Fruit Crops Edition

Seasonal updates on diseases, insects, weeds impacting tree fruit and small fruit (blueberry, cranberry, and wine grape). Fruit Pest Alerts are also available via this category feed.
 
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Don’t Let Your Guard Down With Farm Worker Health

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the critical, indeed essential, role of farm labor in getting food from farm to plate. However, health concerns should not stop with a negative COVID test, especially if an employee or family member is exhibiting any of the ‘flu-like’ symptoms that are associated with corona virus.

A recent farm call was a reminder that working outside, especially during this July heat wave, exposes workers to a number of potential health risks that may present very similar symptoms and can be equally health, and even life, threatening. Recently published studies from the Rutgers Institute of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences suggest growing numbers of people worldwide are at risk of heat stress and related complications, including farmers and ag laborers working in high heat and humid conditions.

Harvesting and other activities along field edges, including going into the woods instead of using a portable bathroom facilities, also lead to a high risk of tick bites, which can also carry a number of diseases, many as or more debilitating than Lyme disease that most are now aware of. A recent story at Today.com suggested that the COVID-19 pandemic might lead to more tick-borne disease this year, quoting Rutgers entomologist and assistant professor Alvaro Toledo at the Center for Vector Biology with suggestions how to prevent tick bites.

It is critical for your employees’ health and well-being to get proper diagnosis and treatment for all of these ailments. This table illustrates how many tick-born diseases, as well as heat stress, all have potential symptoms very similar to those of COVID-19. Each is linked to additional resources at the CDC. In many cases, it may be the ‘other symptoms’ that may be unique to each disease and assist a medical practitioner with correct identification and lead to better verification with further testing.

   Disease    >

Symptoms  v

COVID-19 Heat Stress Lyme Disease Ehrlichiosis Babe- biosis Powas-san Rocky Mtn Spotted Fever
Vector* Human Black-legged Tick (a.k.a. Deer Tick) (I. scapularis) Lone Star Tick (A. americanum) & Black-legged Black-legged Tick Ground hog(I. cookei), Squirrel (I. marxi) & Black-legged Ticks American Dog Tick (D. variabilis)
Fever or chills X X X X X X X
Cough X X
Shortness of breath/difficulty breathing X
Fatigue X X X X
Muscle/body aches X X X X X X
Headache X X X X X X X
New loss of taste or smell X
Sore throat X
Congestion or runny nose X
Nausea/vomiting X X X X X X X
Diarrhea X X
Rash X X X
Other symptoms X X X X X X
Potentially Deadly/Disabling
X X X X X X X

*NOTE – main vector listed, but many tick born diseases may be vectored by other species of ticks, or different species causing same disease may be carried by different tick species.

Make Sure Your Farm or Ranch Counts – And is Counted!

Did you know that according to the 2019 State Agriculture Overview for NJ, 3,900 acres of peaches yielded 5/tons per acre at a value of over $25.6 million dollars? Or that 3,500 acres of peppers were harvested in 2019, with a value of $45.8 million dollars?  Or that 9,300 acres of harvested blueberries were valued at $85.3 million dollars in 2019?  And in 2018, NJ ranked 4th nationwide in cranberry and peach production, and third in bell peppers?

[Read more…]

Statewide Wine Grape Twilight Meeting – II (online)

Dear Wine Grape Growers,

The Statewide Wine Grape Twilight Meeting – II will be held on August 5th from 6 pm – 7:30 pm. This will be a Webex meeting. No registration is required. We will follow the Summer Grape Camp format, however there will be no pesticide re-certification credit for this program.

6:00 pm – 7:00 pm:        Vineyard Observations from Rutgers Extension

7:00 pm – 7:30 pm:        Grower’s Questions and Answers and Discussions

Growers are encouraged to discuss or send questions or vineyard problems, in advance to Hemant Gohil gohil@njaes.rutgers.edu  or Megan Muehlbauer muelhbauer@njaes.rutgers.edu [Read more…]

NJ Ag & Health Urge Use of Free COVID-19 Testing For Farm Workers

Earlier this week, NJ Secretary of Ag Douglas Fisher released this attached letter, co-signed by Dept of Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli, urging all growers with farm labor to take advantage of opportunities to help protect your employees from COVID-19.

As the letter states,

“One program that is being implemented FREE OF CHARGE for all farms is a COVID-19 testing and education program through Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and local health departments. Along with free testing, the program provides education and other related support services. [Read more…]

Worker Protection Standard: Videos for Annual Training of Workers and Handlers

Use Rutgers NJAES Worker Protection website loaded with “Quick-Connect” With EPA’s short term WPS training exemptions for COVID-19,  provide your workers and handlers access to videos they can watch without being disturbed as an alternative to large group training,  These videos can be viewed on a computer or even a cell phone. Make sure that […]

EPA Releases Guidance on Pesticide Safety Training Requirements During COVID-19

Agricultural workers and pesticide handlers directly support the nation’s agricultural production and food supply and EPA is committed to ensuring they are protected from workplace hazards. EPA has released guidance regarding the annual pesticide safety training requirements outlined in the Agricultural Worker Protection Standard (WPS) that offers flexibility during the COVID-19 public health emergency. The […]