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.
 
Subscriptions are available via EMAIL and RSS.

September 14, 2016

Plasticulture Strawberries – Ultra Niche Crop Series

ultra-niche-strawberry

Learn how to grow, market and sell plasticulture strawberries.  Production basics, food safety considerations, post harvest handling specifics, budgeting and buyer preferences.

September 28, 2016  5:30 – 8:00 p.m. at three locations:
– RCE of Somerset County, Bridgewater
– RCE of Cape May County, Cape May Court House
– Rutgers EcoComplex, Columbus

For more information call Jenny Carleo, Agricultural Agent at (609) 465-5115 or email Jennifer
Matthews at jmatthews@aesop.rutgers.edu
To register go to Eventbrite link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ultra-niche-crops-plasticulture-strawberries-tickets-26609094518
To join the mailing list for future classes go to The Ultra-Niche Crop Project

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Fruit Tagged With: ,
August 30, 2016

Constriction Canker of Peach: Orchard Rehabilitation

Peach and nectarine orchards in New Jersey continue to sustain considerable shoot death and fruit loss from constriction canker, caused by the fungal plant pathogen Phomospis amygdali. Many of our research orchards at RAREC this season had an above average number of cankers. The majority of infections that took place last fall and this past spring have girdled the shoots, resulting in dead or blighted branches. Any fruit distal to the cankers on these shoots have already fallen off or remain attached, slowly drying up and shriveling. This yield loss directly impacts your bottom line.

Breaking the Disease Cycle

Cankers on infected shoots are the source of inoculum. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tree Fruit Tagged With:
August 18, 2016

Fruit IPM for 8/18/16

 

Peach:

Oriental Fruit Moth (OFM): Trap counts still show captures above the treatment threshold of 6/trap. Treatments are needed anywhere trap counts exceed 6 males per trap, even at this late stage of the season on any variety that is at least 7-10 days away from harvest. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blueberry, Fruit, Tree Fruit, Wine Grape Tagged With: , , ,
July 28, 2016

Fruit IPM for 7/28/16

Peach:

Cat-facing Insects, Tarnished Plant Bug (TPB) and Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB): BMSB traps show only very low levels of bugs. Where ground cover consists of numerous flowering weeds, TPB population is very high. Up to 37 adults and nymphs per 50 sweeps were seen this past week in northern counties. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blueberry, Fruit, Tree Fruit, Wine Grape
July 28, 2016

The Cranberry Toad Bug – An Emerging Pest of Cranberries

We are seeing nymphs of toad bugs in cranberry beds. Growers need to be aware of this insect and treat if numbers reach high levels (there is no current threshold). We are currently conducting studies to estimate the density of toad bugs that can cause economic injury to cranberries.

Life cycle. Toad bugs, Phylloscelis atra, 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 August, and the adults from August through October. Eggs are laid from September through October. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cranberry, Fruit
July 20, 2016

Fruit IPM for 7/19/16

 

Peach:

Oriental Fruit Moth (OFM): The third flight is underway in southern counties, and about to start in northern counties. Populations are low in peaches, but higher in apples. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blueberry, Fruit, Tree Fruit, Wine Grape