Soybean rust: frost hits Florida's kudzu belt

The following was posted today on the USDA soybean rust web site:

Florida had a frost thorughout the panhandle Feb. 19.

Saturday, Feb. 17, Florida was hit with a more severe cold front that the rest of the eastern U.S. has had. The Panhandle of Florida had temperatures below freezing for several hours, dipping to the teens in many areas. Freezing temperatures extended to south of Lake Okeechobee, basically encompassing the entire kudzu infested area of Florida.

Surveys will determine how much the kudzu was affected. Undoubtedly the kudzu leaves will be lost; we will not know if the vines were also burned back for another few weeks. North Florida is forecast for high's in the 70's next week. If the vines survive they will be pushing new leaves. If not, the kudzu will have to resprout from its roots.

For detailed information on Florida weather visit the UF weather site at http://fawn.ifas.ufl.edu/. This is a network of automated weather stations throughout Florida originally designed specifically for frost prediction.

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