Your Help Is Needed To Develop a Good Neighbor Program!

As the rural-urban interface becomes less distinct we would like to know what kind of communication tools you as agricultural producers need to educate your neighbors and the school children in your community about agricultural practices in their community. We can only do this if we know current practices. How do you communicate with your neighbors? Let us know by completing this survey that is being conducted by the University of Florida IFAS Extension in partnership with Florida Farm Bureau. Based on the survey we will be designing a Good Neighbor Program (GNP) that will help people living in urban-rural interface communities understand more about the importance of agricultural practices. We are also asking School Systems to complete a survey asking how they communicate with you. Please share your communication practices with us and we will use them as part of the new Good Neighbor Program. The survey will take 5 to 10 minutes to complete and we will only use your answers after they have been combined with other respondents' answers and will be completely confidential. Thank you for participatinng.

Email Survey Link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/5B2MPY9

If you have any questions, please call (352) 273-3971, or send an email to FOI@ufl.edu. Thank you for your participation.

Two New Biomass Crops May Be Promising

Two little known crops are making big news in the agricultural community in Florida.  Both are being recommended by farmers already producing them as crops that can be used on fallow ground or between crop plantings.

The first is Camelina, which is an oil crop in the Brassica family.  It is grown for it's oily seed, which is valuable as aviation fuel.  The seed is harvested and crushed for the oil and the seed cake can be used in animal feed.  In addition, the stubble left in the field can also be used for grazing.

The second photo is kenaf, a member of the hibiscus family, which is grown for it's fast growing biomass and used in biofuel production.  The seeds produced can be crushed for oil and the fibrous plant itself is useful as a biomass plant for ethanol or other fiber uses.

BCAP (Biomass Crop Assistance Program) will be available for several years to producers who are ready to try these new crops.  Contact your local USDA Farm Service Agency to find out more about qualifying for the BCAP!