Tropical Storm Irma takes bite of Georgia pecan crop

As much as 30 percent of Georgia's pecan crop was wiped out by Tropical Storm Irma this week, state and federal officials said at a Friday news conference.

USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue and Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black were joined by U.S. congressmen Sanford Bishop and Austin Scott for the news conference at Mason Pecan Farms. Dozens of news outlets from around the state gathered among the downed pecan trees on the farm near the airport in Houston County.

Mason Pecan Farms is one of several orchards the group is set to visit to survey damage Friday afternoon.

Georgia is the No. 1 producer of pecans in America.

The trees begin producing nuts after a decade of maturity.

For more on this story, return to macon.com and read Saturday's Telegraph.

This story was originally published September 15, 2017 at 2:15 PM with the headline "Tropical Storm Irma takes bite of Georgia pecan crop."