Sun World International and Washington State University have joined forces to develop a new generation of high-flavor sweet cherries that ripen earlier and are more practical to grow.

Horticulture associate professor and stone fruit breeder, Per McCord, and Sun World scientists are sharing germplasm from promising cherry varieties under a new research collaboration launched this spring.

There were a few cold nights in the blueberry capital of the world, but New Jersey blueberries are ripe and ready to start harvesting. Our growers are expecting a full, robust crop of the berries customers crave.

Consumers wait for blueberries from the Garden State all year long because they know Jersey Fresh blueberries will provide the flavor and size they desire.

Jersey Fresh blueberries will be ready for shelves the week of June 13th and remain as the bigger, better more flavorful berries.

At the heart of Westerlay Orchids is the Overgaag family, horticulturists with a rich history that goes back generations to the greenhouses of Holland. It’s also the story of a father passing down a farming legacy to his son. Westerlay started with founder Joop “Joe” Overgaag, a greenhouse farmer in the Netherlands who immigrated to Carpinteria, California (with his wife and four children) in 1978. Now, his original Westerlay Roses farm has grown to 800,000 square feet on several coastal Santa Barbara properties, growing four million orchids a year.

Founded in 1946, FloraCraft has grown from a small business in Ludington, Michigan, to a leader in the craft and floral industries with more than 250 employees who provide American-made products to Walmart, Amazon, Michaels, JOANN, Hobby Lobby, and other leading retailers. Headquartered in Ludington, the company also has facilities in Pomona, California, and Celaya, Mexico.

The Hawai`i Department of Agriculture (HDOA) Market Development Branch is currently accepting applications for the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) Fiscal Year 2021 – COVID. The HDOA will be awarding $500,000 to Hawai`i proposals that enhance the competitiveness of Hawai`i specialty crops. This additional funding was provided by the U.S. Congress due to COVID-19 impacts on the food system. Under the program, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) allocated funding to each state based on the value of the specialty crops produced in the state.

The number of floriculture producers and total sales were up in 2021, according to data released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.