JAN. 2, 2018
Tifton, Georgia
478-227-7126
tiftongrapevine.com
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A
Winter Storm Warning is in effect from
1 a.m.-noon Wednesday for the
Tiftarea as
snow, ice and a
wintry mix of weather is forecast for several local
counties, including Tift.
The National Weather Service says up to a
inch of
snow is possible locally, as well as
freezing rain and
sleet.
"The
winter storm is expected to impact portions of
southern Georgia and the
Florida Big Bend through
Wednesday morning," the Weather Service said. "
Plan on difficult travel conditions, including during the morning commute on Wednesday."
Because of that, several local
school systems have
cancelled classes for Wednesday, including
Tift, Turner and Ben Hill counties.
"The decision has been made to cancel school for students tomorrow, Jan. 3, 2018. All staff will be asked to report to work from noon-4 p.m.," Tift Superintendent Patrick Atwater said in a written statement Tuesday.
"While this is an experience many Northern states and counties are accustomed to, we are not adequately prepared to safely transport students in icy conditions," Atwater said.
The
University of Georgia Tifton Campus
will open late, at
noon Wednesday
, for staff and students. All campuses of
Southern Regional Technical College
will be closed. Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College's
Tifton and Moultrie campuses will have a delayed start at 1 p.m. Wednesday for staff; students don't report back until Jan. 8.
Also, the City of Tifton and Tift County offices will delay opening to 10 a.m. Wednesday because of the weather.
The
National Weather Service says there is a
30 percent chance of snow in Tifton after 2 a.m. Wednesday with a low around 26.
Snow is likely before 1 p.m., followed by freezing rain and sleet, the Weather Service reported.
Wednesday night is forecast to be c
lear with a low of about 23 degrees.
Wind chill values as low as 17 are expected.
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YMCA'S PLUNGE RAISES MORE THAN $10,000
A dozen brave souls plunged into the unheated pool at the Tiftarea YMCA on New Year's Day to raise money for charity.
The YMCA's Polar Bear Plunge this year set records for most money raised and lowest
water temperature for the annual event. More than $10,000 was
raised with Mayor Julie Smith leading the pack with more than $2,350 raised. Smith did the plunge for the Save Our Pets organization to raise funds to help build a Tifton dog park.
Each of the participants designated a different charity for their funds.
The individual raising the most funds, which was Smith, receives 100 percent of their fundraising for their charity.
All other charities represented will receive a
50 percent split with the
Tiftarea YMCA.
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We're Seeking a
Church Pianist
Tifton First United
Methodist Church
107 W 12th St., Tifton, GA
Tifton First United Methodist Church has an opening for a part-time church pianist.
The pianist is responsible for preparing for and practicing with
the chancel choir, orchestra and ensemble every Wednesday evening for about two hours and for playing at Sunday
traditional services
at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., as well as at special services at Christmas, Easter, etc.
or call
229-382-6100
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LOCAL CAR WASH FRANCHISES SOLD TO BRITISH COMPANY
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The local owner of
Goo-Goo Car Wash has sold his
five
franchise locations in Georgia and Lake City, Fla., to the international car wash company IMO.
The deal was closed in the past two weeks for IMO to purchase, from Todd Buckner of Tifton, the Goo-Goo car washes in Tifton, Cordele, Douglas, Valdosta and Lake City, reports the Financial News & Daily Record of Jacksonville, Fla.
IMO says the
locations will remain the same and that gift cards and promotions will be honored.
Professional Carwashing & Detailing reported on
carwash.com
in August that IMO Car Wash Group, a privately owned British company, had bought Goo-Goo corporate.
The Financial News & Daily Record reports
that Buckner of Tifton plans to create his own brand of car washes, named
Scrubbles, in Jacksonville.
Goo-Goo corporate had been in based in Columbus and had been operated by the same family since 1972, according to the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.
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NEW 'PAULK' MUSCADINE VARIETY
OFFERS LARGER GRAPES
The newly released University of Georgia "Paulk" muscadine offers
reliable yields for growers and
bigger fruit for consumers.
Released by
UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences plant breeder
Patrick Conner, Paulk produces significantly
larger grapes than typical muscadine varieties. Paulk is also
self-fertile, meaning it doesn't require a pollinator plant to produce fruit. Previously, only female muscadine cultivars could produce large fruit, and they needed the help of a pollinator plant to do so.
"In the past, if the grower wanted a very large
muscadine, one that's about
15 grams or so, they had to plant the female cultivars. The primary cultivar they would choose was 'Supreme,'" Conner said.
"With Paulk, this is the first time that we've seen self-fertile flowers in combination with fruit that is very large,
15-gram size."
Another important attribute of the Paulk muscadine is its ability to consistently produce
high yields.
With female cultivars, the plant's yield can vary from year to year because sometimes the flowers don't always open properly. If the flower doesn't open, it can't be
pollinated, and fruit doesn't develop.
With self-fertile flowers, nearly every flower opens and has the potential to be pollinated and produce fruit.
"It's so hard for farmers to deal with the
unknown," Conner said. "You do everything right but get a bad
pollination season and you don't have as much crop as you need. The release of
Paulk takes that year-to-year variation away so they can get the crop load they need every year."
Supreme is Georgia's top
muscadine cultivar for the fresh market, or those varieties sold to be eaten rather than for the juice market.
Paulk looks and performs very
similarly to Supreme. Conner said he hopes that
Paulk will
eventually replace Supreme.
"When it fully
ripens, it's got very good
flavor," he said. "The
vine is fairly
vigorous compared to
Supreme. Two years ago, when we were testing the two cultivars at
Paulk Vineyards, the Supreme overcropped, and we lost many of the vines over the winter.
Paulk had a similar crop load, but it came back the next year and could bear again, so it definitely is more vigorous than
Supreme."
Paulk is the
third variety Conner has released in the past five years. It follows "
Lane," which was released in
2012, and "
Hall," which was released in
2015.
"
Growers have told us they want to
replace all of their
female cultivars with
self-fertile cultivars. That's in part why we've been releasing so many in the last few years. We're trying to get a range of cultivars out there that they can do that with,"
Conner said.
The only
unknown regarding Paulk is its ability to withstand
freezing weather. Research trials are under way to test the muscadine's
cold hardiness.
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Family Promise of Tift Area will meet at
St. Anne's Episcopal Church in Tifton on
Monday, Jan. 8, at
6:30 p.m.
The
organization is working to provide aid to local
homeless families in
Tift County.
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www.tiftongrapevine.com
FRANK SAYLES JR.
Editor & Publisher
iheardit@tiftongrapevine.com
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