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.
 
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February 8, 2021

USDA to Measure Financial Well-Being of Farmers and Ranchers

Agricultural Resource Management Survey Survey       Image result for usda ag counts

Initiated back in late December, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will be spending these next several months gathering information about farm economics and production practices from farmers and ranchers across the United States, as the agency conducts the third and final phase of the 2020 Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS).

“ARMS is the only survey that measures the current financial well-being of producers and their households as a whole,” said King Whetstone, director of the NASS Northeastern Region. “The results of this survey will help inform decisions on local and federal policies and programs that affect farms and farm families.”

In an effort to obtain the most accurate data, NASS will reach out to more than 30,000 producers nationwide, between January and April in 2021. The survey asks producers to provide in-depth information about their operating revenues, production costs, and household characteristics.

The 2020 ARMS survey includes a version of the questionnaire focused on hog and pig production costs and returns. This year the survey also includes questions to help measure any impacts of COVID-19 on farms, farm and household finances, and off-farm employment. “In February, our interviewers will begin reaching out to those farmers who have not yet responded,” said Whetstone. “We appreciate their time and are here to help them with the questionnaire so that their information will continue supporting sound agricultural decision making.”

In addition to producing accurate information, NASS has strong safeguards in place to protect the confidentiality of all farmers who respond to its surveys. The agency will only publish data in an aggregate form, ensuring the confidentiality of all responses and that no individual respondent or operation can be identified.

Growers can complete the survey online, saving you time by allowing you to skip over questions that do not apply to you, by calculating totals automatically, and by providing drop-down menus for common answers. It also saves taxpayer dollars that would otherwise be spent on return postage and data entry.

To complete your survey online, you will need your unique Survey Code from the address label on the paper questionnaire or letter you received in the mail. You can save a partially completed survey by clicking “Save and Return Later.” Do not click the “Submit” button until you are sure you are finished with your survey.

The expense data gathered in ARMS will be published in the annual Farm Production Expenditures report in July 2021. That report and others are available by clicking here. More reports based on ARMS data and more information about ARMS are available online here. For more information, please call the NASS Northeastern Regional Field Office at (800) 498-1518.

NASS is the federal statistical agency responsible for producing official data about U.S. agriculture and is committed to providing timely, accurate and useful statistics in service to U.S. agriculture.

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Field, Forage & Livestock, Fruit, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Vegetable Crops Tagged With: , , ,
February 8, 2021

An update on the potato pathogen, Dickeya dianthicola

It has been nearly six years since Dickeya dianthicola was first reported in potato in New Jersey in 2015 and many other states up and down the East Coast in the spring and summer of 2016. Before then, this seed-borne pathogen had not been detected in potato fields in the mid-Atlantic region and elsewhere. Unfortunately, some potato growers suffered substantial economic losses during the 2015 and 2016 growing seasons. Organic potato producers who grew very small acreage were also affected by Dickeya dianthicola. Most of the commercial potato acreage in New Jersey and elsewhere was being planted with seed purchased from Maine or Canada. When a disease such as this is so widespread when it first occurs it suggests that contaminated seed is the likely inoculum source. Extension personnel from the region learned from visiting farms and talking with growers that occurrences were associated with specific seed lots. With knowledge of the probable origin of the pathogen, Extension personnel from the region developed best management guidelines for Dickeya dianthicola to help potato growers in the region minimize the potential for a Dickeya outbreak in their operation.

Since that time, along with Dickeya dianthicola, other seed-borne tuber rotting pathogens (Pectobacterium spp.) have routinely been found causing significant problems for potato growers in the region. Research on Dickeya and Pectobacterium has been ongoing in the US and other parts of the world where these pathogens occur with data and results related to the most recent outbreaks being published most recently. In a survey of soft rot bacteria collected from potato fields in New York state during the 2016 growing season, a majority of isolates collected were designated as D. dianthicola or P. parmentieri. Based on their dnaX sequence analysis, the authors determined that the D. dianthicola isolated from potato plants in New York formed a single clade, being genetically identical to each other and to D. dianthicola ME23 isolated in Maine in 2015 (Ma et al., 2018). More recent research by Ge et al (2020, Plant Dis. First Look) surveyed commercial potato fields in Maine as well as suspect Dickeya samples collected from potato seed pieces, tubers, or plants from potato fields in 11 other states from 2015 to 2019. A total of 1183 samples were collected. A total of 256 Dickeya dianthicola isolates were used to identify pathogen genotype (I, II, or III) and the “inoculum geography”.  Of these, 231 (~90%) were Type I, 14 (~5%) were Type II, and 11 (~4%) were Type III. In Maine alone, 95% of the total isolates collected from commercial potato fields were Type I. “As such, it was suspected that the original contamination in other states initiated from Maine” since “Maine is the primary seed potato supplier to states in the Northeastern U.S.”. The only consistent genotype found in each year of the study from all states sampled from was Type I for which the authors hypothesized was “likely associated with Maine seed origination”. Not finding Dickeya dianthicola Type II and III in Maine in each year of the study may reflect the fact these types were rare compared to Type I thus a larger sample size was needed to confirm they likely were not present those years. Additionally, while most occurrences of Dickeya dianthicola in potato production fields were associated with seed originated from Maine, there were occurrences associated with seed from Wisconsin and Canada. It is possible Type II and III are principally associated with those seed. Seed source was not determined for the samples.

 

Filed Under: Vegetable Crops Tagged With: , ,
February 4, 2021

Greenhouse Sanitation Important for Disease Management

Proper greenhouse sanitation is important for healthy, disease-free vegetable transplant production.

Efforts need to be made to keep transplant production greenhouses free of unnecessary plant debris and weeds which may harbor insect pests and disease. Efforts need to be taken throughout the transplant production season to minimize potential problems.

  • All equipment, benches, flats, plug trays and floors should be properly cleaned and then disinfested prior to use.
  • Any weeds in or around the greenhouse structure should be removed prior to any production.
  • Any transplant brought into the greenhouse from an outside source needs to be certified ‘clean’, as well as, visually inspected for potential insects and diseases once it reaches your location.

Remember, disinfestants, such as Clorox, Green-Shield, or hydrogen dioxide products (Zerotol – for commercial greenhouses, garden centers and Oxidate – commercial greenhouse and field), kill only what they come into direct contact with so thorough coverage and/or soaking is necessary. The labels do not specify time intervals for specific uses, only to state that surfaces be ‘thoroughly wetted’. Therefore, labels need to be followed precisely for different use patterns (i.e., disinfesting flats vs. floors or benches) to ensure proper dilution ratios. Hydrogen dioxide products work best when diluted with water containing little or no organic matter and in water with a neutral pH.

 

Filed Under: Vegetable Crops
February 3, 2021

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Harmonized Food Safety Audit Training

We are offering a final, for this spring, online Harmonized Audit Training Course on March 2, 2021 from 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM.  If you will need to obtain a USDA Harmonized Audit this year or want a refresher this is the course for you.

This three-hour virtual class will cover each question on the USDA Harmonized Audit allowing participants to hear how questions are interpreted by auditors.  New Jersey Department of Agriculture Auditors will also discuss how someone signs up for an audit and review common issues that auditors found during 2020.  Participants will have the opportunity have their questions answered to help make their audit run more smoothly.

The deadline to register for the class is Friday February 26. The registration form is on the Eventbrite page at rutgersonfarmfoodsafety.eventbrite.com

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Food Safety, Fruit, Organic Production, Vegetable Crops
February 3, 2021

2021 NJ Ag/VGANJ Virtual Convention Update 2

My apologies for some of the confusion from my initial update regarding the educational sessions of our 2021 NJ Ag/VGANJ Convention will be held virtually the last week of February. While the entire up-to-date program was, and is, available to view on the Vegetable Growers Association of NJ website – VGANJ.com/schedule, I forgot one critical point in that last post. The link for signing up for pesticide re-certification credits was not ready to go at that time.

It is ready now.

(One other clarification – when you join the VGANJ and pay your membership dues at either the full or daily rate, you are also registered for these educational sessions.)

Registration for Pesticide License Re-certification Credits

If you want to receive pesticide re-certification credits for attending any of the sessions offering them, you must supply identification information that will allow us to confirm your participation and to let DEP know which sessions you attend. You do not have to sign up for individual sessions, but you must supply these required pre-registration details or you will not receive credit. If supplied, you will receive credits for any session you attend in its entirety as described in our guide.

If you are attending for credits, you will need to be signed in to the Zoom meeting within 10 minutes of the start, remain attentive and responsive to random polls, and logged into the session until it ends. You will not get credit if you leave to join another Zoom session. There will be some allowance and support if there are technical issues, but otherwise, leaving a meeting early will disqualify you for credits.

Before you start to register for credits, please have the following ready before you start:

  • A photo, scan or screen-shot (your ID and license may be submitted as one photo or two) of:
    • your Government-issued ID, and
    • NJ Pesticide applicator status
      • copy of your current license, OR
      • status page from the NJ DEP <https://go.rutgers.edu/t0hiphuz>- search for your name in either the “Commercial Certified Pesticide Applicators by Name” or “Private Certified Pesticide Applicators by Name” menu selections on the page.)

NOTE:  If you are NOT looking for credits, DO NOT enter your license and ID information. You will be able to move from Zoom session to Zoom session.

 

 

Filed Under: Blueberry, Commercial Ag Updates, Field, Forage & Livestock, Food Safety, Fruit, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Nursery, Organic Production, Strawberry, Tree Fruit, Vegetable Crops, Wine Grape
February 3, 2021

Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) – Produce Safety Alliance Training Course

The Produce Safety Alliance Grower Training Course is one way to satisfy the FSMA Produce Safety Rule requirement outlined in § 112.22(c) that requires ‘At least one supervisor or responsible party for your farm must have successfully completed food safety training at least equivalent to that received under the standardized curriculum recognized as adequate by the Food and Drug Administration’.  This is the only training recognized by the FDA at this time!

The course is being offered virtually over two days on March 9 and 10 from 10:45 am to 3:30 pm.  All participants must preregister by February 23 at rutgersonfarmfoodsafety.eventbrite.com.  Once registered a training manual will be sent to each person and the registrant must have the manual to show at the training.

Fruit and vegetables growers and others interested in learning about produce safety, the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Produce Safety Rule, Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) and co-management of natural resources and food safety should also attend this training.

The course is divided into seven modules that cover:

  • Introduction to Produce Safety
  • Worker Health, Hygiene, and Training
  • Soil Amendments
  • Wildlife, Domesticated Animals, and Land Use
  • Agricultural Water (Part I: Production Water; Part II: Postharvest Water)
  • Postharvest Handling and Sanitation
  • How to Develop a Farm Food Safety Plan

In addition to learning about produce safety best practices, parts of the FSMA Produce Safety Rule requirements are outlined within each module and are included in the grower manual provided.

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Food Safety, Fruit, Organic Production, Vegetable Crops