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| This Week's Titles: |
| Nurseries
Watching For Destructive Disease Organism |
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Long Range Weather For
Spring Uncertain |
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| Georgia's
Cotton Faces Quality Challenge |
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| Insect
Pest Damages Hemlock Trees |
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| Walking
To Solve A Stinky Problem |
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| Nurseries
Watching For Destructive Disease Organism |
1:36 |
Some nurseries in Georgia are
hoping a disease organism hasn't moved in from California. |
In mid-March the Georgia
Department of Agriculture issued a quarantine against all nursery
plants from California. Jean Woodward, a plant pathologist with
the University of Georgia Extension Service says several California
nurseries tested positive for the pathogen that causes sudden
oak death. She adds this disease has the potential to cause
a lot of damage if the pathogen gets into the state. "If this
fungus does get established here in Georgia as it did like in
California and in a small area in Oregon, it has the potential
of infecting many of our Eastern forest species, oak trees,
maples, many of our understory plants like rhododendron, kalmia,
mountain laurel, as well as pieris. The fungus has a very large
host range." Jean Woodward with the College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences, who adds twenty-eight nurseries
in Georgia are know to have received plants from California
earlier this year. Plants in these nurseries are being tested
for the sudden oak death pathogen. If any of the plants test
positive, they will be destroyed in an effort to keep this damaging
disease from spreading. John Harell, University of Georgia College
of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, reporting from Tifton. |
Links to audio files:
(files include a brief quote from the source for your use.)
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| Long
Range Weather For Spring Uncertain |
1:47 |
Many people are wondering if
the spring of 2004 will be wet or dry. |
Despite a wet February,
dry conditions in December and January kept rainfall below normal
for the winter of 2004. With March also being drier than normal,
many people are concerned another dry weather pattern is getting
established for the spring and summer. David Stooksbury, the
state Climatologist and professor of engineering at the University
of Georgia says rainfall in April will play a major role in
the state's moisture supply during spring and early summer.
"Unfortunately there is not much hope as we're entering April
and into May as we start looking at rainfall. May historically
is one of our driest months. So we still have April to help
replenish the soil moisture however if April turns out to be
dry, there is major concerns building for this summer." David
Stooksbury with the College of Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences, who adds most ponds and other water reservoirs are
near capacity. But with the long range spring weather pattern
still uncertain, farmers should use caution when irrigating
this spring, in case they have to rely on irrigation to help
crops make it during critical periods of growth this summer.
John Harrell, University of Georgia College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences, reporting from Tifton. |
Links to audio files:
(files include a brief quote from the source for your use.)
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| Georgia's
Cotton Faces Quality Challenges |
1:31 |
Cotton grown in Georgia could
receive an economic stain that can't be removed. |
Georgia cotton normally
scores well in most grade categories. But it gets poor grades
in two important categories: short fibers and inconsistent fibers.
Don Shurley, an agricultural economist with the University of
Georgia Extension Service says several factors have caused cotton
quality in the state to drop. "Some of the problems due to factors
beyond our control like the weather. But some of it may also
be related to our varieties and some of our production practices,
so we do have some challenges ahead of us to try to overcome
some of the problems that we've had the last three or four years."
Don Shurley with the College of Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences , who adds Georgia had the worst cotton fiber length
quality in the country last year. Most mills prefer cotton fiber
that is long and strong. Short, inconsistent fibers cause high-speed
spinning equipment in mills to jam, costing the mill time and
money. John Harrell, University of Georgia College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences, reporting from Tifton. |
Links to audio files:
(files include a brief quote from the source for your use.)
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| Insect
Pest Damages Hemlock Trees |
1:30 |
An insect pest could cause
serious damage to hemlock trees in North Georgia. |
The hemlock wooly adelgid
marched into Georgia from the Carolinas. The insect has been
sighted in Rabun, Towns, Habersham, and White Counties in the
North Georgia mountains. David Moorhead, an extension forester
with the University of Georgia says the hemlock wooly adelgid
retards the growth of hemlock trees by sucking the sap. "And
it is an insect that's a native of Asia, and it feeds by sucking
the sap from the young twigs and then what that does is it prevents
the growth of the chute and ultimately retards tree growth."
David Moorhead with the University of Georgia's Warnell School
of Forest Resources. Scientists are conducting research to find
ways of controlling the hemlock wooly adelgid. Much of the effort
is focused on biological control, since hemlocks are usually
found in biological sensitive areas, and in most cases chemicals
are not an option. John Harrell, University of Georgia College
of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, reporting from Tifton.
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Links to audio files:
(files include a brief quote from the source for your use.)
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| Walking
To Solve A Stinky Problem |
1:33 |
College scientists have become
foot soldiers to solve a stinky problem. |
The technique, called targeted
sampling, is a simple way to identify sources of fecal contamination
in water. Instead of using statistical models and fancy equipment,
the technique involves walking along creeks and other waterways
to check for sources of fecal contamination. Peter Hartel, a
scientist with the University of Georgia's College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences says targeted sampling involves a
lot of good, old-fashioned walking. "You're just going out there
and walking and you're testing everything that you think might
be contributing, hey there's a pipe there, hey there's a stream
there, hey there's a dairy operation there. As you walk along
you just say well let me take a sample, and that's what was
not done in the past." Peter Hartel with the College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences. Chemical and DNA-based tests for
bacterial source tracking are normally sixty-five to eighty-five
percent accurate. When the same tests are combined with targeted
sampling, they are ninety-five to ninety-nine percent accurate.
John Harrell, University of Georgia College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences, reporting from Tifton. |
Links to audio files:
(files include a brief quote from the source for your use.)
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