Marketing Order Plans Progressing

Mike Adams, president of the American Pecan Board, reports that the development of the Federal Marketing Order for pecans is progressing. As reported earlier, the American Pecan Board met with USDA staff at DFW airport on Jan. 13-16 to begin the process of composing the order that will be sent to the Secretary of Agriculture…

Whether you’ve grown pecans for 25 years or you’re just getting started, the Texas Pecan Short Course at Texas A&M University is five days of valuable information. The course is given by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and features presentations from Texas A&M University and AgriLife professors and researchers on everything from pecan varieties…

Zinc is the 24th most abundant element in the earth’s crust, the eighth metal known to man, a component of ancient brass artifacts, and an ingredient of batteries, gutters and galvanized screws. Zinc is a relative newcomer to plant fertilizer, having not been discovered as essential to plant growth until 1926. Not long afterward, zinc…

I wrote about this topic in my May 2014 column but crop registration has to be renewed each year so this is a reminder that this “tool” is available for producers and this is a good time to sit down and do your registration. I have already received one call this year from a producer…

Pecans were among several agricultural commodities that were recently granted lower tariff rates in China. The tariff rate for pecans, inshell and meats, going into China went from 24 percent to 10 percent effective Jan. 1, 2015. The tariff on macadamias went from 24 percent to 19 percent. The impact of this development on the…

It is hard to believe that the dawn of another growing season is upon us — seems like we were just talking about harvest and now it is time to start all over once again. No doubt the “old timers” got it right when they said, “the older you get the faster the years go”!…

As pecan growers enter the 2015 pecan year it is good to outline management practices and develop plans. Growers can use different types of management: establishment management, low versus moderate versus intensive orchard management, and native grove management. Texas production is in an alternate-bearing cycle with 2015 being an “off” year. Our rainfall last season…

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In last month’s Pecan South, Blair Krebs provided us with an overview of the status of pecan harvest in various locations in the pecan belt. With it appearing that most growers have completed harvest for the 2014 season and hopefully have also sold the crop at a satisfactory price, I hope you had time to…

The Southeastern Pecan Growers Association is hosting its annual convention, Feb. 27-28, at the Grand Hotel Marriott Resort at Point Clear, Alabama. Registration is underway and the hotel reservation cut-off date is approaching. To reserve accommodations at the Grand Hotel, call 800-544-9933 before Feb. 13.  The SEPGA group rate is $150. Or attendees can access…

A new book, “The Pecan: A History of America’s Native Nut”, is now available from The Olde Pecan Bookstore. This 172-page hardback is written by James McWilliams, a historian and writer from Austin, Texas. Cost is $20. In this book, McWilliams explores the history of America’s most important commercial nut. He describes how essential the…

The Texas A&M pecan orchard had a great year in 2014; but it was not without issues and problems. The harvest was great with 17 acres producing 13,050 pounds of nuts, which were retailed as kernel halves or large pieces and/or chocolate covered halves for $43,500. This was our best season since 2009, hopefully, we…

One long-standing pecan tradition in Texas is the county pecan show and starting around November there are numerous county pecan shows across the state. This program I believe started in the early 1950s with the concept or intention to teach growers how to grade their pecans. In addition to the education on grading, these shows…

NEW YORK, Dec. 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — Will 2015 be gluten-free? Is Paleo out? Are we eating carbs yet? Is kale still the Queen of Greens or will nuts, seeds or cauliflower take the throne? The annual “What’s Trending in Nutrition” Survey from Pollock Communications and Today’s Dietitian highlights what’s forecasted to be in – and…

Nuts and dried fruits consumption has been associated with a reduced risk of major chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, and the International Nut and Dried Fruit Council aims to make such benefits known through its new application, INC Cartoons. In just one minute, the superheroes from INC Cartoons will fight the enemies to win the…

A new study, published in mid-January in the open access journal Nutrients, compares the nutrient adequacy and diet quality of those who consume tree nuts (almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, macadamias, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios and walnuts), and non-tree nut consumers in a nationally representative population. Tree nut consumption was associated with better nutrient adequacy…

REGIONAL PECAN SHOW — From left, Bill Ree and Monte Nesbitt judge the West Texas Pecan Show in San Angelo in December while County Horticulturist Allison Watkins and grower Chester McCown look on. Top entries from the three regional shows were collected and preserved for more judging next July at the Texas State Pecan Show,…

Being the best at something is commendable in Texas, where there is no shortage of biggest, best, brightest and firsts. The “best” pecans in Texas for each crop year are awarded in July at the Texas Pecan Growers Association Annual Conference. The journey to being the best begins with entering a 42-nut sample in a…

Over 100 years into commercial pecan production, we often still see more opinions regarding how to grow pecans than we see science. Even among pecan scientists, opinions vary considerably on many topics related to pecan production. The reason for this is that empirical data for some topics is so hard to come by in these…

While I write this, we are in the midst of an election. Never-ending political ads blur the television screen and radio waves. Ceaseless mud-slinging and overt bashing of opponents is seemingly the only way races are played out in the public these days. It’s enough to make your eyes and ears bleed. Yes, 2014 is…

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11), who was selected on Nov. 18 to be the next Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, announced the appointment of key senior staff to lead the Committee in the 114th Congress: “A team of seasoned professionals will be at the helm of the Agriculture Committee Staff next…

With a recent question on pecan weevil, shipping of pecans within Texas and the pecan weevil quarantine, I thought this would be a good time to run my somewhat annual request for any possible new pecan weevil infestations in Texas. The pecan weevil is one of the major nut pests of pecan and, because of…

U.S. Pecans was represented at SIAL Paris in France, Oct. 19-24, by project leaders Rosemary Alexander of National Pecan Growers Council and Heather Salopek, Marketing Specialist of U.S. Pecans, Helen Watts of Young Pecan, Drew Haas of San Saba Pecan and Slade Ellis of Ellis Bros. Pecans. The pecan industry was also represented by Green…

The National Pecan Growers Council continued its export promotions Nov. 12-14 at the FHC (Food and Hospitality China) show in Shanghai. The following report was written by NPGC’s Heather Salopek. The U.S. Pecans 18-square-meter booth was located in Hall 7 of the USA pavilion at the Shanghai New International Expo Center in Shanghai, China. The…