Fruit & Vegetable Production

Areas of Support to Stakeholders

• Crop Production
• Irrigation and Fertility Management
• Pest and Disease Identification
• Integrated Pest Management
• Pesticide Use and Safety
• Plant Health Monitoring
• Precision Agriculture

Strawberry Production

Florida is the winter strawberry capital of the US with over 13,500 acres grown. Strawberry production accounted for 511 million dollars in 2022 as the second highest value of agriculture production in Florida. Hillsborough County is the lead producer of strawberries in the state with an estimated 11,300 acres and it's the third largest contributor of food and related market services in Florida with an estimated value of $448 million in 2023.

Blueberry Production

Blueberry production in Central Florida is a relatively small but growing industry. In Hillsborough County, there are approximately 920 acres of grown blueberries out of 11,000 acres in Florida.

Most blueberry farms in this area range from one to five acres in size. Blueberries are grown either in the ground or in containers filled with a peat/pine bark combination as all or part of the media. Blueberries are harvested in March and April, a period in which Florida is the primary producer of blueberries in the world. Blueberries from Florida are air freighted as far away as Japan and Europe to meet the market's needs. Because Florida blueberries are harvested during this marketing window, growers can receive good prices for their blueberries.

Pesticide Licensing Resources:

• Which Pesticide License Do I need?
• Online Education (self-paced)
• Florida Pesticide Certification Exams
• Florida Pesticide Applicator Certification Continuing Education Units (CEU) Database

Fact Sheets

• Cover Crops...Nematode Management
• A Startup Guide for Drones in Ag
• Temperature Inversion & Pesticide Drift
• Artificial Intelligence Assisted Plant Breeding

Other Resources

• Small Fruits
• Vegetable Production
• Newsletters
• Ask IFAS: Agriculture