About 20 people gathered outside a Bourg home to take a small piece of an award-winning cabbage. Its outer leaves were roasted and placed in small aluminum foil envelopes.
"It's a family tradition that's supposed to bring you good luck," home gardener Jenny Bourg said.
Read MoreFederal agriculture officials, in cooperation with Louisiana agriculture officials, have established a federal quarantine area for huanglongbing (HLB; citrus greening), caused by Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus, in all of Saint Charles Parish in Louisiana.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA APHIS) took the action in cooperation with the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF).
Read MoreThe USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry have established a federal quarantine area for Huanglongbing, also known as HLB or citrus greening.
The quarantine is for Saint Charles Parish in Louisiana due to HLB detections in plant tissue samples collected in multiple locations during routine surveys and to prevent the spread of HLB to non-infested parts of the U.S., according to a news release.
Read MorePecans and pecan trees are quintessential parts of the southern diet and landscape, although, as reflected by its scientific name (Carya illinoinensis), the pecan tree’s native range extends beyond the South.
A primary criterion for choosing pecan varieties for yards and home orchards is resistance to a fungal disease called pecan scab.
Read MoreMost of the worst drought conditions have weakened in the state, but it still made a dent in the plant nursery and garden industry in Central Louisiana.
Read MoreSome farmers are struggling to bear fruit this season because of the freezing temperatures.
75-year-old Daniel Romero owns Daniel & Anna's Orchard, a "pick your own" fruit farm in New Iberia.
Read MoreCurrent Farms is launching its third Winter Farm Share Season and it will continue until March 2024. According to Current Farms, this year they are partnering with 3 Board Farm to bring more locally-grown fresh food from the farm to the community.
“Our partnership with 3 Board Farm is more than just a business contract; it’s a shared vision for a healthier, more sustainable community,” said Conrad Cable, owner of Current Farms.
Read MoreToday on Louisiana Living, Cathy Agan, nutrition agent for the LSU Ag Center, joins Ashley Doughty in the kitchen to demonstrate how to make sweet potato hash.
Read MoreJoe Mitcham pulled a knife from the pocket of his jeans and made a few quick cuts in the root of a peach tree he had pulled out of the ground earlier that day.
Using the tip of the blade, he pointed at the white streaks visible in the soft, yellow wood.
“You see that?” he asked. “That’s the fungus.”
Read MoreBrandon Breaux started the first elderberry farm in Louisiana.
Michael Davis produced and marketed the first goat milk gelato in New England.
Joshua Morris developed a multi-speciated operation to create ecosystems on his farm in Missouri.
When each of these veterans returned home from their military service, they were driven to take their lives on a new path — farming.
Read MoreIn Grant Parish, the pecan is the king of the crop. But just like every crop this year, pecan farmers are bracing for the record drought’s impacts.
“All we can control is our inputs. That’s what we can buy at the store and put out here. We can’t control the weather,” said Ben Littlepage, owner of Littlepage Farms on Highway 8 outside of Colfax.
Read MoreProjections show the saltwater from the Gulf of Mexico continues to push up the Mississippi River in the coming weeks, threatening the drinking water of thousands of people in Louisiana.
Farmers are also scrambling for ways to save their produce.
Commissioner for the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry Dr. Mike Strain said Plaquemines Parish is the heartbeat of Louisiana’s citrus industry.
Read MoreCommercial citrus growers have dwindled over the past few decades in south Louisiana, where farmers have had to battle hurricanes, flooding, invasive insects, freezes and drought to keep their groves alive.
The latest hurdle comes from a slow-moving threat — a mass influx of salt water from the Gulf of Mexico that is creeping up the drought-stricken Mississippi River.
Read MoreU.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) introduced two bills to protect Louisiana rice and shrimp against China and India’s dumping of cheap shrimp and produce into U.S. markets. The Prioritizing Offensive Agricultural Disputes and Enforcement Act and the India Shrimp Tariff Act will both protect the Louisiana agricultural industry while ensuring that food that appears on U.S. store shelves meets U.S. health standards.
Read MoreIn a summer replete with challenges for Louisiana farmers as they’ve dealt with a heatwave and extended drought conditions, there is finally some good news on the agricultural front. The state’s sweet potato crop is doing just fine, and although harvest may be slightly delayed this year, some producers are expecting bumper yields.
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