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NEW PORT RICHEY — Every morning, before he heads off to work, Del deChant ventures to the garden across the street from his home on Illinois Avenue to see what’s ripe for picking. With the summer heat and all the recent rain, it’s become unwieldy — a mixture of "on the way out" and "things to come," along with a fair amount of okra to harvest. Lately, deChant has been fetching about two pounds a day from the 1/5-acre plot, during what he figures is the height of this year’s okra season. Okra is one of the few vegetables that grows during Florida’s hot summer months, he said. With three varieties— Red Burgundy, Hill Country Red and Silver Queen — planted intermittently amid the sweet potato runners, he should be harvesting well into October."They produce at an incredible pace," said deChant, who serves as chairman of the New Port Richey Environmental Committee and is chair of the Religious Studies department at the University of South … [Read more...] about Local growers celebrate summer okra harvest

News4Jax.com is Jacksonville's No. 1 local source for news, weather, sports and local events on desktops and mobile devices, but the digital team at WJXT also has a suite of apps for your Apple or Android smart phone or tablet. And they're all free. News4Jax wherever you are Our tens of thousands of people get their news each day via the News4Jax app. Not only does it bring up all the latest content with one touch, but you can also enable push notifications to get an alert when there's a big news story, major traffic incident or weather warning. You can check the forecast or current radar, use the interactive traffic map, even watch any Channel 4 newscast or breaking news coverage on your device, from The Morning Show to the Ten O'Clock News. Search WJXT in the app store or download now: iPhone | Android Weather, hurricanes and your photos/video Download user-friendly Weather Authority app from WJXT to your smartphone and never be without the latest weather information. Our main … [Read more...] about WJXT apps deliver local news, weather, sports

Brad Harper Montgomery Advertiser Published 2:54 p.m. UTC Jul 29, 2018 SweetCreek Farm Market didn’t take long to grow some customer loyalty. Reed and Karen Ingram opened the restaurant on U.S. 231 in Pike Road less than two years ago, and it’s now bustling with business. And Montgomery Advertiser readers just voted it as one of the best places to eat in the county. SPECIAL SECTION: Complete listings of all winners Reed Ingram said the staff works hard to be consistent in serving up good food and good service. But he said its loyal regulars deserve the credit. He estimated that about 90 percent of the business comes from repeat customers. “I really appreciate them,” he said. Readers chose SweetCreek as the best barbecue, best dessert, best frozen treat and best take-out in Montgomery County in the Best of the Best Awards, an annual online vote. There were more than 100,000 votes cast in June and July for everything from best hospital to best paint store, … [Read more...] about Readers pick ‘Best of the Best’ among local food, services

A member of the Republican State Executive Committee says he was forced to cast a provisional ballot in last week’s runoff election after the Mobile County Board of Registrars erroneously marked him as having voted in the Democratic primary on June 5. “When I showed them my ID, [a poll worker] said: ‘You can’t vote. You’re are down here as voting in the Democratic primary.’ I said, ‘You gotta be kidding me,’” Austin L. Rainwaters told Lagniappe. “Most folks in the room started laughing because they knew better than that.” Rainwaters also knew there had to have been some mistake. Not only was his name on the June 5 Republican primary ballot, but he and pretty much all of his family are longtime GOP supporters. Including his campaign for a seat on the state committee, Rainwaters has run as a Republican in four local elections since 1994. Yet, there on the books last Tuesday — plain as day — Rainwaters and … [Read more...] about Issues with crossover voting ban reported locally