“The [pecan tree] branches are at the heaviest” said one South Georgia grower. The Georgia Pecan crop is nearly ready for harvest, but not quite ready to be removed from the tree. The high winds from tropical storm Irma came at the most unfavorable time. The braches of most pecan trees are loaded and sagging with almost ripe pecans. The Georgia pecan harvest is less than 30 days from beginning, but after the damaging high winds of tropical storm Irma, many growers may be still cleaning up down trees and limbs before they can begin harvest this year.

The major question on everyone’s mind is just how much crop was lost. The high winds of Irma caused a lot of damage in pecan orchards across the state. With Georgia being the largest pecan producing state in the US, the entire country is waiting to see the extent of the crop damage. The Stuart (STU) and Desirable (DES) pecan crop come largely from the Georgia and Alabama region where hurricane IRMA winds had damaging effects. Most buyers in the region have halted trading of Stuart and Desirable in the preseason market until the extent of the damage can be assessed.