The Voice of Agriculture

August | 2014The Official Publication of the Dade County Farm Bureau

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dade-agriculture.org

Margie Pikarsky: Bee Heaven Farm

One step into Bee Heaven Farm and you can feel the small-farm charm. An array of all sorts of interesting trees and plants populate the 5 acre farm and just by driving down the driveway you can spot dozens of different fruit trees growing. At the end of the dirt road sits a partly solar powered metal warehouse where employees can be found repurposing ripened banana into dehydrated banana chips for the upcoming farmer’s market. Bee Heaven Farm is an organic, pesticide free, sustainable farm run by long-time agriculturalist, Margie Pikarsky. Margie Pikarsky was born in Cuba but frequently visited family in the United States as a child. She and her parents, Margarita and Bernardo, moved to

Dade County Farm Bureau1850 Old Dixie Highway

Homestead, Fl 33033www.dade-agriculture.org

Phone (305)246-5514 Fax (305)245-9170

the United States when she was 8 years old. It seems as though agriculture is in Margie’s blood. Her parents, while they weren’t full-time growers, were heavily involved in agriculture. Between tending a garden, grafting tropical fruit trees, and raising cattle. The family had a farm outside of the city that they would visit every chance they had. After Margie received her degree in Biology from the University of Miami, she thought she would get into field biology but her passion for agriculture led her down another path. Though she maintained a job at the UM Medical School until 2000, she always tended to her 5 acre avocado grove she purchased with her husband, Nick in 1995. After she left her job at the university she began farming full time in 2000. Pikarsky began growing vegetables along with avocados and started selling the produce at farmer’s markets and

By: Sonia Colon

Features and Publisher’s Note

Publisher’s Note

The Voice of Agriculture is the quarterly publication of the Dade County Farm Bureau, Miami-Dade County’s oldest and largest agricultural organization. The Farm Bureau was established in 1942 to collectively solve agricultural issues in the regulatory, legislative, economic and social arena. For advertising or membership information please contact Debbie Brady at (305) 246-5514.

DCFB Executive Director, Debbie Brady photograghed with the panel from the USDA Growth and Opportunity summit with Congressman Joe Garcia

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IssueIN THIS

1 Grower Highlight: Margie

Pikarsky, Bee Heaven Farm

2 Features and Publisher’s

Note

3 President’s Message

4 Cover Story: Bee Heaven

Farm

5 Bee Heaven Farm

6 Steve Greer: Ag Leadership

Program

7 Youth Speech Contest

8 South Dade Water Issues

9 Laurel Wilt in Avocados

14 Community Corner

President’s Message

To all of our members,

During the past year I have proudly promoted agriculture in my community by serving as the President on the Dade County Farm Bureau board of directors. It has had some challenges along the way and water and labor are still at the top of our priority list. The agencies that govern don’t always have the correct information and it is our job to make sure that we continue our communication, education and advocacy for the agricultural industry.

Dade County Farm Bureau had a strong presence at many events this year. Board members and staff attended events in Tallahassee and Washington DC to speak with legislators about different issues and bills concerning agriculture. The Farm Bill passed after five years of segregation by both parties. In July we attended the Growth & Opportunity Summit for Agricultural Leaders in South Florida. The event was at Miami Dade College quest speakers included Congressman Joe Garcia, USDA Deputy Assistant Frederick Pfaeffle, County Agricultural Manager, Charles La Pradd, Rick Dantzler, USDA Farm Service Agency, Christine Coffin, USDA NRCS, Richard Machek, Rural Development and Omar Gonzalez, International Trade. The purpose of this summit was to showcase the programs that

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will benefit growers that are a direct result of the Farm Bill. In October USDA will host an informational workshop on each of the new programs, stay tuned.

The Miami Dade County Extension celebrated the 100th anniversary of serving the agricultural community. The celebration included a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new South Miami-Dade Tropical Agricultural Visitor Center. This is a partnership with the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau. During the year millions of visitors come to Miami Dade County each year and we hope this partnership will increase the visitors in our area and they will take advantage of the Agritourism in South Dade County. The economic impact will be welcomed by all. If you are interested in learning how you can partner, showcase or advertise your farm or business please contact our office at 305-246-5514.

As President, I can’t take credit for all these accomplishments. The Dade County Farm Bureau has many volunteers and we would not accomplish all that we do without their help. Our Women’s Committee/Public Relations, Chairwoman Carol Harris and the committee members work many hours during the year to promote the Youth Speech Contest, Buy Local Campaign, Thanksgiving baskets, Farmworker children’s toy drive, Ag Literacy Day, AGITC Teacher workshops, Farm Tours, etc. The South Dade High Future Farmers of America (FFA) Students volunteer many hours for the events we host like Grow Fest, Miami International Agriculture Cattle and Horse Show, Howdy Days at the Fair, Annual BBQ, etc. If you have that volunteer spirit and would like to learn more about participating please contact Debbie Brady, Executive Director, debbie.brady@ffbic.com.

Our Board of Directors is very diverse and they bring their own leadership and creativity to the table. Their volunteer spirit is to be commended.

Thank you all for your contributions which helped make this year a successful one for our organization.

Please make plans to attend our 72nd Annual Meeting on Tuesday, October 7 at 12:00 p.m. at Redland Golf and Country Club. This year we will be honoring the Finocchiaro and Talarico Families for their many years of contribution to our agricultural industry. We hope that you all will make plans to join us!

Sincerely,

George ButlerPresident

Margie Pikarsky4

(continued from front page) produce at farmer’s markets and never looked back.

Bee Heaven Farm got its start selling organic produce at local farmers markets. “We started with a small table and a couple of boxes. We now have four tents and still overflow,” said Margie. “I insist that we only have local, organic, pesticide free, products available for sale.” Pikarsky and her team work hard to provide organic produce for the market. She makes the most of every inch of her 5-acre farm. She inserts crops between tropical fruit tree rows and other planting areas tucked between trees. She also raises certified organic eggs .

Margie Pikarasky started the Bee Heaven Farm CSA (community supported agriculture) in 2001. The CSA provides organic, local produce for families who buy shares upfront in return for weekly selections of produce during the

growing season. Bee Heaven Farm CSA started with feeding 30 families in its first season. Margie partnered with other local, organic growers and formed a group called Redland Organics. The growers of Redland Organics contribute to the CSA boxes to ensure a diverse selection of local, organically grown produce. The CSA has grown to feed over 700 people and counting.

Margie Pikarsky was growing organically before it became a trend. In college she specialized in ecology and botany which peaked her interest.

“When I bought our property, from the beginning, I didn’t want to use pesticides. I wanted my daughter to be able to play outside anywhere she

wanted.” Pikarsky said, “I wouldn’t want to provide food for people I wouldn’t ingest myself.” It was a struggle in the beginning as there was not much research at the time on how to successfully have a solely organic growing operation but with the help of UF/IFAS Extension center and getting creative with ways to ward off pests, Margie succeeded.

‘ I wouldn’t want to provide food for people I wouldn’t

ingest myself’

Bee Heaven Farm5

(continued from page 4) “Now organic growing is looked at as a money machine. Sadly, because it is looked at as a marketing tool these days the organic standard is glossed over and there is fraud. There is a misunderstanding as to what term ‘organic’ means,” Margie said.

But Margie understands exactly what it is to grow organic. Her background in biology helps her determine the definition of organic along with the USDA organic seal. “We do not use any GMO seeds or products. We do not utilize any sewage sludge or any byproducts. Seeds and plant sources must be certified organic or an untreated organic equivalent,” Margie said, “Our growing operation is treated as a complete system. We are trying actively to nourish the environment and build up the soil health from which plant health will follow.”

Margie Pikarsky and the team at Bee Heaven Farm work hard using several different organic growing methods to grow quality produce for consumers. The job might get a little bit easier as the farm will be getting a new addition this growing season, a solar green house. The solar green house will be a big step up from the overflowing almost closest like

greenhouse Margie has made do with all these years. It’s an improvement that opens opportunities for different growing methods like aquaponics and raised beds.

“This creates opportunity to extend our season and makes it so I can open the farm to the public,” Margie said of her new endeavor. With the help of crowd funding, the green house is set for a grand opening of mid-October.

Bee Heaven Farm, which started out as a hobby for Margie Pikarsky, has turned into one of the most reputable organic growing operations in South Florida. It is no doubt that her passion for what she does is the reason behind her success. With the opening of the new green house and Margie’s enthusiasm, it seems the Bee Heaven Farm train is full steam ahead and ready for another great season.

Steve Greer Chosen for Agriscience Leadership Program6

South Dade High School Agriscience teacher, Steven Greer was chosen to be a part of the Florida Department of Agriculture Agriscience Leadership Program for 2014-2015 school year. The Agriscience Education Leadership Program helps agriscience teachers, science teachers and administrators improve their agriscience programs to provide quality agricultural education for students. This program allows participants to expand their curric-ulum to include all components of agriculture and helps lay a strong foundation that students can build on.

The participants travel four times throughout the year to various areas of the state to focus on diverse aspects of agriculture, including forestry, fruits and vegetables, row crops, nursery and landscape, livestock, aquaculture and more. The program offers many opportunities to ed-ucators including engaging in leadership development, touring agricultural operations, meeting with industry representatives, and gaining a better understanding of Florida’s natural resources by examining environmental opportunities.

Steven Greer was selected from a pool of highly quali-fied candidates to be a part of this team. Greer gradu-ated from South Dade in 1998 and UCF in 2002 with a Bachelors of Science degree. He is a 4th generation Homestead resident whose family has been involved with both nursery and vegetable production operations for many years.

The South Dade High Agriscience program had a busy 2013–2014 school year. A few of their successes include collecting over 2,500 pounds of food for the Homestead Soup Kitchen during the holiday food drive and students winning speech contests on the district and state level. Steve Greer’s students produced over 10,000 pounds of green beans, eggplant, tomatoes, squash, zucchini, and other vegetables that were sold locally and throughout the Southeast United States. Many seniors in the program went on to receive scholarships and internships to colleges like University of Hawaii and University of Illinois.

Steve Greer has even bigger plans for his students this upcoming school year. He wants to help students expand the South Dade High Farmers Market, held most Saturdays during the school year at South Dade High, to some local venues around the community. Last year was the first time the South Dade FFA started selling their produce on Satur-days in front of the school. It was a great success and the proceeds went back into the agriscience program.

“We are hoping to expand our community outreach dur-ing Ag Literacy Day and FFA Week. We will continue the traditions of student raised produce and FFA competitions in public speaking,” Greer said of the school year to come.

By: Sonia Colon

Youth Speech Contest 7

Each year, the Florida Farm Bureau Federa-tion’s Women’s Leadership Program spon-sors a statewide Youth Speech Contest. The contest has three levels of competition: county, district, and state. The winner of the county contest competes in a district con-test and the district winner then competes in the state competition against the other seven district winners. The state contest is then held at Florida Farm Bureau Federa-tion’s Annual Meeting.

Dade County Farm Bureau would like to announce our 2014 County Youth Speech Contest to be held on Thursday, September 4, 2014 at 6:00pm at the Dade County Farm Bureau office. The topic for this year’s con-test is:

“Food security is an important issue to the people of the United States. How can Flor-ida Agriculture continue to provide quality solutions for the future?”

Participants will present a 5 minute speech on the topic to a panel of three judges. After the presentations, contestants will answer impromptu questions from the judges. The purpose of this contest is to promote a stronger interest and clearer understand-ing of the many aspects of agriculture; to provide opportunities for our youth to gainknowledge, appreciation, and understand-ing of agriculture; and help to promote ag-riculture’s many values and virtues.

The Florida Farm Bureau Federation’s Youth Speech Contest is open to any student who is at least 14 years of age, and not over 18 years of age September 19, 2014 (not hav-

ing reached their 19th birthday). Students must be a resident in the county of the sponsoring county Farm Bureau.

Membership in the county Farm Bureau is not a re-quirement; however, it is encouraged. Contestants must display a positive attitude about agriculture.

Please e-mail applications to DCFB by Thursday, September 4, 2014 T 3:00 pm to sonia.colon@ffbic.com. We would like to encourage all agri-science students to participate.

To access application and for more information about the contest please visit: http://www.floridafarmbureau.org/programs/youth_speech_contest.

2013 DCFB Youth Speech Contest winner, Teresa Suits

South Dade Water Meeting8

the government’s attention on the flooding problems on our agricultural land. Both were well attended by the Corps of Engineers and the SFWMD. In addition, our state Representative Holly Raschein and Con-gressman Joe Garcia attended both meetings, along with Charles LaPradd from the Mayor’s office, and all were quite vocal in advocating for some relief. The Corps has not made a final decision yet but it is likely we will see changes in operations soon to avoid the serious problems we experienced last year,” said Tom MacVicar of MacVicar consulting.

A follow up water meeting was held at the UF/IFAS Exten-sion Center on August 22, 2014 regarding the water issues plaguing the growers of South Dade. The Army Corp of Engineers and South Florida Water Management District led the meeting to answer the lingering questions about how the high water table in South Dade will be dealt with. Congressman Joe Garcia and Representative Holly Rashein were in attendance along with several concerned Dade County Farm Bureau members and growers.

The Army Corp of Engineers assured the audience that a solution for the water problem was being looked into but immediate action could not be taken due to their regula-tions and procedures. A certain amount of research must be done before they act.

The problem growers are facing is that they are planning for this season and do not feel confident putting anything in the ground until action has been taken. Last growing season many growers took a hit as a result of the high water table. One possible solution would be to open the S-197 but the Army Corp of Engineers and the SFWMD are looking into that solution and other possible solutions.

“The meeting Friday was the second of two very produc-tive public meeting hosted by the Farm Bureau to focus

(Left) Congressman Joe Garcia addresses the crowd (Right) The excess water had an adverse effect on crops last season

By: Sonia Colon

9Laurel Wilt in Avocados8

Symptoms of the disease in avocados include large areas of the tree’s upper canopy rapidly wilting and turning brown. The leaves die so quickly that they remain on the tree and are unable to fall. The state of the battle against laurel wilt is in con-stant flux. Current recommendations are evolving rapidly as we gain more knowledge. For the latest information on laurel wilt, please contact your local extension agent.

Laurel wilt continues to advance and new strategies are necessary to lessen the economic blow of the continued loss of trees due to this disease. Current methods being assessed for the future include the use of detector dogs and or drones to scout for the disease, using spectral cameras to locate positive trees before they show visible symptoms, looking at cultural care and its role in the spread of the dis-ease, genetic resistance, and using traps and baits in combination to thwart the movement of the bee-tles. Aerial helicopter surveys are already currently being used to locate infected trees to locate symp-tomatic trees.

A battle is being waged in the avocado groves of South Florida where the region’s largest and most economically important fruit crop is under attack. Avocados are produced on approximately 7500 acres in Miami-Dade County and have an economic impact of $54 million to the regional economy. The avocado industry has already lost over 2500 trees due to laurel wilt since the introduction of the dis-ease to Miami- Dade County in 2011. Laurel wilt is a disease that affects plants in the Lauraceae causing rapid wilt and sudden death. It is caused by a fungus ( Raffaelea lauricola ) that was accidentally introduced, along with its original vector, the redbay ambrosia beetle ( Xyleborus gla-bratus) to the United States in May of 2002 in Port Wentworth, Georgia.

Trees become infected with laurel wilt when female ambrosia beetles carrying the disease bore into a host avocado tree. The female beetles then hollow out a small gallery to lay eggs and “farm” the fungus as a source of food for their young. Once infected, the tree begins to wall off its vascular tissue as a de-fensive mechanism. This unfortunate strategy effec-tively interrupts all water and nutrient transport in the phloem of the infected areas and causes rapid mortality of the infected tree.

While it was originally thought that the redbay am-brosia beetle was the only vector of this disease, it is now known that there are currently six ambrosia beetles, in addition to the redbay ambrosia beetle, that are known to carry a sufficient quantity of Raf-faelea lauricola to infect native species in the Lau-reace. Two of those species are known to cause infection in avocado. It is not known how much of a role the additional ambrosia beetle vectors play in the spread of the disease. It is important to note that redbay ambrosia beetles will bore into healthy trees while the existing native and exotic ambrosia beetles typically bore into weak or damaged trees.

By Jeff Wasielewski , Commercial Tropical Fruit Agent

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Community Corner 1414

Events Calendar

August 1-30, 2014DCFB Membership Drive Contest

September 4, 2014DCFB Youth Speech Contest

September 6, 2014Cooking with Jackfruit

Fruit and Spice Park

September 5-6 2014Farm Bureau District 8 Meeting

DCFB Annual MeetingOctober 7, 2014

Redland Golf and Country Club

Visit dade-agriculture.org for allcalender events

(Above) The New Homestead City Hall Ground-breaking took place on Thursday, August 21, 2014. Business owners, residents, and community leaders gathered to witness the City of Home-stead Mayor and Council officially break ground on Homestead’s new City Hall.

(Below) Commissioner Bell, Commissioner Moss and Mayor Por-ter along with the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau cut the ribbon to celebrate the new South Dade Tropical Visitor Center within the Extension Office. The event was also a celebra-tion of the 100th Anniversary of the UF/IFAS Extension Center.

Board of Directors 15

George Butler, III, PresidentIvonne Alexander, President Elect

Phil Marraccini, SecretaryKelvin Moreno, Treasurer

Gary BirdRobbie Bishop

Teena BorekKern Carpenter

Leonard CavallaroAngela DelliVeneri

Larry Dunagan, Past PresidentRobert Epling

Sal FinocchiaroJerry Frye

Steve GreerDavid HanckCarol Harris

Jeffrey DeMottSteve Hoveland

David KaplanBill Losner

Robert MartensRobert McMillan

Steven MeeksRobert Moehling

Herb PiersonTom Rieder

Diego RodriguezPeter Schnebly

Erik TietigTom Vick

Mark Wilson, State DirectorGeorge Cooper, Director EmeritusJohn Fredrick, Director Emeritus

Kenneth Graves, Director EmeritusVito Strano, Director Emeritus

Dade County Farm Bureau

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Ray N. Timmons, Agency Manager Debbie Brady, Executive Director Hal Arve, Jr., Agent Donna Alfaro, Receptionist Dawn L. Baird, Agent Hilda G. Davila, CSR Judith M. Fernandez, Office Manager Eddy Munoz, Agent Ronald D. Herbert, Agent Ray Timmons Jr, Agent Elena Serna, CSR Sonia Colon, Executive Assistant

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