New 5-7-2020: COVID-19 response plan template and FAQ for fruit and vegetable farms from UMN; Guidelines to Exercise Essential Status for a Farmers’ Market; SBA Covid19 disaster loans for Indiana small business What is new? (5-7-2020) COVID-19 response plan template and FAQ for fruit and vegetable farms from UMN. https://blog-fruit-vegetable-ipm.extension.umn.edu/2020/04/covid-19-response-plan-template-and-faq.html This template can help you plan…Read more about COVID-19 Resources for Vegetable Growers (5/7)[Read More]
Liz Maynard
Clinical Engagement Assistant Professor of Horticulture
Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture
Liz Maynard's website
Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture
Liz Maynard's website
Employment of youth under the age of 16 to work in agriculture is regulated by Federal Wage and Hour Laws. Youth ages 14 and 15, specifically, can perform certain farm tasks, not classified as hazardous, provided the work does not interfere with school (including completing online schooling) and appropriate wages are paid. Some tasks are recognized as particularly hazardous for youth and either cannot be performed by youth under the age of 16 at any time, or only after having first received special training.
Current stay-at-home orders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic mean more children are currently on farms or more regularly working them. A silver lining of farming families spending more time together is the opportunity to educate children about the farm workplace and establish a culture of safety.
New 4-23-2020: Safety for Farm Children During COVID-19 Stay-at-Home Orders; Be Careful When Employing Youth to Do Farm Work This Spring – Know the Laws What is new? (4-23-2020) Safety for Farm Children During COVID-19 Stay-at-Home Orders https://extension.purdue.edu/INPREPared/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/COVID-and-Farm-children.docx Be Careful When Employing Youth to Do Farm Work This Spring – Know the Laws https://extension.purdue.edu/INPREPared/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Be-Careful-When-Employing-Youth-to-do-Farm-Work-–-Know-the-Laws1.docx Here…Read more about COVID-19 Resources for Vegetable Growers (4-23)[Read More]
We know from published research that the health and quality of a vegetable transplant affects how it will establish, grow, and yield in the field. Our recent work comparing tomato and cucurbit seedling growth in different organic growing media and with and without added fertilizer has provided some good examples of this. See Vegetable Crop…Read more about Vegetable Transplant Care Translates into Early Yield Differences[Read More]
Did you read this article about How Growing Media for Organic Production Compare ? Or this one about Abnormal Transplant Symptoms Might be Caused by Poor Media ? Please let us know whether they were helpful by taking a short survey here: https://purdue.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_54rCQ6xW3w7ZcXz
Growing media for organic transplant production vary a lot in their chemical composition: pH, electrical conductivity, nutrient levels, and C:N ratio. This of course influences how seedlings grow. Knowing the characteristics of growing media can help growers decide whether adding nutrients or materials to adjust pH are likely to improve seedling growth. As part of…Read more about Submit Your Organic Transplant Growing Media for Chemical Analysis[Read More]