- Rhizoctonia root rot and leaf spots have been reported in fall transplanted strawberry. All growers are encouraged to be proactive in controlling these diseases as fall approaches. For more information on controlling important diseases in strawberry please click here.
- Sand blasting has been reported on a number of leafy green and other crops these past few weeks. Injury from sand blasting predisposes plants to bacterial infections. Remember, all bacteria need a wound or a natural opening, such as a stomata, to gain entry into the plant. Fields with extensive injury need to be scouted regularly, and most likely will need to be sprayed regularly with a copper fungicide or disinfectant-type product to help mitigate infection and spread.
- With the extremely wet weather coming across New Jersey on a regular basis, all growers are encouraged to scout fields on a regular basis and remain proactive in mitigating foliar diseases in leafy green and other fall planted crops.
- Downy mildew has been reported on collards and kale.
- Black rot has been reported on cabbage and broccoli.
- Cercospora leaf blight has been reported on beet.
- Alternaria and Cercospora have been reported on spinach.
- For more information on the control of the diseases mentioned above please see The 2020/2021 Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations Guide which is available for free online! With many county offices running reduced hours or being closed this is the easiest way to obtain the newest recommendations.
Vegetable Crops Edition
Seasonal updates and alerts on insects, diseases, and weeds impacting vegetable crops. New Jersey Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations updates between annual publication issues are included.
Subscriptions are available via EMAIL and RSS.
Quick Links:
NJ Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations
Rutgers Weather Forecasting - Meteorological Information important to commercial agriculture.
Vegetable Disease Update – 9/30/20
Understanding root rots in fall-seeded and transplanted crops
Damping-off is caused by a number of important vegetable pathogens and is very common at seeding and transplanting in spring and fall. Damping-off can kill seedlings before they break the soil line (pre-emergent damping-off) or kill seedlings soon after they emerge (post-emergent damping-off) or soon after transplanting. Common pathogens that cause damping-off include Pythium, Phytophthora, Rhizoctonia, and Fusarium spp.
It is extremely important to know which pathogen is causing the damping-off problem and which fungicide to properly apply.
Vegetable IPM Update 9/30/20
Note: Next week (10/07/20) will be the final regular edition of the Vegetable IPM Update for 2020. We will post alerts should special pest situations arise.
Sweet Corn
Corn earworm (CEW) moth captures continue to decline, although with temporary increases on warm nights. Growers should consider this pest to still be at moderate population levels in the state, with higher risk during stretches of warmer nights. The current population poses a significant risk to silking corn. Green areas on this map (see map at left) represent a 3-day spray schedule. However, night temperatures in the 40 to low 50 F range, may permit the extension of that spray interval by a day. For further information on CEW activity, see pheromone trap information below.
The highest nightly trap catches of CEW in black light traps for the week ending 9/30/20 are as follows:
Hackettstown 3 | Eldora 2 | Matawan 1 |
Allamuchy 2 | Sergeantsville 2 | Medford 1 |
Bellemeade 2 | Califon 1 | Oldwick 1 |
Clinton 2 | Downer 1 | South Branch 1 |
COVID-19: NJDEP Updates 2020 and 2021 Pesticide Certification & Licensing
Webinar Tomorrow: “Ask the Ag Agent” Fall Series, Every Other Wednesday at 7:00PM
Farmers and others are welcome to join this bi-weekly teleconference every-other Wednesday night from 7:00pm-8:00pm in September and October. Events are hosted by Rutgers Cooperative Extension Agricultural Agents working with the farming industry.
This call-in or WebEx webinar event features updates on farm management, crop conditions, farm industry observations, agricultural agency programs and other topics discussed by farmers, agricultural agents and other agricultural service providers.
Some topics for this Wednesday include:
1. Debate on the New Jersey Law on eliminating plastic bags and other containers
2. Public perception of agriculture with the pandemic
3. Update on the hemp industry and Rutgers hemp research
4. Discussions on winter educational programs with Rutgers Cooperative Extension
5. NJ DEP Pesticide License Testing to be handled by Rutgers OCEP in the future
6. Obtaining pesticide recertification credits next year
Hosted by Agricultural Agents Bill Bamka, Stephen Komar, Michelle Infante-Casella and Meredith Melendez, this bi-weekly communication provides a forum for discussion for farmers and all involved in NJ agriculture, including agricultural agency personnel, non-profit organizations and others.
To join the “Ask the Ag Agent” forum each week on a computer/tablet/smartphone via the WebEx Videoconference
Click Here to Join or use the link https://go.rutgers.edu/g4v4gy0x
To Join by phone call:
+1-650-429-3300 passcode 1202639477##
For this event and other Rutgers Cooperative Extension events see the NJAES Calendar.
Whole-Farm Revenue Protection Program Improvements For Direct Marketers
Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Risk Management Agency (RMA) announced modifications to the Whole-Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) program to decrease paperwork and recordkeeping burdens for direct marketers beginning with the 2021 crop year.
“These changes will allow more direct marketers who previously could not meet reporting requirements a way to participate in the Whole-Farm program and provide better and more affordable coverage to these diversified growers,” RMA Administrator Martin Barbre said. [Read more…]