Greening disease confirmed in Polk County, Fla.
Greening, the tree-killing disease that has savaged Florida's citrus belt in recent years, was confirmed to be in Polk County, the state's leading citrus producer and the last big one to fall to the disease. Growers and state regulators said the confirmation of the disease in 2 locations was not a surprise but still was a serious setback. The pathogen is more deadly to trees than citrus canker. Scientists say the disease lurks unseen until it turns leaves a sickly yellow. Wesley Brumback, an Oviedo-based citrus grower and member of the Florida Citrus Commission, told Orlando Sentinel that the disease has probably been in Polk County groves for "quite a long time."
No-match ruling remains on hold
The Social Security no-match rule, originally scheduled to go into effect in September, has been delayed again. Last week a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking implementation of the no-match rule until the court can fully examine the issue. No-match letters are triggered when an employer has employees whose names and Social Security numbers do not match the employer's W-2 form. "While this is very good news, this is no time to sit down and rest," said Robert J. Dolibois, ANLA's exec. v.p. He cautioned that the only solution to the "broken immigration system" is passage of legislation. The no-match regulation is likely to remain in limbo for several months at least, until the court issues its final ruling.
House Ag. hearing examines labor crisis
A sometimes-contentious House Ag. Committee hearing earlier this month looked into the worsening labor crisis affecting U.S. farms. Labor expert and ANLA consultant James Holt told the committee that the nation's ag. labor policy "is in desperate need of reform. Reforms are needed in the administration of the H-2A program, the H-2A regulations and the nation's basic agricultural immigration statues." He said that unless Social Security number no-match regulations are blocked by the courts, "it will begin having an immediate impact on agriculture in the southern growing areas this winter, and its effects will quickly march northward with the 2008 growing season." Read all of Holt's comments here.
Feds move to ease guest-worker regulations
Meanwhile, the Bush administration has begun quietly rewriting federal regulations to eliminate barriers that restrict how foreign laborers can legally be brought into the country, Los Angeles Times reported. The departments of Homeland Security, State and Labor are scrutinizing regulations to see whether they can adjust the worker program. They are considering a series of changes, including lengthening the time workers can stay, expanding the types of work they can do, simplifying how applications are processed and redefining terms such as "temporary."
Learn to deal with sudden oak death
Phytophthora ramorum training sessions for industry professionals are being offered throughout California this fall. The sessions are designed to provide revised USDA P. ramorum regulations as well as scientific and management updates. Sessions are free, though online pre-registration is required. The sessions will be in Clovis, Ventura, Escondido, Irvine and Sacramento. A CD of the training sessions has been produced and will be posted online at the Calif. Oak Mortality Task Force Web site.
White rust detected at 3rd Connecticut grower
A 3rd detection of chrysanthemum white rust was made this month at a Cheshire County, Conn., grower/garden center. The infected mums include several Gretchen cultivars as well as other cultivars not in the series. In September, officials with Conn. Ag. Experiment Station and USDA-APHIS placed stop-sale orders on 2 growers in Hartford and Fairfield counties after white rust was detected on mums. This was the 1st appearance in Connecticut of the disease, which is caused by the fungus Puccinia horiana P. Henn. USDA protocols force incineration of diseased plants and mandatory treatment/stop sale of nearby mums. More than 1,800 plants were destroyed at the Hartford and Fairfield sites.
Worth a visit
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