Cooperative Extension Service
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
The University of Georgia
George
Boyhan, Extension Horticulturist-Vegetables
East Georgia Extension Center
Nessmith-Lane Building, 2nd Floor
PO Box 8112
Georgia Southern University
Statesboro, GA 30460
912-681-5639 | 912-681-0376, Fax | 912-682-3481,
mobile
The Vidalia Onion Committee held their monthly meeting on March 17 at the VOC offices. The USDA indicated the change in the assessment was listed in the Federal Register. The assessment has been changed from 0.12 per 50 pounds of onions to 0.10 per 40 pounds of onions. This reflects a half cent increase.
The members received an update on Jeff Hall's (VOC manager) itinerary for the upcoming season. He plans to be on the road quite a lot over the next month or so promoting onions. The growers were pleased and expect his efforts to improve onion sales.
Although not discussed directly at this meeting, the Georgia Department of Agriculture, in cooperation with growers, is planning on having an opening date. A 15-member panel of growers will decide what that date will be. This has been an on-going issue among the growers concerning the quality or lack of quality among early onions. It is hoped an opening date will prevent early, poor quality and immature onions from entering the market.
Acreage estimates are down from last year's high of 16,000+ acres. This year, the acres are expected to be in the 13,000-14,000 acre range. This should be good for growers, with higher prices.
Reid Torrance (Tattnall County extension agent) was at the meeting and gave an update on the Iris Yellow Spot Virus testing. The committee had funded a small study to use PCR testing to survey for this disease. In the past, ELISA testing had been used with mixed results. Plants with apparent symptoms often tested negative with ELISA. Unfortunately, the situation is not much better with PCR. Of 97 tests conducted, only 22 percent were positive for IYSV. In addition, 33 percent of the samples were positive for Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus. It is still unclear how serious this disease is in Vidalia onions. For more information, please contact Dr. David Langston, Vegetable Plant Pathologist, Tifton.
Onion bulbing is daylength sensitive. As the days begin to lengthen, onions respond by increasing in bulb diameter. Short-day onions bulb when the daylength reaches 10-12 hours, while intermediate-day onions bulb with daylengths of 12-14 hours, and long-day onions bulb with daylengths of 14-16 hours.
Vidalia onions are short-day onions and will do best at latitudes below 36 degrees. This is approximately at the northern border of Georgia. Above this latitude, onions should be planted in late winter rather than overwintered with daylengths already above 10 hours. Short-day onions at these latitudes would attempt to bulb before sufficient top growth had been established, resulting in undersized onions.
Intermediate-day onions can be grown from about 32-33 degrees latitude and above. They are generally planted in late winter for early summer harvest, but they can be overwintered in some regions. Long-day onions are usually spring planted for fall harvest. They require the longest days for bulbing and do very well at 40 degrees latitude and above. These onions generally have high solids and better storage, and are usually very pungent.
There is quite a bit of overlap in onion daylength response. Onions may be called intermediate-day onions in one region and long-day onions in another. Some onions that might be considered intermediate-day onions can be grown in the Vidalia region. Onions that are broadly adapted are often called day-neutral, although they still respond by bulbing as the days get longer. In addition, in some regions such as Washington state, they can overwinter intermediate-day onions as well as grow long-day onions from spring plantings.
The daylength response of onions has allowed them to be adapted to many parts of the world, from the tropics to the most northern latitudes. Flavor is an important component of onions and, in general, short-day onions are milder than intermediate- or long-day onions.
Our Vidalia Onion Field Day is coming up on March 31 at the Vidalia Onion and Vegetable Research Center in Lyons, Ga. Below is the agenda and the directions to the farm. If you have any questions, call me or the farm superintendent, Randy Hill (912-565-7822). Please join us and encourage your growers and other interested parties to attend. See you next week!
Vidalia Onion Field DayMarch 31, 2005 |
|
| 12 noon - 1 p.m. | Sponsored Lunch Welcome and Invocation |
| 1 p.m. - 1:20 p.m. | David Langston, Fungicide Trial and Disease Management |
| 1:25 - 1:45 p.m. | Bill Randle, Calcium Chloride Effect on Onions |
| 1:50 p.m. - 2:10 p.m. | Reid Torrance, Vidalia Onion Variety Trial |
| 2:15 p.m. - 2:35 p.m. | George Boyhan, Onion Cultural Practices |
| 2:40 p.m. - 3 p.m. | Stanley Culpepper, Onion Weed Management |
| We will be offering Certified Crop Advisor Credits and Pesticide Credits | |
| - | |
| Special Thanks to Our Sponsors |  |
| Valent Corporation Dupont/Griffin Corporation Dow AgriSciences G & C Fertilizer Company BASF Corporation Syngenta Crop Protection Bayer Crop Science |
|
Vidalia Onion and Vegetable Research Center
8163 Highway 178
Lyons, GA 30436
912-565-7822
From I-16. Get off at the Swainsboro/Lyons exit (U.S. 1) and head south on U.S. 1 to Lyons. Continue south on U.S. 1 to Hwy 178 south. Take this to Stanley Store and continue on Hwy 147. The farm is located just before the Tattnall County line. If will be on your left; there is a black and brown sign out front. Pull into the driveway for the house at the location and continue back through the gate to the farm. The house has a large U-shaped hedge in the front yard.
From Reidsville. Take Hwy 147 south toward the Georgia State Prison. You will pass the Georgia State Prison on your right and continue past Rogers Sate Prison on your left. Continue until you cross the Toombs County line. The farm will be on your right, marked by a black and brown sign. Pull into the driveway for the house at the location and continue back through the gate to the farm. The house has a large U-shaped hedge in the front yard.
From Athens. Take Hwy 15 south to Higgston and turn left on Hwy 292 to Lyons. Turn right on Hwy 178, which will turn into Hwy 147. The farm is on the left and has a black and brown sign out from. Pull into the driveway for the house and continue through the gate to the farm. The house has a large U-shaped hedge out front. If you've entered Tattnall County, you've gone too far.
Phone numbers:
George Boyhan
912-681-5639 Office
912-682-3481 MobileRandy Hill, Farm Superintendent
912-565-7822 Office
912-536-2524 Mobile