Dear Valued VCH Readers, Welcome to issue 749, the second edition of the 2025 Vegetable Crops Hotline newsletter! Spring is certainly making its presence felt! The weather has been very mild to hot this past week. It’s a great time to start working ground that has thawed and drained. Don’t get too eager to start…Read more about From The Editor’s Desk[Read More]
Vegetable Crops - General
How often have you heard that your neighbor received rain while you missed it? Precipitation is highly variable and has significant impacts on communities. Insufficient rainfall can cause drought and water supply issues, while excessive rain can lead to flooding and damage to infrastructure. The dense precipitation measurements provided by the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail,…Read more about Expanding Precipitation Observations in Indiana[Read More]
Passive solar greenhouses are widely used in northern China to grow crops year-round without supplemental heating. My former mentor introduced me to a project by the University of Missouri Extension, where they built a passive solar greenhouse. This past winter, I had the chance to meet Tim Reinbott at a conference and learned that his…Read more about Passive Solar Greenhouses[Read More]
The Summer School for Consumer Food Safety Education is an annual program that conducts continual consumer food safety training for educators and extension volunteers through expert-led presentations. This program serves as a platform to convey updated research information on current trending consumer food safety topics and helps participants gain a better understanding of the food…Read more about Application of GMPs for the Cottage Food Industry: Learnings From the Consumer Food Safety Education Webinar Series[Read More]
College of Agriculture Press Release – February 13, 2025 Whether it’s called sustainable, regenerative or resilient agriculture, farmers across Indiana are exploring how to be effective stewards of the land while meeting food demands for the growing global population. Exploring these ideas, Purdue University’s College of Agriculture, in partnership with the Indiana Corn Marketing Council and…Read more about Purdue University to Host Inaugural Resilient Agriculture Summit[Read More]
Since 2013, the Indiana Small Farm Conference has been the premier annual event for Indiana’s small and diversified farm community – helping them experience continuing education and enjoy farmer-to-farmer networking. The Indiana Small Farm Conference is the annual educational and farmer-to-farmer networking event for the Indiana small and diversified farm community. It was developed in…Read more about Indiana Small Farms Conference – March 4-5, 2025[Read More]
Dear Valued VCH Readers, Welcome to the first edition of the 2025 Vegetable Crops Hotline newsletter! As we begin this new growing season, I’m excited to continue our tradition of providing timely, research-based information to support Indiana’s vegetable-growing community. Our mission remains steadfast: to deliver crucial updates on pest management, production practices, food safety, and…Read more about From The Editor’s Desk[Read More]
As I sit by the window watching the snow fall, I can’t help but think about what’s on the minds of many high tunnel farmers right now: Can my tunnels withstand the snow? It’s a concern I haven’t faced in recent years, but this winter feels uncertain. As you can imagine, ensuring the safety of…Read more about Ready for the Snow, Resources for Tunnel Growers[Read More]
Two USDA programs that provide payments to vegetable, fruit, and other specialty crop farmers have January deadlines. The FSA Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops (MASC) application deadline is January 8, 2025. Payments are based on your specialty crop sales for 2023 or 2024, or for new producers, expected sales in 2025. See the fact sheet…Read more about January Deadlines for Two USDA Specialty Crop Programs[Read More]