Archives for April 2020

New Jersey Reopens State Parks and Golf Courses

Governor Murphy’s Executive Order No. 133, will be reopening state parks and golf courses, and restoring the authority of county governments to determine whether county parks will be open or closed. The order takes effect at sunrise on Saturday, May 2.

State Parks and Forests:

The order allows State parks and forests to open to the public for passive recreation, including fishing, hunting, boating, canoeing, hiking, walking, running or jogging, biking, birding, and horseback riding. Picnic areas, playgrounds, exercise stations and equipment, chartered watercraft services and rentals, swimming, pavilions, restrooms, and other buildings and facilities, such as visitor centers, interpretive centers, and interior historical sites, shall remain closed at this time. To limit physical interaction, the State parks and forests must implement reasonable restrictions that include:

• Limiting parking to 50% of maximum capacity and prohibiting parking in undesignated areas;
• Prohibiting picnics;
• Requiring social distancing to be practiced except with immediate family members, caretakers, household members, or romantic partners; and
• Banning organized or contact activities or sports; and gatherings of any kind.

The order also recommends that people wear a cloth face covering while in public settings at the parks and forests where social distancing measures are difficult to maintain.

County Parks:

The order opens county parks to the public, except any parks closed by the county prior to Executive Order No. 118 that required all county parks be closed (the county will now have the ability to reopen its parks if it chooses). This will treat county parks the same way as municipal parks – the locality gets to determine whether they are open or closed. County and municipal parks that remain open must abide by the restrictions placed on State parks in today’s Order.

All recreational campgrounds and transient camp sites at campgrounds shall remain closed to the public. Residential campgrounds, including mobile home parks, condo sites, and existing/renewing 2020 yearly seasonal contract sites may remain open. Counties and municipalities can also place restrictions on the ability of residential campgrounds, including mobile home parks, to accept new transient guests or seasonal tenants, as defined by Administrative Order Nos. 2020-08 and 2020-09.

Golf Courses:

The order also opens golf courses so long as they adopt minimum social distancing policies that include:
• Implementing electronic or telephone reservation and payment systems while still providing options for populations that do not have access to internet service or credit cards;
• Extending tee times to sixteen minutes apart;
• Limiting the use of golf carts to one person unless being shared by immediate family members, caretakers, household members, or romantic partners;
• Requiring frequent, and after each use, sanitization of high-touch areas such as restroom facilities, range buckets, golf carts, and push carts;
• Restricting the touching of golf holes and flags;
• Closing golf center buildings, pro shops, and other buildings and amenities;
• Removing bunker rakes and other furniture-like benches, water coolers, and ball washers from the course;
• Discontinuing club and equipment rentals;
• Prohibiting the use of caddies; and
• Limiting tee times to two players unless the foursome consists of immediate family, caretakers, household members or romantic partners.

The golf course may impose additional restrictions as necessary to limit person-to-person interactions. The order also recommends, but does not order, that employees, players, and other individuals on the golf course wear cloth face coverings while on the golf course. Additionally, the order clarifies that miniature golf courses and driving ranges must remain closed.

Vegetable Disease Update – 4/30/20

  • Tomato and pepper transplanting has begun in southern New Jersey. With the on and off again heavy rains we have been getting all growers should consider applying at-transplanting fungicides for root rot control. Please click here to see this article from last week.
  • Root rot in pea has been reported. Infected plants will wilt and collapse, especially in wet, low areas of the field. Look for black stem lesions at the base of the plant at the soil line. In general, Pythium infections won’t extend beyond one inch above the soil line in infected plants. Under ideal conditions a white, cottony growth may be present and is a diagnostic feature. In Pythium infected plants, the outer cortex of the root can easily be pulled off. For, more information on damping-off please click here.
  • Scouting and controlling Septoria leaf spot in parsley.
  • Bacterial leaf spot has been reported on savoy cabbage in southern New Jersey.
  • Timber rot has been reported in greenhouse pepper in southern New Jersey. For more information on white mold on tomato and pepper click here.
  • Cold weather injury has been reported in numerous vegetable crops throughout the state.
  • Bacterial leaf blight in Cilantro was reported in southern New Jersey.
  • Common leaf spot was reported in strawberry. For more information click here. Weather conditions have also been ideal for fruit rot infections. For more information on controlling fruit rots in strawberry please click here.
  • White rust and anthracnose have been reported in spinach over the past few weeks. For more information click here
  • For the updated list of fungicides for use in the control of important diseases in the greenhouse please click here.
  • Transplant producers need to remember to vent their structures to reduce relative humidity buildup going into the evenings to help reduce leaf wetness during the overnight.
  • The 2020/2021 Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations Guide is available for free online! With many county offices running reduced hours or being closed this is the easiest way to obtain the newest recommendations.
  • For a quick review on managing fungicide resistance development using tank mixes and fungicide rotations, and information on FRAC group 4, FRAC group 7, and FRAC group 3 and FRAC group 11 fungicides please click on hyperlinks.

USDA ‘Farmers to Families Food Box Program’ Info Webinar TODAY at 2pm for Farmers, Shippers, Suppliers

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) will host a webinar on Wednesday, April 29, 2020, at 2 p.m. ET, for farmers, shippers and other suppliers interested in learning more about the Farmers to Families Food Box Program. This webinar is an opportunity for these parties to learn how to supply produce, dairy and meat products to vendors supplying food boxes to non-profits and other entities feeding hungry Americans.

Register for the Webinar HERE.

Additionally, AMS, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) and the Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement (OPPE), published Frequently Asked Questions for non-profit organizations seeking to receive food through the Farmers to Families Food Box Program.

Frequently Asked Questions are answered here.

More information is available on the Farmers to Families Food Box Program webpage.

Additional questions may be submitted to USDAFoodBoxDistributionProgram@usda.gov.

SBA resumed accepting Paycheck Protection Program applications

The SBA (Small Business Administration) has resumed accepting Paycheck Protection Program applications from participating lenders on Monday, April 27, 2020 at 10:30am EDT. If you haven’t requested Small Business Administration funds, do it soon.

For Details please visit – https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/coronavirus-relief-options/paycheck-protection-program#section-header-0

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On-Farm Direct Marketing in 2020 Webinars – Every Tuesday Night in May

Rutgers Cooperative Extension Agricultural Agents are hosting a 4-parFruit standt webinar series, every Tuesday in May from 7:00-8:00PM to assist farmers with on-farm direct marketing operations to develop strategies for the 2020 season. This 4-part, weekly program will present and discuss the following topics:

Session 1 (May 5th): Maintaining Social Distancing and Safe Food Handling Practices: Guidance for Farm Markets – Wesley Kline, Ag Agent, RCE of Cumberland Co. and Meredith Melendez, Ag Agent, RCE of Mercer Co.

Session 2 (May 12th): Sales and Distribution Strategies – William Bamka, Ag Agent, RCE of Burlington Co. and Stephen Komar, Ag Agent, RCE of Sussex Co.

Session 3 (May 19th): U-Pick Operation Guidelines under COVID-19 – Meredith Melendez, Ag Agent, RCE of Mercer Co.

Session 4 (May 26th): Farmer Panel – Strategies We Are Using – (Farmers TBD) Moderators: Michelle Infante-Casella, Ag Agent, RCE of Gloucester County and Meredith Melendez, RCE of Mercer Co.

To Participate online for All 4 Events:
Use the link:  https://go.rutgers.edu/k0d59m8h

Or join by phone:
+1-650-429-3300 USA Toll
Access code: 226 795 368 # and then # again

We suggest visiting at least 15 minutes before the session start time to confirm system requirements 

For more events hosted by Rutgers Cooperative Extension check out the NJAES Events Calendar.

NJ Dept of Agriculture Memo RE: Labor Housing Guidance Forthcoming

We’ve been asked to share the attached memo from NJDA Secretary Fisher regarding guidance on ag labor housing as it relates to COVID 19.