Rutgers Cooperative Extension
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Seasonal pest alerts and news about insects, diseases, and weeds impacting Christmas Tree production including Commercial Ag Updates (meetings and marketing); and Pesticide Program updates from the Rutgers Pest Management Office News Blog.
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Rutgers Weather Forecasting - Meteorological Information important to commercial agriculture.
In this edition:
Please click “read more” below to get updates on pests, diseases, and other important resources for the week of 5/15/2023.
The accumulation of heat units (Growing Degree Days (GDD) will soon begin to increase rapidly in New Jersey as we approach the early weeks of April. If past histories or present-day monitoring indicate the need for interventions, then the best control windows for numerous insect/mite pests are beginning to occur. The following is an incomplete listing of a handful of some of our early-season Christmas tree insect pests that may need to be scouted & possibly controlled. Those included in this blog are the European pine sawfly, Eastern spruce gall adelgid, Cooley spruce gall adelgid, Nantucket pine tip moth, Pales weevil, White pine aphid, & Pine bark adelgid.
After many years, these slow growing Colorado blue spruce trees are close to reaching their peak selling growth stage as Christmas trees. (Photo Credit: Steven K. Rettke, Rutgers Coop. Ext.)
Wednesday, March 29, 12-1pm Eastern Time
Rutgers Cooperative Extension is partnering with other New England states to deliver agritourism education. A free webinar will be held to help farmers learn the three essential components of marketing your farm, with a focus on agritourism. Myrna Greenfield is the “Top Egg” at Good Egg Marketing and the author of Marketing Your Farm: A practical guide to attracting loyal customers and increasing sales. Ellen Parlee is the co-owner of Parlee Farms in Tyngsboro, Massachusetts, which offers pick-your-own fruit and flowers, along with a farmstand, bakery, ice cream stand, animal petting area, and a food trailer for lunch. Ryan Wilson is the co-owner of DeMeritt Hill Farm in Lee, New Hampshire, which offers pick-your-own apples/peaches/blueberries/Xmas trees, hayrides, school tours, special events, Cross Country running, and hiking trails and has a full commercial kitchen. The farm plays host to Torey Roderick Performance Horses and every October, the world-famous Haunted Overload. Lisa Chase from University of Vermont Extension will moderate the session.
To register see: https://uvm-edu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_e3WWWaq9SoaQSR8nVkotdQ
This webinar is free, but registration is required.
Thursday March 23, 2023 12-1pm Eastern Time
Rutgers Cooperative Extension is partnering on a regional project with other New England Land Grant Universities to offer webinars related to agritourism in the northeast.
Join our speakers for Incorporating Classes into Your Agritourism Business, where they will share their experiences with offering, hosting, and teaching classes. As farm and food business owners, you are experts in your craft and likely face endless questions from customers and the public. Why not use this as an opportunity to offer classes, enabling your customers or the public to learn from your expertise? Classes can be tailored to a variety of topics and activities.
Susan Rigg is the owner of and cheesemaker at Whey River Creamery. Susan offers both introductory and advanced hands-on cheesemaking classes. Michele Capron is the co-owner of Lavender Essentials of Vermont. She offers numerous classes, including lavender wreath creations, cooking with lavender, native tea blending, herb garden, and make it – take it. Deb Hartshorn owns White Picket Farm LLC, offering a variety of class experiences, including soap making, creating terrariums, succulent bowls, and more!
To register go to: https://extension.psu.edu/incorporating-classes-into-your-agritourism-business
This webinar is free, but registration is required. You will need to create an account with Penn State Extension to register for this webinar.
