Agriculture in Massachusetts

As of 2012, there were 7,755 farms in Massachusetts encompassing a total of 523,517 acres (2,120 km2), averaging 67.5 acres (27.3 hectares) apiece,[1] but by 2017 this had declined somewhat again, to 7,241 farms in the state.[2] Greenhouse, floriculture, and sod products – including the ornamental market – make up more than one third of the state's agricultural output.[2][3] Cranberries, sweet corn and apples are also large sectors of production.[3] Massachusetts is the second-largest cranberry-producing (Vaccinium macrocarpon) state in the union after Wisconsin.[4] Agriculture in the state is served and represented by the Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR).

Greenhouse farming in East Lexington

Fruit cultivation is an important part of the state's agricultural revenues.[5] The UMass Extension Fruit Program provides information to support growers.[5] Strawberries suffer from Botrytis Gray Mold (Botrytis cinerea)[6] and Tarnished Plant Bug (Lygus lineolaris)[7] here, and the Extension provides data sheets for both.

The Asian long-horned beetle (ALB, Anoplophora glabripennis) was detected in Worcester in 2008 and as of April 2021 is still uneradicated.[8] An population in Boston that was detected in 2010 has since been successfully eradicated however.[8]

Flowers grown on a farm in Deerfield

Cover cropping has been successful elsewhere and can be used here.[9] Akbari et al. 2019 finds that Winter rye (Secale cereale) and Hairy vetch (Vicia villosa) are effective covers for weed control in Massachusetts.[9]

References
  1. "Number of Farms Numbers Continue Slight Rise in 2012". University of Massachusetts Amherst Center for Agriculture, Food, and the environment. Archived from the original on April 28, 2015. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
  2. "National Agricultural Statistics Service - 2017 Census of Agriculture - Volume 1, Chapter 1: State Level Data". USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. 2017. Archived from the original on 2022-07-01. Retrieved 2022-07-29.
  3. "Agricultural Resources Facts and Statistics". Massachusetts Government. Archived from the original on 2022-09-30. Retrieved 2022-09-30.
  4. "Massachusetts Cranberries" (PDF). United States Department of Agriculture. January 26, 2007. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 21, 2012. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
  5. "UMass Extension Fruit Program". UMass Extension Fruit Program. 2015-02-26. Archived from the original on 2022-07-19. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
  6. "Botrytis Gray Mold". Strawberry IPM, UMass Extension Fruit Program. 2020-07-16. Archived from the original on 2022-06-29. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
  7. "Tarnished Plant Bug". Strawberry IPM, UMass Extension Fruit Program. 2016-05-02. Archived from the original on 2022-07-09. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
  8. Branco, Sofia; Faccoli, Massimo; Brockerhoff, Eckehard; Roux, Géraldine; Jactel, Hervé; Desneux, Nicolas; Gachet, Emmanuel; Mouttet, Raphaelle; Streito, Jean; Branco, Manuela (2021). "Preventing invasions of Asian longhorn beetle and citrus longhorn beetle: are we on the right track?". Journal of Pest Science. Springer Science+Business Media. 95 (1): 41–66. doi:10.1007/s10340-021-01431-x. ISSN 1612-4758. S2CID 254186068. Archived from the original on 2022-10-22. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
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