Reducing the wildfire risk around your farm or acreage

Apr 01, 2025

FireSmart is a program that gives you information and recommendations on how to reduce the risk of a wildfire damaging your home or other buildings. The FireSmart program is supported by many community fire departments as an education and prevention tool for fire prevention/damage reduction.

For example, the Vulcan County Protective Services department has summarized some key aspects of wildfire risk reduction into the following checklist. To minimize the risk to your home and property, follow these best practices:

Keep your lawn mowed as short as possible at least 5 ft (1.5 m) from your home and around all other buildings.
Reduce the amount of brush and trees close to your home, choose wildfire-resistant plants whenever possible, and space them out.
Clear all combustible material, including wood piles, away from your home. Keep these materials no closer than 30 ft (10 m) from your home and other buildings.
Clear and maintain your eavestrough and roof regularly. Remove debris like dry leaves and twigs to prevent sparks from catching.
Trim the low branches of trees to a height of 6 ft (2 m) from the ground to help reduce the risk of your trees igniting.

Click here to see more...

Video: Dicamba Returns for Georgia Farmers: What the New EPA Ruling Means for Cotton Growers

After being unavailable in 2024 due to registration issues, dicamba products are returning for Georgia farmers this growing season — but under strict new conditions.

In this report from Tifton, Extension Weed Specialist Stanley Culpepper explains the updated EPA ruling, including new application limits, mandatory training requirements, and the need for a restricted use pesticide license. Among the key changes: a cap of two ½-pound applications per year and the required use of an approved volatility reduction agent with every application.

For Georgia cotton producers, the ruling is significant. According to Taylor Sills with the Georgia Cotton Commission, the vast majority of cotton planted in the state carries the dicamba-tolerant trait — meaning farmers had been paying for technology they couldn’t use.

While environmental groups have expressed concerns over spray drift, Georgia growers have reduced off-target pesticide movement by more than 91% over the past decade. Still, this two-year registration period will come with increased scrutiny, making stewardship and compliance more important than ever.