Press Releases

COLFAX – You can find homegrown happiness in a slice of N.C. watermelon. To celebrate this favorite summertime fruit, the Robert G.

Nothing says summer like North Carolina- grown watermelons, and you’re invited to taste the freshness for yourself during Watermelon Day, Sunday, July 6, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market.

The N.C. Forest Service will begin accepting orders Tuesday, July 1, for its annual tree seedling sale. With an average annual production of 10 million seedlings, the NCFS Nursery Program produces enough native and genetically improved tree seedlings to plant roughly 18,700 acres of land.

RALEIGH – Round up your friends and family to kick off the weekend with food trucks and fun for all ages at the Fourth of July Food Truck Rodeo at the State Farmers Market in Raleigh. The event will take place from 4 to 9 p.m. on Friday, July 4, and feature some of the Triangle’s top food trucks.

RALEIGH – North Carolina’s peach season is arriving a bit earlier than expected this year, with growers across the state beginning to harvest a bumper crop of high-quality fruit. A stretch of warmer-than-average temperatures has advanced the growing timeline, making fresh peaches available to consumers ahead of their normal mid-July peak.

RALEIGH – The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has confirmed an established presence of the invasive spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) in Caldwell County. Initial surveys indicate that the distribution of the pest is concentrated in Lenoir within a 1-mile area. Survey efforts are ongoing.

RALEIGH – The N.C. Pesticide Board recently approved the following settlement agreements. Settlements involved cases of pesticide applications without a license and improper application and storage of pesticides in Edgecombe, Lenoir, Union and Wake counties.Settlements are listed by county below:

WHO/WHAT: The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Standards Division will hold a public hearing to hear any concerns regarding the recently proposed changes to the rules in Chapter 42 of the North Carolina Administrative Code. The proposed amendment currently being considered removes 02 NCAC 42.0201(b)4 to align the state’s required gasoline volatility specifications with those in the current version of American Society for Testing and Materials test method D4814-24a.  

The N.C. Forest Service has confirmed that laurel wilt, a devastating disease of redbay and other plants in the laurel family, has been detected on private property in Beaufort and Greene counties, bringing the number of counties where the tree-killing disease has been detected to 21.Sassafras, redbay, swampbay, pondberry, pondspice and spicebush are in the laurel family and can be affected by this disease. Redbay trees infected with laurel wilt retain their leaves even after the tree has died allowing for easier detection during the winter months.

WHO/WHAT:The North Carolina Sentinel Landscape Committee will hold a meeting to hear committee member reports pertaining to Sentinel Landscape activities, a partner highlight on other Sentinel Landscape programs and any other Sentinel Landscape business.    WHEN:Tuesday, June 9