Fruit Crops Edition - Blueberry Section

Seasonal updates on diseases, insects, weeds impacting small fruit (blueberry, cranberry, and wine grape). Fruit Pest Alerts are also available via this category feed.
 
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WEBINAR: Organic Management of Spotted-Wing Drosophila

Dear Organic Fruit Growers, Pest Management Professionals and other stakeholders:

Spotted-wing drosophila (SWD) has emerged as a devastating pest of small and stone fruits worldwide. We have organized a webinar to provide you with the most updated information on everything you need to know for organic management of SWD.

Please register at: https://eorganic.org/node/33992 to attend this webinar.

Date: March 4, 2020 (Wednesday) 2:00-3:30pm Eastern

Presented by: Ash Sial (UGA), Mary Rogers (UMN), Kelly Hamby (UMD), Kent Daane (UC Berkeley), Rufus Isaacs (MSU), Vaughn Walton (OSU), Oscar Liburd (UF), Craig Roubos (UGA), Elena Rhodes (UF) and other members of the SWD OREI project team.

Sponsored by: Award No. 2018-51300-28434 Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (OREI) USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture

2020 South Jersey Commercial Tree Fruit Grower Meeting

Date:                     March 5, 2020

Time:                    8:00 am – 3:00 pm

 Location:             RAREC – 121 Northville Road, Bridgeton, NJ 08302

 Pre-Registration: Required, Contact: Karen Holton (holton@njaes.rutgers.edu) or (856) 455-3100 x 4104

Cost / person:        $15.00 (Checks preferred, made out to Rutgers University) Lunch: Included

Pesticide Credits: Requested for – Core, PP2, 10, 1A, 3A and 3B

Program

8:00 am           Registration  Coffee and pastries

8:25 am           Welcome and Opening Remarks

                        Daniel Ward, Director, Rutgers Agricultural Research and Extension Center

                        Hemant Gohil, Agriculture Agent, Rutgers Co-op. Extension, Gloucester County

8:30 am           Peach Bacterial Spot Management: Comparison of Copper Compounds and Rates

                        Norm Lalancette, Extension Specialist in Tree Fruit Pathology, Rutgers NJAES

9:15 am           Pollinator Stewardship in Orchards

                        Julianna Wilson, Academic Specialist, Tree Fruit Integrator, Michigan State University

10:00 am         Break Coffee and pastries

10:15 am         Integrating Management for Key Orchard Pests

                         Anne Nielsen, Extension Specialist in Tree Fruit Entomology, Rutgers NJAES

10:45 am         Recommendation Updates for Tree Fruit Insect Management w/ Special Attention to Bee Safety.

                        Dean Polk, Statewide Fruit IPM Agent, Rutgers NJAES

11:15 am         Pesticide Regulatory and Safety Update for 2020

                        George Hamilton, Extension Specialist in Pest Management, Rutgers NJAES

11:45 am         Industry Updates and NJ Peach Promotion Council Updates

12 Noon          Lunch

1:00 pm           Updates on tree fruit soil fertility management in New Jersey

                         Megan Muehlbauer, Agriculture Agent, Rutgers Co-op. Extension, Hunterdon Co.

1:30 pm           Soil Health – A Panel Discussion

                         Daniel Ward, Extension Specialist, Pomology; Joseph Heckman, Extension Specialist, Soil Health; Thierry Besancon, Extension Specialist, Weed Science; Lewis DeEugenio, Fruit Grower, Summit City Farms; Robert Muth, Fruit and Vegetable Grower, Muth Family Farms; Megan Muehlbauer, Agriculture Agent.

2:30 pm           Updates on Peach and Nectarine Breeding Program

                          Joseph Goffreda, Tree Fruit Breeding, Rutgers University

3:00 pm           Open Session – Grower Questions and Discussion

Pesticide re-certification credits

Please contact Hemant Gohil (Program Organizer) at gohil@njaes.rutgers.edu or 856-224-8029 if you have any questions.

Gramoxone/paraquat Mandatory Training Required Before Use

Spraying for pests

All pesticide certified applicators must successfully complete an EPA-approved training program before mixing, loading, and/or applying paraquat.

Anyone using Gramoxone, Firestorm, Helmquat, Parazone, and other paraquat products must complete an EPA-mandated training before application.

After November 14, 2019, the EPA requires companies to have newly labeled products on the market.

 

The following are items related to the new label for paraquat products:

  • Only certified applicators, who successfully completed the paraquat-specific training, can mix, load or apply paraquat.
  • No longer allow application “under the direct supervision” of a certified applicator.
  • Restricting the use of all paraquat products to certified applicators only.
  • EPA required Online Training – users must create an account with username and password.
  • A certificate will be delivered by the end of the training after successful completion of the online exam.
  • Applicators must repeat training every three years.

For additional information and FAQs about the paraquat training go to the EPA Paraquat Training website

Hilling-Up Demonstration and Post-harvest Vineyard Management

Where – Monday, October 14, 3:30 PM

When – Coia Vineyards – 3650 Oak Rd., Vineland, NJ 08360

  • On-farm demonstration of hilling-up and the discussions on hilling-down (Larry Coia and Hemant Gohil)
  • Understanding the Cold hardiness (Daniel Ward)
  • Post-harvest Disease Management including understanding of trunk diseases (Peter Oudemans)
  • Weed Management for hilling-up and for fall and winter (Thierry Besancon)
  • Vineyard fertility Management (Gary Pavlis)

There is no registration fees, however please let Joan Medany know if you are planning, by email jmedany@co.gloucester.nj.us or call 856-224-8030

This site is accessible to the physically impaired. If an additional assistance is needed, please contact Hemant Gohil (Program Organizer) at 856-224-8029 prior to the meeting.

With Support from the New Jersey Center for Wine Research and Education (NJCWRE)

Annual Bluegrass Control in Blueberry

Annual bluegrass (Poa annua L.) is an increasingly troublesome winter annual weed in some New Jersey blueberry fields. Native to Europe, this species is now worldwide distributed.

Identification and Life Cycle

Annual bluegrass

Figure 1. Annual bluegrass. Thierry Besancon, Rutgers University

Annual bluegrass starts germinating in late summer as soil temperature drops below 70°F. If conditions are favorable, it will continue germinating throughout the winter. Annual bluegrass has light green leaves with a typical boat-shaped tip (Figures 1 and 2). Leaf blades are often crinkled part way down. It will produce greenish white inflorescences (seed heads) during the spring months. Annual bluegrass is a prolific and rapid seed-producing weed.

Each plant can produce up to 100 seeds that are viable just a few days after pollination, allowing multiple germination flushes during the cool season. Annual bluegrass tends to form dense clumps in areas with moist and/or compacted soil. Poor soil drainage, frequent irrigation, excessive fertilization, use of heavy equipment causing compaction, and shade are conditions that will encourage the development of annual bluegrass.

Annual bluegrass under a microscope

Figure 2. Annual bluegrass leaf tip. Joseph M. DiTomaso, University of California – Davis, Bugwood.org

 

 

Impact

While annual bluegrass may not be a strong competitor for blueberry bushes, it forms a dense mat that will persist until late spring. This mat will prevent proper application of residual herbicides in spring by intercepting the spray solution and reducing the amount of residual herbicide penetrating into the soil. Thus, control of established sod of annual bluegrass prior to spring herbicide applications is essential for successful residual weed control in spring and early summer.

Management

As for any other weed species, preventing the release of viable seeds that will replenish the soil seedbank is a primary objective for controlling this species. Cultivation or manual digging before annual bluegrass patches become well established and before the development of inflorescence will provide control of limited infestations if continued throughout the germination period. However, the use of chemical control may be required for large infested areas or where the species has become established for several seasons.

Application of effective preemergence herbicides may prevent annual bluegrass seedling survival. However, preemergence herbicides will not effectively control emerged plants. Timely application of preemergence herbicides is very important for effective control of annual bluegrass. Herbicides should ideally be applied in late-summer / early fall before annual bluegrass seeds germinate. However, crop injury may result if pre-emergence herbicides are applied at this time when blueberry bushes are not dormant. Therefore, a fall application of a preemergence herbicide tankmixed with a postemergence herbicide is often the most practical solution and should be considered when blueberry leaves start dropping.

  • Preemergence herbicides such as oryzalin (Surflan), norflurazon (Solicam), or napropamide (Devrinol) may effectively control annual bluegrass. Application of these herbicides can be split between fall and spring applications with half of the yearly rate applied in fall and the second half in spring.
  • Simazine (Princep) can provide early post-emergence control of leaf stage plants in addition to its residual activity.
  • Pronamide (Kerb SC) is also an excellent option that will provide both residual and postemergence control of annual bluegrass. Optimum pronamide activity occurs when applications are made under cool temperature conditions (55°°F or less).
  • S-metolachlor (Dual Magnum) is also effective at controlling annual bluegrass prior to germination. However, Dual Magnum can only be applied once per cropping season and will require grower to agree to the conditions of the indemnified label (https://www.syngenta-us.com/labels/indemnified-label-search).

All preemergence herbicides require incorporation from rainfall so that the herbicide can move into the first few inches of soil where it will be protected from degradation or volatility.

When annual bluegrass has emerged before residual herbicide is applied, a postemergence herbicide should be included in the tank. Use paraquat (Gramoxone or other labeled generic formulation) plus a nonionic surfactant at 0.25% v/v of the spray solution. Glufosinate (Rely 280) is also effective at controlling emerged annual bluegrass, especially when applied under bright sunlight, warm temperature, and high humidity conditions. Do not allow glufosinate spray mist to contact green bark, as injury will occur. None of the graminicides labelled on blueberry (Select, Poast) have sufficient activity for controlling annual bluegrass. The use of glyphosate (Roundup or other labeled generic formulation) is not recommended as failure to control emerged annual bluegrass has been reported in various New Jersey blueberry fields.

 

Consult the New Jersey Commercial Blueberry Pest Control Recommendations for rates and additional information (https://njaes.rutgers.edu/pubs/publication.php?pid=E265). As with all herbicides, read and follow all label instructions and precautions.

 

 

Fruit IPM for 8/10/19

Blueberry

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