The focus of Microloans is on the financing needs of small, beginning farmer, niche and non-traditional farm operations, such as truck farms, farms participating in direct marketing and sales such as farmers’ markets, CSA’s (Community Supported Agriculture), restaurants and grocery stores, or those using hydroponic, aquaponic, organic and vertical growing methods.
To learn more contact your local office or USDA Service Center to learn more about the programs. You should also be able to locate a listing in the telephone directory in the section set aside for governmental/public organizations under the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Farm Service Agency. The local FSA office staffs are happy to help you and discuss our loan programs with you in more detail.
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Pruning helps to maintain a balance between vegetative and reproductive growth. If you don’t prune or prune very little, your tomato plants will produce excessive vegetative growth with reduced fruit size. Moderate pruning will leave your plants with shorter vines and larger fruit that will mature earlier.
Pruning combined with staking keeps vines and fruit off the ground, helping to control diseases. Although pruning requires some effort, the benefits of doing so are more marketable fruit, and easier harvesting.
The most common method of pruning is to prune to a two-stemmed plant by pinching off lateral branches (suckers) as they develop in the axils of each leaf. To achieve this balance, remove all the suckers up to the one immediately below the first flower cluster. A single pruning will usually be adequate, although a later pruning may be needed to remove suckers growing from the base of the plant.
Suckers should be removed when small, no more than 2 to 4 inches in length, because letting them get large wastes plant energy and provides an entry point for plant pathogens. Prune early in the morning after plants have dried.
* This is an excerpt from Business or Hobby? Active or Passive?
The deduction of expenses from an activity that is not engaged in for profit generally is limited to the amount of gross income derived from that activity. In other words, a loss from an activity that a taxpayer does not engage in for profit cannot be used to offset the other income of the taxpayer. In such a case, the taxpayer must take deductions attributable to the activity in the following order and only to the extent stated in the following three categories:
Category 1 Deductions
Deductions the taxpayer can take for personal as well as for business activities are allowed in full. For individuals, all nonbusiness deductions, such as those for home mortgage interest, taxes, and casualty losses, fall into this category.
Category 2 Deductions
Deductions that do not result in an adjustment to the basis of property are allowed next, but only to the extent the taxpayer’s gross income from the activity is more than the deductions under the first category. Most business deductions, such as those for advertising, insurance premiums, interest, utilities, and wages, fall into this category.
Category 3 Deductions
Business deductions that decrease the basis of property are allowed last, but only to the extent the gross income from the activity exceeds the taxpayer’s deductions under the first two categories. Deductions for depreciation, amortization, and the part of a casualty loss an individual could not deduct in Category 1 belong in this category (Code Sec. 183(b); Reg. Sec. 1.183-1(b)).
For individual taxpayers, these deductions may be taken only if deductions are itemized. Individuals take the Category 1 deductions on the appropriate lines of Schedule A (Form 1040). Individuals take the Category 2 and 3 deductions as miscellaneous deductions on Schedule A (Form 1040).
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*This is for information purposes only and is not a substitute for legal advice or recommendations.
*This is an excerpt from Citrus Pest Identification and Management Guide, ANR- 2270.
The most characteristic symptom of HLB is blotchy mottling that appears asymmetrically on the leaf blade. Green islands may also occur; these are small, circular, dark green dots that contrast with the light yellow/green background. Foliar symptoms that resemble nutrient deficiencies may be present. A tree may exhibit yellow shoots or other nutrient deficiency symptoms on one or more branches randomly in the canopy. Fruit may be small and lopsided or ripen backward, with the stylar end remaining green as the fruit colors.
Management tips: Citrus greening has not been found in Alabama to date. If citrus greening is suspected, contact your local diagnostic lab.
Read more about Citrus Pest Identification and Management Guide.
Download a PDF of Citrus Pest Identification and Management Guide, ANR- 2270.
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