Fruit Crops Edition - Cranberry 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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May 9, 2016

Insect Pests to Look For in Cranberry Bogs: Early Season

The following insect pests bear special mention for early-season scouting in cranberry bogs:

Blackheaded fireworm – Blackheaded fireworm eggs overwinter on the bed and usually hatch by around mid-May. It is important to catch the first generation, if possible, because the second generation occurs during bloom and is typically much more destructive. Blackheaded fireworm larvae can be detected by sweep net sampling and it is a good idea to look along the edges of beds where vines first begin to grow. Remember: blackheaded fireworm is much easier to control if detected during the early part of the season.

Blackheaded fireworm Larva (Photo by D. Schiffhauer)

Blackheaded fireworm Larva (Photo by D. Schiffhauer)

Blackheaded fireworm Adult (Photo by D. Schiffhauer)

Blackheaded fireworm Adult (Photo by D. Schiffhauer)

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Filed Under: Cranberry
October 15, 2015

Food Safety Modernization Act Update:
Farm Definition & Exemptions

FDA FSMAThe Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Food final rule was published in the Federal Registry September 17, 2015. This is the first of two which may directly impact fruit and vegetable growers. To review the complete rule go to https://federalregister.gov/2015-21920.

This rule updates good manufacturing practices related to processing and clarifies the farm definition and exemptions. Under the original proposed rule there were several activities on farms in our region that would have had to comply with this rule. However, with the revised definition most activities are exempt or fall under the Produce Rule which will be published at the end of October.

Under the final definition there are two ways to be considered as a farm: as a “Primary Production Farm” or as a “Secondary Activities Farm.”
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Filed Under: Blueberry, Cranberry, Food Safety, Fruit, Tree Fruit, Vegetable Crops, Wine Grape
October 1, 2015

Alert: Disaster Preparedness for Production Agriculture

Governor Chris Christie today declared a state of emergency throughout the state as a result of severe weather conditions expected in the coming days. The National Weather Service is forecasting a dangerous nor’easter weather pattern impacting New Jersey beginning on October 1, 2015, including high winds, very heavy rain, inland river flooding, as well as major coastal flooding with heavy surf and beach erosion. The National Hurricane Center currently has forecasted the track for the impending weather event Joaquin, now a major hurricane, showing it moving northward off the mid-Atlantic coast late on or about October 4, 2015, which may cause significant flooding, dangerous storm surges between eight and ten feet, substantial wind damage, and stream and river flooding threatening homes and other structures, and endangering lives in the State.

Office of the Governor

ReadyAG Can Help Plan and Prepare

ReadyAG Workbook
ReadyAGJust as we’ve finished National Preparedness Month, Governor Christie has declared a state of emergency. In case Hurricane Joaquin takes a turn toward the Jersey Shore this weekend, there are many resources and tools to help get your families and homes prepared. Make sure your farm business is ready too.
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Filed Under: Blueberry, Cranberry, Fruit, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Tree Fruit, Vegetable Crops, Wine Grape
September 29, 2015

Update on Ag Worker Protection Standard

A pre-publication version of the Ag Worker Protection Standard Revisions has been posted on the EPA’s website. In addition, a document comparing new protections to existing protections is available. Per Nancy Fitz, US EPA – Office of Pesticide Programs, compliance with most of the new standards will be required in mid-December 2016. Thanks to Pat Hastings, Rutgers NJAES Pesticide Safety Education Program Coordinator, for the heads-up.

Agricultural Worker Protection Standard Revisions (314pp, 880K)

Filed Under: Blueberry, Commercial Ag Updates, Cranberry, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Tree Fruit, Vegetable Crops, Wine Grape
August 18, 2015

Beating the Bugs in the Bogs:
Insect Resistance in Different Cranberry Varieties

Insects are a major problem in cranberry production – they are estimated to reduce yield by 1-2% and without spraying, cranberry false blossom, a phytoplasma vectored by blunt-nosed leafhopper, would eliminate commercial cranberry production completely. Spraying chemical pesticides is the most common practice to combat pathogens and herbivorous insects, but beneficial insects, such as honeybees, important pollinators of cranberry, and natural enemies, such as predators and parasitoids, could be affected as well. Therefore, at the P.E. Marucci Center for Blueberry and Cranberry Research and Extension, we study the defensive mechanisms that cranberry plants themselves use against insect feeding. The research project of Dr. Elvira de Lange, a postdoc at the P.E. Marucci Center, focuses on four of the most problematic insects on cranberry in New Jersey: Sparganothis fruitworm, spotted fireworm, gypsy moth and the above-mentioned blunt-nosed leafhopper.

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Filed Under: Cranberry, Fruit
August 2, 2015

American Cranberry Growers Association 2015 Summer Field Day

The American Cranberry Growers Association 2015 Summer Field Day will be held on Thursday August 20, 2015 at the P.E. Marucci Center for Blueberry & Cranberry Research & Extension, Chatsworth, NJ

AGENDA

CRANBERRY BOGS
8:30–8:45 Opening Remarks
Shawn Cutts, President, American Cranberry Growers Association

8:45-9:05 Virus Observations in the Field-Symptoms and Detection (Bog 8)
James Polashock, Research Plant Pathologist, USDA-ARS

9:05–10:25 Update on Disease Management (Bog 10)
Peter Oudemans, Department of Plant Biology and Pathology, Rutgers University

9:25–9:45 Next Generation Cranberry Hybrids: the 3rd Breeding and Selection Cycle (Bog 10)
Nicholi Vorsa, P.E. Marucci Center for Blueberry & Cranberry Research & Extension, Rutgers University, Chatsworth, NJ

9:45-10:05 Evaluation of Our “Top Ten” Fruit Rot Resistant Selections (Bog 11)
Jennifer Johnson-Cicalese, P.E. Marucci Center for Blueberry & Cranberry Research & Extension, Rutgers University, Chatsworth, NJ

10:05–10:25 Update on Insect Management (Bog 19)
Cesar Rodriguez-Saona, Department of Entomology, Rutgers University; Vera Kyryczenko-Roth, P.E. Marucci Center; and Robert Holdcraft, P.E. Marucci Center

10:25-10:45 Assessing Insect Resistance in Cranberries (Bog 20)
Elvira de Lange, Department of Entomology, Rutgers University

CONFERENCE ROOM
11:00–11:15 Cranberry Statistics
Bruce A Eklund, State Statistician, U.S. Department of Agriculture | National Agricultural Statistics Service

11:15–11:30 Cranberry Museum
Ted Gordon, Pine Barrens Botanist, Historian

11:30–12:00 Show and Tell
Cranberry growers

12:00–1:00 LUNCH (Pole Barn)

1:00–1:30 Farm Safety
Ray Samulis, Cooperative Extension Agent, Burlington County Extension, Rutgers University

Filed Under: Cranberry, Fruit