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Water and Drought

Crop Insurance Educational Program

The 2007 spring planting season for cotton and peanuts in south Georgia was the driest on record. Producers faced with this unprecedented dilemma and lacking a thorough understanding of Federal Crop Insurance compliance as it related to acceptable practices and prevented planting were desperate for information. The UGA Cooperative Extension agent in Colquitt County collaborated with the Extension agronomist and the UGA Cotton Team to develop education information and recommendations to meet the crisis. The agent implemented educational programming on these agronomic recommendations and insurance regulations. Additional information was presented on planting deadline options, herbicide use and expectations in drought conditions and reasonable approaches to least cost planting in drought conditions. Fourteen on-farm sessions were conducted to aid producers in preparing their prevented planting documentation. The Federal Crop Insurance agent said, “Federal Crop Insurance could not have adequately assisted growers without the help of UGA Extension and their development of reasonable approaches to planting guidelines … the effort they put forth in an urgent and extremely short period was invaluable to both growers and Federal Crop.” Ninety-three producers attended the meetings and were trained in compliance standards for crop insurance filing under severe drought conditions following both Federal Crop and UGA guidelines. The agent assisted 15 producers in complying with their prevented planting documentation for prevented planting filing for a total dollar impact on their farms of more than $301,000. (2007)

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