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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July 14, 2020

Cranberry Toad Bug Monitoring and Management

Cranberry toad bugs (Figure 1) should be the last insect pest of concern this season. Growers should start monitoring for this insect from now until the end of July.

Cranberry Toad Bug

Figure 1. Toad bug nymph. Photo by Elvira de Lange

Life cycle. Toad bugs, Phylloscelis rubra (Hemiptera, Dictyopharidae), feed only on cranberries. This insect has a single generation per year. It overwinters as eggs. The nymphs appear by the end of June through early September; nymphal abundance peaks between last week in July and 1st week in August (Figure 2). The adults emerge from end of July through October (harvest) and eggs are laid from end of August through October (Figure 2). Figure 3 shows seasonal abundance of toad bug nymphs and adults in New Jersey cranberries based on sweep net samples.

Toad bug life cycle

Figure 2. Toad bug life cycle

Injury. Feeding injury can be noticed in two stages. First stage feeding injury on vines causes closing in (towards the branch) of the leaves on the new growth. Second stage feeding causes changed in color (reddish to brown) of new growth (Figure 4). The injury can be seen from July until harvest. This injury will cause dying of the branch and the berries to shrivel up (Figure 4). Heavy infestation will result in dwarfed berries.

Seasonal abundance of toad bugs

Figure 3. Seasonal abundance of toad bugs in cranberry bogs

Toad bug injury

Figure 4. Toad bug injury to cranberries

Management. To determine infestation levels, lightly sweep problematic beds (bugs should be easy to catch in sweep nets as they are very active). There is currently no threshold established. Thus, insecticide applications should be based on the relative number of bugs per sweep compared with other sites and previous history of infestation. Currently, growers can use the following control options: Sevin 4F (carbamate), Diazinon, Imidan 70W (organophosphates), Actara or Assail 30SG (neonicotinoids). If infestation is high, treatments should be applied before the 1st week of August.

Filed Under: Cranberry, Fruit
July 14, 2020

Revised New Jersey Pesticide Regulations — NOW POSTED ONLINE!

The final revisions to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) pesticide regulations at N.J.A.C. 7:30 for the Pesticide Control Code were adopted on April 6, 2020.  Public comments received on NJDEP’s proposed revisions to the regulations were addressed and published in the final rule adoption.  The April 6, 2020 rule amendments to the […]
Filed Under: Field, Forage & Livestock, Fruit, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Vegetable Crops Tagged With:
July 8, 2020

Gov. Murphy to Sign Order Requiring Outdoor Face Coverings

As reported at njbiz.com Wednesday morning, NJ Governor Phil Murphy has indicated he will be signing “an executive order mandating that masks or other face coverings be worn outdoors, as the COVID-19 virus surges across the country and the transmission rate creeps up in New Jersey.”

The state currently requires the use of face coverings indoors and at many outdoor businesses, and strongly encourages their use when in crowded public spaces, such as at the beach. The new order will require that masks will have to be worn outdoors when social distancing is not possible.

There are many outdoor operations around the farm. Be sure to plan accordingly with supplies of masks/face coverings for all agricultural workers and harvesters, in addition to planning all field work with adequate space for individuals to keep socially distanced.

For more information on keeping you, your workers and your family safe, be sure to read and implement the recommendations in NJ’s “INTERIM CORONAVIRUS DISEASE 2019 (COVID-19) GUIDANCE FOR MIGRANT AND SEASONAL FARMWORKERS, THEIR EMPLOYERS, AND HOUSING PROVIDERS.”

 

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Field, Forage & Livestock, Food Safety, Fruit, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Vegetable Crops Tagged With: , , ,
July 8, 2020

NJDEP Notice: Delayed Processing of Applications and Other Requests Due to July COVID-19 Furloughs

NJDEP Notice posted July 7, 2020. Pesticide information excerpt courtesy of NJAES Please be advised that a large number of DEP staff are required to take intermittent furlough days throughout the month of July. The Bureau of Licensing and Registrations remains committed to assisting the public and will continue to process applications and other requests […]
Filed Under: Field, Forage & Livestock, Fruit, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Vegetable Crops
July 7, 2020

Fruit IPM For 7/7/20

Spotted Lanternfly in apple orchards…. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blueberry, Fruit, Tree Fruit
July 7, 2020

RCE Agents Offer Marketing Tips With Del State U & USDA Northeast Climate Hub

Webinar Postponed ’til Fall!

Due to technical issues and low enrollment, this webinar has been postponed by the organizers and will be rescheduled for the fall.

Register here today (7/7/20) by 11pm!

Webinar: Part 2 in a series

Emergency Preparation & Dealing with COVID-19 on Farms: Alternative Marketing Strategies to Stay in Business

Wednesday, July 8, 2020

Time: 12 – 1:15 PM

Use the link below to register by July 7, 2020, 11 PM EST. The Zoom link to the webinar will be e-mailed to all registered attendees prior to the webinar.

[link removed]

Small farmers and extension agents working with small farmers will learn best practices for communicating with consumers and meeting their demands.

Participants will learn how to:

  • Use available resources to market your products
  • Reach out to consumers online
  • Use alternative marketing strategies to sustain and grow businesses
  • Use online business opportunities for farm sales

Attendees will learn about available resources to help them manage logistics of the Covid-19 health crisis on their farms. Presenters will share information and solutions from the experts and answer questions from participants. Like the first webinar in this series, this meeting will address common problems most farmers are facing, what they are planning to do to stay in business and how well their plans are working. The webinar series also summarizes how extension programs can assist farmers through this difficult time.

Agenda (Q&A session after each presentation)

12 – 12:05 PM Welcome & Introduction Gulnihal Ozbay & Jason Challandes, DSU; Erin Lane, USDA Northeast Climate HUB
12:05 – 12:25 PM “Know Your Customers
Know Your Prices”		 Richard VanVranken, Professor & County Extension Department Head (Small Farms & Farm Marketing), Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Atlantic County, New Jersey
12:25 – 12:45 PM “Meeting Customer Demands for Agricultural Products In response
to the Covid-19 Pandemic”		 Stephen Komar, Associate Professor & Agriculture & Natural Resources County Agent II, County Extension Department Head (Plant and Animal Agriculture), Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Sussex County, New Jersey
12:45 – 1:05 PM “Online logistics and considerations with Direct Sales Models during Covid-19” William J. Bamka, Associate Professor & Agriculture & Natural Resources County Agent II, County Extension Department Head of Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Burlington County in New Jersey, Crop Production and Agritourism
1:05 – 1:15 PM Closing Remarks & Information
on Webinar Evaluation		 Dr. Ozbay and Ms. Lane
This webinar series is moderated by Delaware State University Cooperative Extension (Dr. Gulnihal Ozbay) & USDA Northeast Climate Hub  (Erin Lane). Webinar hosts are Ms. Megan Pleasanton & Mr. Jason Challandes (DSU Cooperative Extension).
Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Fruit, Vegetable Crops