guide to Survival Gardening.

Find new inspiration every weekday at http:// TheSurvivalGardener.com and on David’s popular YouTube channel.

Hugelkultur And speaking of gardens, have you ever checked out the “hugelkultur” method of burying logs and limbs in large mounds and planting gardens on top? Over time the wood rots and becomes a spongy reservoir of water and humus, keeping plants happy. Though I’ve only experimented a little with the

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October is

Get the full story on page 16.

Plant Family Wild > Undomesticated >>>>> Semi-Domesticate True Botanical Nuts https://www.britannica.com/science/ nut-plant-reproductive-body A nut is a fruit composed of an inedible hard shell and a nut which is usually edible. As I mentioned, a wide variety of dried seeds are called nuts, but in a botanical context “nut” implies that the shell does not open to release the seed.

1.1 Photo by David Hill

1.2 Photo by Fir0002

Drupes (that we call nuts) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drupe

A drupe (or stone fruit) is a fruit in which an outer fleshy part surrounds a single shell with a seed inside (think of a peach).Some flowering plants that produce drupes are coffee, mango, olive, most palms, pistachio, and all Prunus, including the almond, apricot, cherry, nectarine, peach, and plum.

2.1

Photo by Steven J. Baskauf

2.2

Photo by Böhringer Friedrich

Angiosperms (that we call nuts) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Flowering_plant Angiosperms are a taxonomic class of plants (flowering plants) in which the mature seed is surrounded by the ovule (think of an apple).

3.1

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Photo by CIAT

3.2

Public Domain

Nut Month

ed >>>>>>>>>>>>> Domesticated for 2000 - 9000 years or more!

1.3

Photo by Hans Hillewaert

2.3

Public Domain

3.3

Photo by Texnik

1.4

2.4

Photo by Simon A. Eugster

Photo by 6th Happiness

3.4

2.5

Public Domain

Public Domain

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October is Nut Month

By Marnie Hutcheson This article is the companion to our October collage on page 14-15.

There were a couple of things that I learned doing the research for this article that really amazed me. The first thing is that very few of the nuts in my favorite trail mix are actually “nuts.” Most of them are “Drupes.”

There are basically four types of plants that produce things we call “nuts”; True Nuts, Drupes, Gymnosperms and Angiosperms. I will explain more about these plant types and their “nuts” as I describe the nuts in our collage.

The nuts in the collage are organized in rows by their plant families, with the most recently domesticated species on the left and the oldest domesticated species on the right.

The second thing I learned is how long ago these nut trees were domesticated and how many of them are native to South America.

Row 1: True Botanical Nuts

A nut is a fruit composed of an inedible hard shell and a nut which is usually edible. As I mentioned, a wide variety of dried seeds are called nuts, but in a botanical context “nut” implies that the shell does not open to release the seed.

1.1 Acorn Wild and undomesticated, the acorn, is the nut of the oaks and their close relatives. Acorns take between six and 24 months to mature.

In North America, acorns provided a large, easily gathered harvest for

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native peoples and wild animals.

Acorns contain bitter tannins, which the indians removed by grinding the acorns into meal and leaching out the tannins. Birds, small and large mammals such as squirrels, mice, pigs, bears, horses, goats and deer depend on acorns as a large part of their diet. Acorns may constitute up to 25% of the diet of deer in the autumn.

1.2 Chestnut Chestnuts (Castanea) were domesticated in China more than 5000 years ago. Chestnuts belong to the family Fagaceae, which also includes oaks and beeches. The four main species are commonly known as European, Chinese, Japanese, and American chestnuts.

Some chestnut species are called chinkapin or chinquapin.

Chestnuts are infamous for their spine covered outer nutshells, see Annabelle Leitner’s article this issue pg. 6-7.

1.3 Malabar Chestnut Malibar chestnut (Pachira aquatica), was domesticated in the Amazon basin 8000 years ago. It is a tropical wetland tree of the mallow family Malvaceae, native to Central and South America where it grows in swamps.

This tree with its beautiful showy flowers, is sometimes sold with a braided trunk as a houseplant. Its nuts are said to taste like peanuts, and can be eaten raw, cooked, or ground into flour to make bread.

The leaves and flowers are also edible.

1.4 Hazelnut or Filbert Nut Domesticated 9000 years ago in Scotland. It is thought that the indigenous people were vegetarian because there was little large game on the island and the Hazelnuts formed the mainstay of their diet.

The kernel of the seed is edible and used raw, roasted, or ground into a paste. Hazelnuts are used to make praline, and also used in combination with chocolate for chocolate truffles and products such as Nutella and Frangelico liqueur.

Row 2: Drupes

A drupe (or stone fruit) is a fruit with an outer fleshy part that surrounds a hard single shell with a seed inside(think of a peach).

Some flowering plants that produce drupes are coffee, mango, olive, most palms, pistachio, and all Prunus, including the almond, apricot, cherry, nectarine, peach, and plum.

2.1 Shagbark Hickory Undomesticated, Shagbark hickory (Carya ovata) nuts were a significant food source for the Algonquian. And, just like Acorns, they are a staple in the winter diet of many small and large animals and birds.

2.2 Walnut Walnuts (Juglandaceae) are feral or semi-domesticated. Fruit production tends to occur irregularly with some years producing larger crops than others. Fruiting may begin when the tree is 4–6 years old, however, large crops take 20 years.

Currently black walnut trees are being destroyed by a beetle carried fungus that causes the “thousand cankers” disease. The fungus kills small patches of tissue, creating cankers under the bark where the beetles attack. These cankers grow together, weakening and eventually killing the tree.

2.3 Pecan Domestication of the Pecan began only a century ago. Historically, wild pecans were well known among native and colonial Americans as a delicacy. Pecan trees may live and bear edible seeds for more than 300 years.

2.4 Almond Domesticated almonds appear 40006000 years ago Jordan and Egypt.

Almonds can be raised from seed, making them easy to proliferate.

Row 3: Angiosperms

Almonds begin bearing in the third year after planting. Trees bear at full capacity five to six years after planting. The fruit matures in the autumn, 7–8 months after flowering. While wild almond species are toxic, domesticated almonds are not.

3.1 Macadamia Macadamia is a recently (since 1857) domesticated genus of four species of evergreen trees indigenous to Australia and constituting part of the plant family Proteaceae.

2.5 Cashew The cashew tree (Anacardium occidentale) was domesticated in the Amazon basin 8000 years ago.

Portuguese colonists in Brazil began exporting cashew nuts as early as the 1550s. Today, major production of cashews occurs in Vietnam, Nigeria, India, and Ivory Coast.

Cashew is a tropical evergreen tree that produces the cashew seed and the cashew apple. The tree can grow as high as 14 m (46 ft), but the dwarf cashew, growing up to 6 m (20 ft), has proved more profitable, due to earlier maturity and higher yields.

The cashew nut can be eaten raw or roasted, used in recipes, or processed into cashew cheese or cashew butter. The shell of the cashew seed yields derivatives that can be used in many applications including lubricants, waterproofing, paints, and arms production.

The cashew apple is a light reddish to yellow fruit, whose pulp can be processed into a sweet, astringent fruit drink or distilled into liquor.

Gymnosperms

This is the third type of plant that produces “nuts.” It is not shown in the collage. The gymnosperms are a group of seed-producing plants (spermatophytes) that includes conifers (Pinophyta), cycads, Ginkgo, and gnetophytes. The best known nut from this type of plant the Pinion Pine nut.

Angiosperms are a taxonomic class of flowering plants in which the mature seed is surrounded by the ovule (think of an apple).

The macadamia nut is grown in Australia, but commercial production is concentrated in Hawaii.

Some countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia also grow macadamia nuts. In the continental United States, trees are found in California and Florida.

3.2 Soybean

Soybeans (Glycine max), originated in Southeast Asia and were first domesticated by Chinese farmers around 1100 BC. By the first century AD, soybeans were grown in Japan and many other countries. Soybean seed from China was planted by a colonist in America in 1765.

Soybean is widely grown and has numerous uses in human and animal feeds. Soy vegetable oil is used in food and industrial applications.

3.3 Peanut

The oldest known archaeological remains of peanut (Arachis hypogaea) pods were found in Peru and have been dated at about 7,600 years old.

3.4 Brazil Nut

Domesticated in the Amazon basin 8000 - 9000 years ago, the Brazil nut is one of the largest trees in the Amazon rainforest, reaching 50 m (160 ft) tall with a trunk 1 to 2 m (3.3 to 6.6 ft) in diameter. It may live for 500 years or more, and according to some authorities often reaches an age of 1,000 years.

Brazil nut trees produce fruit almost exclusively in pristine forests, since disturbed forests lack the largebodied bees of the genera Bombus, Centris, Epicharis, Eulaema, and Xylocopa which are the only ones capable of pollinating the tree’s flowers. Brazil nuts have been harvested from modern plantations, but production is low and is currently not economically viable.

The fruit takes 14 months to mature after pollination of the flowers. The fruit itself is a large capsule resembling a coconut in size. Its hard woody shell contains eight to 24 triangular “Brazil nuts”, packed like the segments of an orange.

Links https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nut_(fruit) https://www.britannica.com/science/nutplant-reproductive-body https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drupe https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gymnosperm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flowering_plant

Widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, peanuts are important to both small and large commercial producers. It is classified as both a grain legume and, because of its high oil content, an oil crop.

The peanut is not a true nut. It belongs to the botanical family Fabaceae, commonly known as the bean, or pea, family.

The author enjoys the height of the harvest.

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Growing Food in Florida

by Jack Payne

I have spent a lot of time travelling around Florida attending the annual meetings of some of our important agricultural commodity groups, such as Citrus Mutual, the Florida Cattlemen’s Association and the Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape Association. Participating in these meetings is a great reminder of the value of production agriculture to our state and to our quality of life.

14 million by 2070. Unless we stop eating, Florida agriculture has no choice but to continue growing. At the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, we’ve seen challenges to food production including the disease that threatens our citrus industry.

We also see tremendous opportunity to meet these challenges through teaching, research and outreach.

Florida farmers are continually expected to produce more food with less land. They rely on a thriving innovation economy and a network of field-to-fork industries to meet these expectations. Their success is led by a strong commissioner of agriculture, with science and innovation provided by the University of Florida and a supportive collection of commodity and stakeholder groups. In addition to keeping you well fed, Florida agriculture provides 2.2 million jobs; nearly a fifth of all the jobs in the state.

Young people are beginning to see it too. The new generation filling our colleges see careers in biology, genetics, engineering, computer science and many other scientific and technological fields as the way to contribute to solutions to feeding the world. We have an all-time high enrollment at the UF/IFAS College of Agricultural and Life Sciences this year. Food security is a global issue. Thousands of students see the challenge of feeding a projected 10 billion people in 2050 as an opportunity to do good while doing well.

The state’s population is expected to increase by nearly

Meeting this food challenge offers the potential for an even

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greater economic future for Florida. Who better than us to create a concentration of start-ups, laboratories and research centers to find better ways to produce food? Florida agriculture, natural resources and food industries already drive $59 billion in exports.

They have a total state economic impact of $127 billion; more than 14 percent of our state economic output.

These numbers consider the ag and food system as a whole. A tomato in the field is nothing without distributors and grocers.

A plant in the greenhouse will languish without a landscaper or garden center. Field and greenhouse agriculture is a small portion of the whole, but it is the base of the ag and food system pyramid. --Without agriculture, the entire food system would collapse.

There’s no denying that our state’s 47,000 farms are already vital economic engines that help you in ways that go beyond putting food on your plate. They keep your tractor sales force in business. They keep a whole ar-

ray of juicing, canning and other processing plants running. They fill trucks to ship produce but they also fill them before a seed is even in the ground, to bring in the supplies and equipment necessary to grow thousands of acres of food at a time.

There are some communities where agriculture is such a large part of the tax base that failed farms could very well translate into the layoffs of librarians, teachers and police. Agriculture’s resilience makes it a mainstay of our economy. When money is scarce, fewer people book hotel rooms or buy theme park tickets. They don’t stop eating.

The latest challenges do not spell doom for the Florida farmer. They call for us to lead the way in sustainable agriculture. Money may not grow on trees, but it grows in the forests that our tree farmers harvest.

It grows in the sea, where our clam farmers produce some of the most delicious seafood you’ll ever taste. Our fields of green — tomatoes, watermelon, peanuts and yes, oranges — put green in the wallets of millions of Floridians.

There are serious challenges to food production here. But, today’s Florida agriculture is on supermarket shelves, restaurant menus, at farmers’ markets and in the millions of jobs that sup-

port it. Today’s farmers produce more food than ever and more students are preparing to dedicate the next 40 years to food production.

Growing food in Florida means growing prosperity! ~Jack

Jack Payne is the University of Florida’s senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources and leader of the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.

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Swiss Chard

Is a Super Green

by Jan Cubbage If I were to write a book titled “North Florida Gardening For Dummies” Swiss Chard would be the focus of Chapter One.This robust plant came over on the boat with immigrants from Mediterranean countries and if “healthy” is a word you like to see on a menu then look for Swiss Chard.

The ease of growing this large leaf plant is remarkable. I began growing Swiss Chard here in north central Florida twenty years ago with great success. An heirloom variety, Fordhook Giant is my favorite. Plants of this variety may grow up to three feet in height if grown in rich soil. Swiss Chard with its fast growing, deep green leaves and tender white, or multi-colored stalks are a chef’s prize for there are countless ways to prepare this nutritious veggie.

The flavor of the large leaves is tangy and adds zest to most dishes. This plant thrives in cool weather, so late fall and early spring planting is recommended.

Swiss Chard is one of the most nutritious plants you can carry from garden to dinner plate. One cup of chopped Swiss Chard provides daily values of vitamins as follows: 44% of Vitamin A, 36% of Vitamin K, and 18% of Vitamin C. And, like most dark green leafed veggies, the B vitamins are plentiful in Swiss Chard.

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The leaves can be used in salads when young.

As the plant grows older, chop both the leaves and stalks and sauté or steam them in the microwave. I use the chopped leaves and thick white stems in soups, pasta dishes, casseroles, quiche and stews. Or, toss the chopped leaves and stems in a tablespoon of olive oil, add chopped onion or garlic, pepper, mushrooms or cooked sausage and serve as a main dish.

Garnish with grated Romano cheese.

The wide stems of Chard can be used like celery in poultry stuffing or as raw finger food, stuffed with cream cheese mixtures or dipped in salad dressing.

As the Chard matures, bloom stalks grow from the middle of the plant and clusters of petite yellow flowers appear. I chop the edible mix them with salad greens or cook them. These blossoms are pollinator attractors that last through mid-December.

Here is a guide for growing Swiss Chard: 1.

Buy packets of the white stalked variety. The colored varieties do not grow as prolifically as the white stalked variety.

2.

Cultivate your garden in late February for late a spring crop or sow seeds anytime between late October and November for a winter crop. If you have planted late in the

fall or early winter, cover young plants if the temperature is 32 degree or less. Once the plants grow a foot tall, they will be hardy enouth to survive the cold weather.

Like all leafy veggies, Swiss Chard needs sunlight, so choose an open area for planting.

Chard likes well amended soil.

3.

Scatter the tiny round seeds in the bed.

If you like rows, plant your seeds in starter pots or cartons and transplant the seedlings when they are 3-4� tall. Plant seedlings 18� apart to give the mature plants plenty of room to mature, Always transplant in the morning and water well.

4.

Sprinkle compost over the planted seeds.

6.

As chard plants begin to sprout. either transplant or eat the small plants in salads.

7.

Harvest the leaves as they mature and cook in your favorite dishes. ~ Jan Links: http://www.rareseeds.com/fordhook-giantswiss-chard/ http://www.burpee.com/vegetables/ swiss-chard/swiss-chard-fordhook-giantprod000949.html http://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/care/ planting/vegetable-gardens-by-season. html#!/-1/

5.

Water your Chard daily if rainfall is sparse.

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In Season Recipes Toasted Pecans Preheat oven to 300° F, Melt butter then remove from heat, add pecans and toss until pecans are covered with butter.

Lay out pecans on a cookie sheet.

2 cups pecans ½ stick of butter (melted) 1 Tablespoon of sugar ¼ teaspoon cinnamon

Mix cinnamon and sugar together and sprinkle over the pecans.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until nuts are evenly toasted.

Apple Monsters 4 apples quartered Strawberries or grapes sliced Sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds or peanuts Mini marshmallows or googly eyes Small tube of black icing 1.

First, cut the middle out of each quarter of the apple in order to create a mouth. Don’t worry about it being perfect, as you are filling this gap with almond butter anyway so if you cut too deep, you can always cover it up and you won’t even be able to notice.

2.

Coat the inside of the gap where you just cut with a filling of almond or peanut butter.

3.

Place sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds or peanuts on the top of where the “mouth” is to resemble the teeth.

4.

Place 1 sliced strawberry slice or grape slice inside the mouth to resemble the tongue.

5.

“Glue” each eye above the mouth, using a dab of peanut butter to make it stick in place.

6.

Serve your monsters and enjoy!

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In Season Recipes Trail Mix

1 Bag of mixed nuts or your favorite nuts

You can make trail mix with all your favorite snacks. Just mix the ingredients together. Feel free to experiment with different flavors, sweet or savory.

A mix of dried fruits(banana chips, dried cranberries, dried cherries, dried pineapple, raisins etc.)

Pumpkin or sunflower seeds Chocolate chips or M&M’s Coconut flakes

Gluten Free Walnut Chocolate Balls

(You will probably want an electric mixer for this recipe) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour a 9”x 9” or a 9”x 13” cake pan 10 eggs - separated 1 lb walnuts finely powdered (I use a blender for this) 1 cup sugar 1 Tblsp rum (Optional) Prepare your favorite garnish(s): i.e. Grated chocolate, coconut, melted chocolate, sprinkles, powderer sugar, etc. - be creative.

Beat yolks adding sugar gradually until the mixture turns white. Set aside.

2 Tblsp boiling water. (Optionally, add a Tblsp of rum.)

In a separate clean, oil free bowl, beat whites to meringue. Once the whites hold stiff points, gradually add the powdered walnuts, beating continuously. Finally, beat or fold in the egg yolk and sugar mixture.

Remove the cake from the pan and crumble into a bowl while still hot. Mix the sugar/water mix into the crumble.

Put the mixture into a greased pan, and immediately bake at 350 degrees for 35-38 minutes. It will rise like a cake and turn brown.

While the cake is baking disolve 2 Tblsp sugar in

Form the crumble into 1 1/2” - 2” balls and roll in garnish. Or, drizzle with melted chocolate. Set on a tray or rack to cool. ~Many thanks to Mrs. Ettehadieh for this ancient recipe.

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NEW AG Have you heard?

Cashew apples with nuts

Cashew Apples in the News Cashew apple juice helps burn fat and is good for overall health. It is a good source of magnesium, which plays a vital role in the development of bones, muscles, tissues and organs. The juice is high in vitamin C, low in sugar, and contains no cholesterol, which makes it safe for diabetics.

--And, by all reports Cashew apples are tangy and tasty too!

Several groups are helping to save wasted fruit and bring inclusion and income to small farmers...

Cashews are one of Africa’s best cash crops. BeninCajù — caju means cashew in Portuguese — is a five-year project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in conjunction with Catholic Relief Services.

According to TechnoServe, the new value chain created from the formerly scorned extremity of the cashew tree potentially

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could increase the country’s gross domestic product by as much as 1.5 percent. “There is a 40 percent to 50 percent value addition from the cashew apple,” says James Obarowski, head of TechnoServe’s Benin office and the program manager. “About 100,000 tons of it are thrown away [annually], which is [worth] about $170 million.”

You never heard of Cashew apples because natives thought the apples poisonous. The apples were only used to tell when the cashews were ripe.

When the apples turn bright red or yellow in late September and again in early January, it is time to pick the nuts hanging from the bottom. Technically, the “apples” are fibrous stems of the cashew tree; the “nuts” are actually seeds encased in a double-hulled shell.

Farmers are now paid approximately 5 cents per kilogram for cashew apples; about $5 per bag. Pickers

have to work fast; Cashew apples ferment and become utterly useless within 24 hours of harvesting. If the nut is separated from the apple, that time is slashed to just six hours.

At the processing plants, which employ 36 full-time staffers, including 30 women, cashew apples are washed and diced before the juice is extracted by squeezing the chunks in a tube. Additional production steps include filtering out the tannins that make the pulp acrid, heating, homogenization, pasteurization and bottling.

Pepsi turned to the Clinton Foundation to help farmers with collection, and rapid processing of this new crop. The Clinton Foundation responded by establishing Acceso Cashew Enterprise, a business that works with small farmers to improve cultivation and yeilds

continued on pg 25

Calendar of Events Events, Workshops, Meetings, Classes, Conferences. Etc

September 9, 9 A.M. to 1 P.M. & Saturday, October 14, 2017

Thursday, November 4th, 2017, 9am-2pm

Fall Symposium, SHEEP & GOAT MANAGEMENT Klein Conference Center, 3001 SW College Road, Ocala, Florida 34474 Keynote Speaker: Susan Schoenian Call Ruth Taber at 352-528-4843

Thursday, October 26, 2017, 9a.m.-1p.m.

Allison Acres, Exceptional Organic Blueberries Florida Organic Growers Workshop Contact: Tyler Nesbit 352-377-6345, X 123

Cashew Apples in the News Continued

and helps farmers get better prices for their nuts and cashew apples.

The Clinton Foundation has been actively incorporating small farmers into its global supply chains. Other examples include small farmers of chickpeas in Ethiopia and corn and sunflowers in Mexico.

Starting next year Pepsi will introduce several new mixed fruit juice drinks under the Tropicana label in India where Cashew apple juice will replace more expensive juices like apple, pineapple and banana.

Florida Organic Growers Workshop: Aquaponics: A Beautiful Production Angel Gardens Nursery, Alachua, Florida Contact: Tyler Nesbit 352-377-6345, X 123

Friday, November 17, 2017 Deadline to apply for financial and technical assistance from Natural Resources Conservation Service Environmental Quality Incentives Program Contact the local NRCS field Office at 352-338-9565

Traditional juices like coconut, pomegranate, and lime, are becoming expensive; Cashew apple juice is a low cost and local alternative in countries that raise cashews.

Additionally, companies like Pepsi, are driven by the demographic group called millennials as well as the new middle global class’ ready appetite for new foods and flavors. For example: Quinoa, a nutty, protein-dense grain that was a staple of the preColumbian peoples of the Andes, is now hard to come by as a result of the global demand from this group.

apple juice are available in the USA now. Look for even more variety next year.

Sources:

http://www.ozy.com/fast-forward/howcashew-apple-juice-became-africasnew-power-drink/80977

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/09/ business/international/cashew-juicethe-apple-of-pepsis-eye.html

Several new beverages and juice concentrates based on Cashew

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AgriMag Briefs

Agricultural Cost of Irma Hurricane Irma caused more than $2.5 billion in damage to Florida’s agriculture industry reported the state’s Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

Florida Agriculture took it on the chin as Irma thrashed the state.

The initial cost is not complete, as assessments continue to accrue.

The first costs included crop losses, damaged infrastructure, animals’ long term welfare, and beginning debris clean-up.

The Florida Department of Agriculture has promised to do everything possible to support Florida growers, processors, and marketers through the period of recovery.

A breakdown of the first damages of $2,558,598,303 follows:

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Citrus $760,816,600 Beef Cattle $237,476,562 Dairy $ 11,811,695 Greenhouse, Nursery, and Floriculture $624,819,895 Sugar $382,603,397 Field Crops $ 62,747,058 Forestry $261,280,000

Florida Rice Paddies Sugar Cane, beware!

In Florida’s Everglades farm region, rice is making inroads into farm fields previously reserved for growing vegetables and sugar cane. An astounding 120 million pounds of rice were harvested in 2017.

Rice has been grown in south Florida since the 1950s, but a rice virus thread killed all rice crops in the ‘60s. Rice reemerged in the 1970s, but of the Everglades Agricultural Area of

470,000 acres, to date only 22,700 acres grow rice.

Rice is planted from March to June, and harvested from July to November. Most of the state’s rice is the long grained variety.

Growers are electing to plant rice in rotation with sugar cane rather than let the land lie fallow.

Rice offers several advantages over bare soil. Among the benefits are summer growth, as it is suited to lots of rain and heat. Rice provides cleansing to the water by absorbing nutrients harmful to the ‘Glades ecosystems. It does not require fertilizer and keeps fields covered in water, preventing weed growth. Rice also keeps the muck soil from drying out and blowing away.

Rice is a great crop for conservation. Florida Chop Suey anyone?

AgriMag Briefs

continued

Mosquito Flood

water for weeks.

In south Florida, in an area where approximately 500 mosquitoes can be trapped from 3pm until 7am, the total trapped mosquitoes jumped to roughly 26,000 after Hurricane Irma.

Prospects for jobs, housing, and money are uncertain for farmworkers as Florida begins to consider how best to re-build the state’s agriculture economy.

The decisions of the agricultural community will directly and heavily impact the people who are least equipped to find alternative solutions to the dilemmas forced by Hurricane Irma.

The total included 10 different species, some of whom carry disease. Three actions have helped shorten the lifespan of the mosquito: Daily heat return after Irma, spraying, and treating standing water to prevent eggs from hatching.

Folks are advised to take extra precautions when venturing outside during the mosquitoes most active periods. Cover your body as much as possible and wear an effective mosquito repellent.

Those 26,000 mosquitoes trapped following Irma would fill a five gallon bucket. The 500 caught on normal nights? They would fill a coffee mug.

Florida Farmworkers Hurricane Irma heavily impacted Florida’s Farmworkers with the loss of income, housing, power, and drinking water. The loss of avocados, citrus, okra, and decorative fern posed long term, economic impacts on the farmworkers. Many trailers housing the workers were also swept away in the storm. Loss of power meant loss of food; some communities had no drinking

Donations may be made to the Farmworker Association of Florida, 1264 Apopka Boulevard, Apopka, Florida, 32703. Your donations will provide funds directly to the state’s agricultural farmworkers.

High Hopes for Hops Florida growers produce roughly 300 different agricultural products. However, there are growers who always want more; many of those farmers are experimenting with hops.

space, and is economically viable.

Florida growers and researchers are exploring the possibility in the state.

The drawback to hops growing currently number four.

• Lack of data. Very few scientific papers have ever examined environmental factors on hops growth in this area of the world. Germany has been the center of hops growth to date.

• Climate. Where hops growing succeeds, days are longer during the early growing season, maximizing vegetative growth and inhibiting flowering. Florida growers are searching for a variety that is less sensitive to a need for photosynthesis.

• Pests. Florida offers an enormous variety of pests, to which hops are not immune.

• Harvesting Obstacles.

Hops is traditionally a hand harvested crop, placing huge stresses on moderate prices and timely harvesting.

The craft beer industry in the nation and Florida is astronomical. 45 craft breweries called Florida home in 2011. At the end of 2016, 195 breweries with more starting, opened for business in the Sunshine State.

In 2015 there were no commercial hops growers in Florida. Through four field days, more than 100 local growers attended and learned about hops growing.

Interested growers abound when local productions knowledge is researched and developed.

With a huge locavore movement needing hops, many growers are experimenting with growing hops. They want a crop which can give them more for the

Continued on page 28.

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AgriMag Briefs Among relatively established growers is Burts Farm in Dunnellon, Marion County.

“Hops growing was clearly a learn as we go venture”, says Ricky Burts, who had no previous farming experience.

“We have had some creative challenges with a crop that grows 20 feet high,” says Burts.

His perseverance is beginning to show some success, to the delight of brewers, who urge every hops grower to produce quickly. The market is definitely present for high quality hops. Successful hops equals successful beer.

Locavores particularly would appreciate locally grown hops,

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continued even without the high cost of transporting hops from Germany. Beer lovers and locavores, take heart.

Organic Growing Growing Popular Results of the 2016 Certified Organic Survey show a continued interest and growth in organic foods. Ten states accounted for 77% of U.S. certified organic sales. Crops comprised 56% of certified organic production; livestock, poultry and their products accounted for the other 44%.

Organic production includes a wide range of commodities, including livestock and poultry products (chiefly milk and eggs) with sales of $2.2 billion; vegetables, $1.6 billion; fruits, tree nuts, and berries, $1.4 billion; livestock and poultry, $1.2 billion; and field crops, $763 million.

The top commodities in 2016 were milk, eggs, broiler chickens, apples, and lettuce.

Other top organic products were strawberries, grapes, tomatoes, corn, potatoes, hay, spinach, and mushrooms.

AgriMag See the AgriMag advertising rates on line at https://www.agrimagpress.com/ad-rates

AgriMag Distribution in Print 12,000 copies of AgriMag are printed monthly and distributed in Alachua, Citrus, Levy, and Marion Counties, as well as The Villages and Wildwood.

This magazine can be found in your neighborhood. It’s in feed stores, tack shops, tractor dealers, hardware stores, extension services, farm bureaus, FL Farm Credit offices and other farmfriendly banks, a few vets, UF/IFAS, high school and university agricultural departments, trailer dealers, selected restaurants, farm-oriented real estate offices, Thoroughbred associations, landscape and garden centers, nurseries, libraries, economic development offices/chambers of commerce, wineries, farms with retail outlets, and theatres including The Hippodrome and OCT.

Hey, Advertizers GeT Noticed!

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Ads@agrimag.press October 2017

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