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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NJ Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations

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July 1, 2015

Veg IPM Update: Week Ending 7/1/15

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Sweet Corn

We are between European corn borer (ECB) adult generations at this time. Only scattered individuals are being captured throughout NJ (see ECB map). ECB infestations are still present in some sweet corn plantings, but whorl stage corn is now largely free of ECB injury.

As always, consider treating when the number of infested plants in a 50 plant sample exceeds 12%. Any planting remaining at or above threshold as it proceeds to full tassel should be treated, as this is the last stage at which ECB larvae will be exposed and vulnerable to insecticidal sprays.

See the 2015 Commercial Vegetable Recommendations Guide for insecticide choices.
[Read more…]

Filed Under: Vegetable Crops
June 28, 2015

Phytophthora Control During Wet Weather

Most of New Jersey has been plagued by heavy rains and pop-up thunderstorms these past few weeks making conditions ideal for pathogens such as Phytophthora blight (P. capsici) on pepper, eggplant, tomato, and cucurbit crops. Unfortunately, Phytophthora blight can be found on most farms in the southern part of the state. Poor crop rotations with susceptible hosts only make matters worse. The pathogen has an increasing host range that also includes snap and lima beans, and all crops, other than a few resistant bell pepper cultivars, lack any resistance to the pathogen. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Organic Production, Vegetable Crops Tagged With:
June 28, 2015

Preparing for Pepper Anthracnose

Heavy rain and wind can cause pepper anthracnose to flare up quickly!

Growers with peppers in fields with a history of pepper anthracnose should scout on a daily basis and initiate a fungicide program as soon as small fruit begin to develop. Pepper anthracnose can be very difficult to control once established. All bell and non-bell peppers are susceptible. Strip picking and removing all fruit from ‘hot spots’ when they first appear may help suppress spread of the pathogen.

Preventative fungicide applications should begin at flowering or fruit set. Use a heavy volume of water and make sure coverage is extremely good. Apply high rates of chlorothalonil or Manzate weekly and tank mix and/or rotate weekly with one of the following FRAC group 11 fungicides: Priaxor (fluxapyroxad + pyraclostrobin, 11), Quadris (azoxystrobin, 11), or Cabrio (pyracolostrobin, 11).
Please see the 2015 New Jersey Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations Guide for more information.

Mature bell pepper fruit infected by pepper anthracnose. (Each spot is the result of a single spore landing on the fruit causing an infection. The pinkish-orange masses developing in the centers of lesions are millions upon millions of spores that will be splashed via rain and wind resulting in new infections.)

Mature bell pepper fruit infected by pepper anthracnose.

Anthracnose on Mature Bell Pepper Fruit: Each spot is the result of a single spore landing on the fruit causing an infection. The pinkish-orange masses developing in the centers of lesions are millions upon millions of spores that will be splashed via rain and wind resulting in new infections.

Filed Under: Vegetable Crops Tagged With:
June 28, 2015

Vegetable Disease Briefs – 6/28/15

  • Phytophthora blight on pepper and cucurbit crops have been reported. The heavy rains that have been around lately have been ideal for P. capsici development. All growers need to scout on a regular basis and applied preventative fungicides on a regular basis as well as remain proactive by removing infected plants from field, making sure water is able to drain away from beds/fields, and cutting plastic to help dry out beds.
  • A new, more aggressive form of Black leg has been reported in potato in southern New Jersey.
  • Bacterial leaf spot is being reported on pepper and tomato.
  • Basil downy mildew remains active. All basil growers should continue to scout and be proactive.
  • Late blight has been reported on potato as far north as North Carolina near the Virginia border. There have been no reports of late blight in the region to date. To track late blight in the US please visit http://usablight.org/
  • Cucurbit downy mildew has been reported on cucumber, butternut, acorn, and yellow summer squash as far north as central South Carolina and was reported on cucumber in Michigan this past week. To track the progress of CDM in the US please visit http://cdm.ipmpipe.org/. Fungicide maintenance programs should focus on cucurbit powdery mildew control until CDM is reported in the region.
Filed Under: Vegetable Crops
June 26, 2015

Audit Ready: Heads Up on Handwashing Stations, Well Water Sampling, & Traceability

Handwashing Stations

Auditors have noted that on handwashing stations some have a label which says “Not potable water.” If a grower is doing the USDA GAP or Harmonized audits, the water in handwashing stations must meet the “Microbial standard for drinking water.” If a label is on the wash station marked not potable, the grower is not in compliance. Check G-9 in the GAP or 2.2.5 in the Field Operations and Harvesting Harmonized Food Safety Standard for more details.

From Grower Self Audit for USDA GAP Audit General Questions G-1 to G-15:
G-9. All toilet/restroom facilities are clean and properly supplied with single use towels, toilet paper, and hand soap or anti-bacterial soap and potable water for hand washing.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Blueberry, Food Safety, Fruit, Tree Fruit, Vegetable Crops
June 24, 2015

Veg IPM Update: Week Ending 6/24/15

Sweet Corn

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European corn borer (ECB) adult activity is now very low. Only scattered individuals remain in northern NJ, while the activity in the southwestern part of the state has declined to nearly nothing. The first flight is over in most of NJ. Areas of highest activity is in parts of Morris County (see ECB map). ECB infestations are still present in sweet corn plantings. Feeding in pretassle stage plantings in the 30% range has been found in areas where IPM personnel are operating.

Be sure to begin monitoring plantings for ECB feeding while they are still in the whorl stage. Consider treating when the number of infested plants in a 50 plant sample exceeds 12%. Feeding in the whorl stage will appear as numerous small holes (called “shot-hole”) on leaves, with damage present on consecutively younger leaves.
[Read more…]

Filed Under: Organic Production, Vegetable Crops