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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April 27, 2021

Agritourism and On-Farm Direct Marketing Webinar Series Begins Tuesday, May 4th

Rutgers Cooperative Extension is working with other extension professionals in the northeastern states to deliver weekly, one-hour webinar programming for agritourism and on-farm direct market operators each Tuesday in May until the first week in June. We are announcing the first session and will post the registration information for more sessions soon. Registration is being handled through the University of Vermont. See information below to join the first webinar. 

Session 1: Getting Ready for Pick-Your-Own — Do’s and Don’ts for the Upcoming Season
Tuesday, May 4, 4:00-5:00pm Eastern time
No charge but you must register in advance.
Register for FREE HERE
People picking berries
Join growers and ag service providers from the Northeast for an interactive discussion about what is working and what is not as we prepare to open our farms to visitors for the upcoming pick-your-own season. The berries are ripening and the Covid-19 pandemic is evolving – what does that mean for PYO visitor management this season? What did you do last year that you’ll continue and what will be different this season?

Featuring:
-Deb Colitas from Valley Fruits & Veggies in the Lehigh Valley of PA
-Claudia Schmidt from Penn State Extension
-Lisa Chase from University of Vermont Extension
-And YOU! Come ready to share your PYO questions and experiences managing visitors.

This is the first agritourism/on-farm direct marketing zoom session in a series that will cover several topics for farms open to visitors through the evolving COVID-19 pandemic. Other sessions will be held on consecutive Tuesdays on May 11, 18, 25, and June 1. For more programs and information see the Rutgers NJAES Events Calendar. 

Session 2: Agritourism Operation Checklists and Self-Assessment During the Pandemic, When: May 11, 2021 7:00-8:00 PM Eastern Time – Register HERE

Session 3: What to Do when Something Goes Wrong, Incident Response and Media Relations, When: May 18, 2021 7:00-8:00 PM Eastern Time – Register HERE

Session 4: Liability Insurance, When: May 25, 2021 12:00-1:00 PM Eastern Time – Register HERE

To request a disability-related accommodation to participate in this program, please contact Christi Sherlock at 802-476-2003 or Christi.Sherlock@uvm.edu for assistance.

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Food Safety, Fruit, Organic Production, Vegetable Crops Tagged With: , ,
April 23, 2021

USDA Expands and Renews Conservation Reserve Program (CRP)

In an effort to boost enrollment and address climate change, the USDA will open enrollment in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) with higher payment rates, new incentives, and a more targeted focus on the program’s role in climate change mitigation. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Field, Forage & Livestock, Fruit, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Vegetable Crops Tagged With: ,
April 22, 2021

Scheduling a USDA Harmonized and Harmonized Plus+ Audit

Before scheduling an audit review the standards to understand what is required.  Go to https://www.ams.usda.gov/services/auditing/gap-ghp/harmonized and download the latest versions dated February 8, 2021.  There have been changes since the 2018 version so review carefully.  Compare the new version with your written food safety plan and make the necessary changes.  If you need technical assistance or want to discuss parts of the audit email “Ask the Experts” at onfarmfoodsafety@njaes.rutgers.edu.  The on-farm food safety team can be contacted at the same address to schedule a walkthrough to assess your readiness for an audit if requested.

Once the food safety plan is complete and you are ready for an audit email fvinspection@ag.nj.gov to schedule the audit.  You will receive an agreement to review and check which audit and audit sections you want audited.  You will be asked to send certain documents for review prior to the on-site audit.  This reduces the amount of time the auditors are on the farm for Covid considerations.  The auditors want to see at least 10 days of records prior to the audit.

Again, this year the Harmonized and Harmonized Plus+ audits in New Jersey will be reimbursed 100% through the USDA Risk Management Agency.  Once the audit is finalized, USDA will generate a bill to the auditee which summarizes the cost breakdown of the audit, and then showing a credit for that same amount. A note will be added to the bill stating, “Cost of your 2021 USDA Harmonized GAP Audit covered by a bill credit made possible through a grant from the USDA Risk Management Agency Agricultural Management Assistance Program”.  For more details and frequently ask questions visit the AMS website mentioned above and look under resources.

Once the audit is complete it will be reviewed by USDA personnel and a certificate will be sent to the grower.  Also, the farm name, address, date and commodities audited will be posted on the USDA AMS website.

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Food Safety, Fruit, Vegetable Crops
April 21, 2021

NJDEP Notice to Ag Businesses Regarding Open Burning April 21 2021

Due to the low temperatures predicted this evening April 21, 2021, the New Jersey DEP has issued an Open Burning Permit for Agricultural Businesses.

Note:The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and New Jersey Forest Fire Service caution all farmers and agriculture businesses with respect to the use of open burning in high wind velocity conditions. Please take note that farmers are encouraged to utilize smudge pots is warming as necessary during higher wind conditions. Use of open burning when wind velocity is greater than 5mph is strictly prohibited, may contribute to wildfire risk, and can carry significant penalties.

 

 

Filed Under: Blueberry, Commercial Ag Updates, Fruit, Tree Fruit, Vegetable Crops, Wine Grape
April 21, 2021

Allium leaf miner update: 04/21/21

Allium Leaf Miner

Allium leaf miner (ALM) feeding/egg laying scars continue to increase in chive plantings near Milford, Hunterdon County and Lawrenceville, Mercer County as of this Tuesday.  Chives in home gardens in central Morris County and southern Cape May County were also found to be infested this past weekend, with adults actively flying in plants.  The first (spring) flight of these flies appears well underway.  Yellow sticky cards have captured low, but consistent (range 1-5/card/week) numbers of adults in Hunterdon and Mercer County plantings.  Foliar insecticide applications temporarily suppress catches on the cards.  Growers throughout the state should assume there is egg laying activity in their area currently.

Damaged plantGrowers should consider initiating (continuing) the control method of their choice at this time.  Affected crops include chives, scallions, garlic, onions and leeks.  Look for neat rows of white spots descending from the upper tips of allium leaves (see photo at left).  Initial injury often occurs on the tallest leaves.  Under warmer, less breezy conditions, adults may be seen near the tips of leaves (see photo of adults at lower right).  Click on photos to enlarge the images.

Floating row covers, kept on until this flight ends will help minimize access to plants.  Insecticide applications targeting adults may be helpful as well, although weekly sprays have not stopped foliar injury.  Spinosyn materials (Radiant, Entrust (OMRI approved)), pyrethroids (Mustang Maxx, Warrior), neonicotinoids (Scorpion, Venom), the diamide Exirel (section 2ee recommendation) and the insect growth regulator Trigard are labeled for  leaf miner control.Damaged plant

Adult activity and observations of feeding will be reported on in the IPM Update as they occur.  At this time, all growers should continue to respond to the first adult generation.  We will attempt to identify the end of the first flight so that growers know when the risk of infestation has abated.

 

 

 

Filed Under: Organic Production, Vegetable Crops Tagged With: , ,
April 21, 2021

Communicating the Value of COVID-19 Vaccines With Your Farm Employees

CDC COVID-19 Vaccine Posters available in multiple languages – “Vaccines (shots) are one of the tools we have to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.”

In an effort to increase participation in the COVID-19 vaccination program among farm workers, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), through the national Extension Foundation, is working with Cooperative Extension across the country to help spread the word about the importance of getting vaccinated. Rutgers Cooperative Extension Director Brian Schilling has enlisted a team of County Agents and Specialists to answer the call from the CDC to participate in this EXCITE program. Through a variety of communications channels we will be providing informational posters and other educational materials in several appropriate languages that you can hand out or post in locations where your workers can easily read them (like on or near your Worker Protections Standards bulletin boards or in your labor camps).

“Vaccines (shots) are one of the tools we have to fight the COVID-19 pandemic” posters from the CDC are now available on the COVID-19 page of the Rutgers NJAES On-Farm Food Safety website <https://onfarmfoodsafety.rutgers.edu/covid-19-information/> with the direct links to these multiple language editions:

You can also share this Spanish language video <https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/un-rayo-de-esperanza> from the US Dept. of Health and Human Services with your workers to help explain where they can get more information about COVID-19 vaccines. There are several other informational videos available at https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/filter/format/Video, as well as posters/fliers from https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/filter/format/Poster%20%E2%80%93%20Flyer (mostly English), and factsheets at https://wecandothis.hhs.gov/filter/format/Fact%20Sheet.

EXCITE PNG

Filed Under: Blueberry, Commercial Ag Updates, Cranberry, Field, Forage & Livestock, Fruit, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Nursery, Strawberry, Tree Fruit, Turf, Vegetable Crops, Wine Grape Tagged With: , , , , ,