Rutgers Cooperative Extension
Seasonal updates on insects, diseases, weeds, maturity dates and cultural practices impacting only tree fruit.
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The New Jersey Department of Agriculture needs your help! The Department is gathering information on New Jersey farms that are 250 years old or older, as USDA and NASDA are recognizing farms marking 250+ years as part of the national Freedom250 celebration.
If your farm or a farm you know qualifies, please complete NJDA’s short form by clicking here — the submission deadline is this coming Monday, 5/18.
The recent freeze event April 20-21, 2026, has had wide ranging impacts on fruit crops statewide, including but not limited to peaches, nectarines, cherries, apples, pears, and plums. Across the state, significant injury to blossoms and young fruit has been confirmed, with many orchards reporting substantial crop loss. The extent of damage remains highly variable by location, elevation, crop, cultivar, and ultimately phenological stage at the time of the freeze, with the most severe injury observed in low-lying areas and orchard blocks that were at full bloom or petal fall.
Despite the reduced crop potential, continued pest monitoring and management remain important, particularly in blocks producing some fruit. Even where no fruit will be harvested, we need to adjust our approach to insect and disease management with a focus on maintaining healthy orchards for the next crop. Promoting tree health, maintaining low pest and disease inoculum, and supporting return bloom for the next season should be priorities for the remainder of this season.
Orchard Tree Care
Managing Crop Load in Apples
Managing Foliar Growth in Trees with Little to no Crop Load
Orchard Disease Management
Orchard Insect Management
Orchard Weed Management During a Low Crop Year
Low crop production years in tree fruit present a different set of weed management priorities compared to typical seasons. While reduced yield may lessen immediate concerns about weed–crop competition, these seasons offer an important opportunity to reset weed pressure and improve long-term orchard floor management.
Shift in Management Objectives
In a low crop year, the focus should shift from protecting current yield to reducing weed populations and preventing future infestations. With fewer fruit sinks, trees often allocate more resources to vegetative growth, which can influence both competitive dynamics with weeds and crop sensitivity to herbicide injury. This is also an ideal time to scout and map weed populations across the orchard, documenting dominant species and problem areas. These records directly inform preemergence (PRE) herbicide selection and placement in the following season.
Strengthening Residual Programs
PRE herbicides should play a central role in weed management during low production years. Maintaining a clean herbicide strip beneath the tree canopy throughout the season helps reduce weed seed production, limits early-season competition, and improves control consistency going into the following year. Where appropriate, consider using full labeled rates and tank mixtures of PRE herbicides with different sites of action to extend residual activity and manage resistance. Always read and follow the full label before use.
Postemergence Applications and Crop Safety
Timely postemergence (POST) applications remain important to prevent escapes and seed production, even in low crop years. Registered POST options include glyphosate and glufosinate for directed applications, and clethodim for grass control. However, caution is warranted:
Resistance Management
Herbicide-resistant weed populations are an increasing concern in Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern orchards. Glyphosate- and paraquat-resistant horseweed (Erigeron canadensis) is well-documented in the region, and common lambsquarters (Chenopodium album) has shown reduced sensitivity to certain herbicide classes. To reduce selection pressure, rotate herbicide sites of action across seasons, not only within a single season, and avoid exclusive reliance on any single POST chemistry for escapes and patch control.
Opportunities for Targeting Perennial Weeds
Perennial species should be prioritized during low crop years. With reduced concern about fruit loss, growers can target optimal application timing for systemic postemergence herbicides when weeds are actively growing and most susceptible. Key perennial species of concern in NJ and NY orchards include:
Sequential applications or integration with mechanical tactics may be necessary to effectively reduce belowground reserves. Note that many of these species may require multi-year management programs and, in some cases, mechanical removal prior to herbicide application.
Managing Tree Vigor
Reduced crop load commonly results in increased vegetative growth. A clean orchard floor combined with reduced weed competition can further enhance vigor, which is not always desirable. Excessive shoot growth can complicate canopy management and increase disease pressure. Growers should monitor nitrogen inputs carefully, adjust irrigation to avoid overstimulating growth, and manage watersprouts and excessive shoot development through summer pruning as needed. Competitive cover crops in the alleyway can serve a dual role: suppressing weeds while moderating overall tree vigor through resource competition.
Environmental and Regulatory Considerations
Applicators should be familiar with required buffer zones and consult the NJDEP Pesticide Control Program as well as Registrant database for current restrictions and state-specific requirements. Herbicide applications should always be timed to avoid bloom periods when pollinators are active in the orchard.
Looking Ahead
Effective weed management during a low crop year can significantly improve conditions for the following season. Reducing the weed seedbank, targeting difficult perennial species, and scouting to map problem areas positions growers to enter the next production cycle with lower pressure and potentially reduced input needs.
Bottom line: Low production years should be viewed as an opportunity—not a setback—for improving weed management. Strategic use of residual herbicides, targeted control of perennial species, integration of alternative tactics, and thorough scouting can provide lasting benefits for orchard productivity and long-term sustainability.
Always read and follow pesticide label directions. The label is the law. Herbicide registrations are subject to change; verify current registration status in New Jersey and New York before use.
Tree fruit development across New Jersey continued to progress over the past week, and the impacts of the recent freeze event are now becoming more clearly defined. Across much of the state, significant injury to blossoms and young fruit has been confirmed, with many orchards reporting substantial crop loss. The extent of damage remains highly variable by location, elevation, variety, and phenological stage at the time of the freeze, with the most severe injury observed in low-lying areas and blocks that were at full bloom or petal fall.
At this stage, surviving fruitlets are becoming easier to identify, although some additional drop is still expected over the coming week. Growers are encouraged to continue evaluating blocks carefully before making final management decisions, as crop potential may continue to change.
In apples, early varieties such as ‘Pink Lady’ sustained significant injury in many locations. However, some later-developing blooms appear to have escaped the freeze, and limited fruit set is being observed from these later flowers. While this provides some promise in select blocks, overall yield potential remains extremely low across most orchards. Variability remains high even within individual blocks.
In pears, most varieties across the state were at or just past bloom during the freeze, and widespread crop loss has now been confirmed. In many orchards, little to no viable fruit remains, though isolated pockets of surviving fruit may still be present depending on site conditions.
Peach and nectarine varieties in southern counties, which were at petal fall to early shuck split during the freeze, experienced extensive crop loss in many orchards. In northern counties, where bloom was still ongoing at the time of the freeze, damage remains variable but is often substantial in more exposed locations.
Despite reduced crop potential, continued monitoring and management remain important, particularly in blocks with surviving fruit or where maintaining tree health and supporting return bloom for the 2027 season are priorities.
When: May 20 (Wed) 5:00 PM Where: Saddlehill Winery and Vineyards: 1407 White Horse Rd, Voorhees Township, NJ 08043 Credits: CORE; PP2; 1A; 10 5:00 pm Welcome and Updates Bill Green, Owner, Saddlehill Winery Hemant Gohil, Gloucester County Extension Agent, Rutgers NJAES Drone in Vineyard Applications – Demonstration What Should You Know to Legally Fly Drones in Agricultural Applications? Nathan Graham, UAV/Drone Specialist, Hoober Inc., PA. Field Observations from the Wine Grape IPM Pilot Program Janine Spies, Statewide Fruit IPM Program Leader, Rutgers NJAES. Insect Pest Management in the Vineyard Anne Nielsen, Extension Specialist in Fruit Entomology, Rutgers NJAES. Timing, Chemistry, Coverage: The Formula for Effective Disease Control Nancy Sharma, Extension Specialist, Fruit Pathology, Rutgers NJAES. Weed Management Updates for Vineyard Thierry Besancon, Extension Specialist, Weed Science, Rutgers NJAES. Pesticide recertification credits and adjourn. Light fare will be provided. If you plan to attend, please email Joan Medany at jmedany@co.gloucester.nj.us or call 856-224-8030. For additional assistance, please contact Hemant Gohil at 856-224-8029 before the meeting. [Read more...]
Tree fruit development across New Jersey progressed rapidly over the past week under continued warm conditions; however, a significant freeze event has resulted in widespread injury to blossoms and young fruit across much of the state. Reports from across the state indicate substantial losses in many orchards, particularly in low-lying areas and blocks that were at full bloom or petal fall during the freeze. The extent of damage varies by location, variety, and orchard conditions; growers are encouraged to assess injury at the block level before making management decisions.
In apples, early varieties such as ‘Pink Lady’ were at full bloom during the freeze event across the state and are likely to have sustained significant injury. Later varieties and northern regions may have experienced variable damage depending on bloom stage and site conditions. Surviving fruitlets, if present, will become more apparent over the coming week.
In pears, most varieties across the state were at or just past bloom during the freeze, and significant crop loss is being reported. More advanced Asian pears may have experienced higher levels of injury.
Peach and nectarine varieties in southern counties were largely at petal fall to early shuck split during the freeze, and many orchards are reporting severe crop loss. In northern counties, where bloom was still ongoing, damage levels appear variable but may still be substantial in exposed sites.
Despite crop loss, continued monitoring for pests and diseases remains important, particularly in blocks with surviving fruit or where tree health and next season’s production are priorities.
Management Considerations After Freeze
