In an auditorium in Goldthwaite, Texas, about 30 pecan growers and enthusiasts listen to a speaker at the Central Texas Pecan Short Course.

Educational Events Help Growers Prepare for the Season

On the morning of April 5, growers throughout Central Texas gathered in the tiny town of Goldthwaite for the annual Central Texas Pecan Short Course. Hosted by Mills County AgriLife Extension Service, the Central Texas Short Course provided local growers an opportunity to earn a total of three Continuing Education Units (CEUs) and to re-learn...

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Pecan buds at various stages of development suffer from freeze damage. All primary buds on this shoot were damaged. (Photo by Charles Rohla)

Watch for Freeze Damage This Chilly Spring

As I was preparing to write this article, I was pondering what to write about this month but then mother nature gave me an unexpected and unwanted topic. Over the weekend of April 7 and 8 temperatures across the northern pecan production areas dropped below freezing. With budbreak having started on several trees in southern...

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A May Treat

Smoky Pecan Dip From Jessie Snyder, Faring Well, through the American Pecan Council Total 30 minutes Ingredients 1 cup fresh pecan halves 3 cups chickpeas, rinsed and drained 2 cloves garlic 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 1 heaping teaspoon smoked hot paprika 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper Sea salt, to taste 1/4 to 1/2 cup filtered...

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Two inshell pecans hang off of a thin branch, ready for harvest. Their shucks have dried out and turned brown.

Q&A with Lead Researcher on Recent Pecan Nutrition Study Tufts University

Conducted by researchers at Tufts University, a new pecan study was recently published in Nutrients, an open access peer-reviewed scientific journal. This study, titled “A Pecan-Rich Diet Improves Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in Overweight and Obese Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial,” examined the link between eating pecans and risk for cardiometabolic diseases in adults who were...

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Mixing Business with Pleasure

Kids across America are in great anticipation this month. The weight of school responsibilities has worn their welcome thin, and it’s about all teachers can do to keep their students’ attention for the next several weeks. I’m certainly not a teacher, but I can sympathize with the struggle they are facing. After all, I’m facing...

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Part of the "Kids and Kows and More" program, Remus the talking pecan tree gives participating students some fun pecan facts. (Photo courtesy of Sandra Pierce)

Crossing the Agricultural & Consumer Divide

For 166 days throughout the year, Sandra Pierce is on the road. Hauling a 22-foot trailer packed with educational supplies, Pierce travels around Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma leading an AgriLife agricultural literacy program called “Kids & Kows & More.” Through this program, Pierce has a simple yet all too necessary mission: teach children the...

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