Photos by PEDRO PORTAL pportal@miamiherald.com
John Mills, owner of Innovative Detection Concepts, and trainer Lourdes Edlin of Action Pack Performing Dogs, use their dogs Cobra, front, and Vinnie to sniff out the laurel wilt fungus and locate infected avocado trees. The dogs were being trained at the University of Florida Tropical Research and Education Center in Homestead.
Ambrosia beetles are spreading laurel wilt, a fungal virus, which is responsible for killing more than 12,000 commercial avocado trees in South Florida since 2012.
Miami Herald, Pedro Portal / pportal@elnuevoherald.com, Jul 29, 2016
Friends of our Veterans,
Redland Ahead and the Florida International University are hosting the Stars and Stripes Charity Auction where the proceeds will go to the non-profit 501(c)3 www.redlandahead.org to support the Veterans to Farmers program and to the 1916 Redland Farm Life School renovation project.
In addition to auctioning antique furniture, high quality Oriental Carpets, unique artwork and exquisite jewelry, we will also have local vendors, food trucks and a K-9 demonstration during the weekend.
See some of the inventory at the website www.auctioncompanyofamerica.com. Contact Tyra Hearns at thearns@RedlandAhead.net or text 305 992 2769.
Veterans Charity Auction July 15-17 in Redlands Florida
“Already involved with the local farm community, Bhat and Jayachandran, in collaboration with retired U.S. Army Col. John Mills, who now serves as president of non-profit Redland Ahead, debuted the Veterans and Small Farmers Outreach Program at FIU in early 2015. The initiative caters to former soldiers and new or aspiring minority farmers.”
Read more about FIU’s Veteran and Small Farmers Outreach Program.
Florida’s avocado groves are under attack
Fox News, July 2, 2015
FIU News – June 4, 2015 – Evelyn Perez
Article excerpt: “The Veteran and Small Farmers Outreach Program is a collaboration between FIU, Possum Trot, Redland Ahead, Inc., the Dade County Farm Bureau, and the Coalition of Florida Farmworkers Organizations. It is made possible by a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Advocacy and Outreach.”
Image caption: “Garfield Jarrett installs fencing in his farm operation in the Redlands, Fla. where he hopes to grow a variety of tropical crops.”
Read the entire article: http://news.fiu.edu/2015/06/farming-program-cultivates-new-opportunities-for-veterans/88699