Why Inoculate, Exactly?

Mar 25, 2017 | Vegetables

That little packet of dark powder you are coerced into purchasing along with your clover seed can be mystifying. It only weighs a few ounces, and it has to be kept cool and dry and managed like a living pet (it is, after all, alive). Plus it invariably gets all over...

Specialty Crops “Ripe” for Precision Ag

Mar 25, 2017 | News

Timing the harvest and transport of highly perishable, hand-picked crops such as strawberries so these delicate products reach consumers at peak flavor and freshness is an intricate dance that partners Mother Nature with manual labor. However, many of the “smart...

Vent-Free Heaters and Ethylene Injury

Mar 5, 2017 | Greenhouse

Growers looking to high efficiency vent-free heaters for their greenhouse operation may be disappointed in their performance when growing ethylene sensitive crops like tomatoes. Recently, a Pennsylvania grower sold on the high efficiency rating of a vent-free unit...

Vegetable Growers Reflect on Improving Small Farm Efficiency

Mar 5, 2017 | Vegetables

At a recent study circle meeting held in New Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, vegetable growers shared their questions, thoughts and experiences about how to make the most efficient use of time, tools, labor and resources on the farm. The Penn State Extension Start Farming...

Plasticulture Strawberry Variety Trial 2016 Results

Mar 5, 2017 | Berry

We collected data on performance of strawberry cultivars in the second harvest year of a plasticulture planting at the Penn State South East Ag Research and Extension Center in Manheim, PA. Back in December 2016, Kathy Demchak reported on a matted-row strawberry...

Penn State Extension Asks Produce Growers to Take Survey

Mar 5, 2017 | News

Pennsylvania produce growers, food processors and animal feed producers preparing to comply with the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) can provide Penn State Extension with input — via an anonymous survey — that will help guide the development of relevant...

Drought Status Improves for 17 Counties

Mar 2, 2017 | News

Following a meeting of the Commonwealth Drought Task Force, the Department of Environmental Protection announced that two counties remain in drought warning status. Six improve from warning to watch status, and 11 improve from watch to normal status. (Pennsylvania...

Three GMO Potatoes Approved

Mar 2, 2017 | Potato

Three types of potatoes genetically engineered to resist the pathogen that caused the Irish potato famine are safe for the environment and safe to eat, federal officials announced. The approval by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Food and Drug...

President Orders Reveiw of WOTUS Rule

Mar 2, 2017 | News

President Donald Trump has signed an executive order mandating a review of an Obama-era rule aimed at protecting small streams and wetlands from development and pollution, fulfilling a campaign promise while earning the ire of environmental groups. The order, signed...

The Impact of a Loaf of Bread

Feb 28, 2017 | News

With an estimated 12 million loaves sold in the UK every year, bread remains a staple of the British diet. In a groundbreaking study researchers from the University of Sheffield have now calculated the environmental impact of a loaf of bread and which part of its...