In response to the global pandemic COVID-19, and in line with the Mexican government’s call to increase social distancing, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City and all U.S. consulates in Mexico will suspend routine immigrant and nonimmigrant visa services starting March 18, 2020, and until further notice. For farmers this means, H-2A workers and others from Mexico may be prevented from entering the U.S. until further notice. NJ Farm Bureau is researching the subject for more clarification. For now to see more information go to the U.S. Embassy’s website at: https://mx.usembassy.gov/status-of-u-s-consular-operations-in-mexico-in-light-of-covid-19/
Status of U.S. Consular Operations in Mexico in Light of COVID-19
2020 South Jersey Nursery Meeting Registration Deadline is This Thursday, March 5th
What:
2020 South Jersey Nursery Meeting
When:
March 12, 2020 8:30 A.M – 4:00 P.M. (registration deadline is this Thursday, March 5th)
Cost:
$25 per person. Registration fee covers morning coffee/tea, donuts, and lunch.
Where:
Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Cumberland County
291 Morton Ave. Millville, NJ 08332
Phone: 856-451-2800 ext 1
Fax: 856-451-4206
Pesticide Credits: CORE (1); PP2 (5); 1A (5); 9 (1)
This year’s meeting will be an introduction of Tim Waller and Bill Errickson to the nursery industry here in South Jersey. The educational programming will include weed and pest updates, irrigation management, pesticide use /safety, and soil fertility presentations.
The deadline for registration is this Thursday, March 5th. Please register by mailing in the registration form in the attached tri-fold brochure or call Brandi or Katie (ext 1) for assistance. Due to the proximity of the meeting please call and let us know if you will be attending.
Tri-fold brochure (print out registration form): Trifold 2020 Nursery Meeting
Meeting flyer: Flyer 2020 Nursery Meeting
Hilling-Up Demonstration and Post-harvest Vineyard Management
Where – Monday, October 14, 3:30 PM
When – Coia Vineyards – 3650 Oak Rd., Vineland, NJ 08360
- On-farm demonstration of hilling-up and the discussions on hilling-down (Larry Coia and Hemant Gohil)
- Understanding the Cold hardiness (Daniel Ward)
- Post-harvest Disease Management including understanding of trunk diseases (Peter Oudemans)
- Weed Management for hilling-up and for fall and winter (Thierry Besancon)
- Vineyard fertility Management (Gary Pavlis)
There is no registration fees, however please let Joan Medany know if you are planning, by email jmedany@co.gloucester.nj.us or call 856-224-8030
This site is accessible to the physically impaired. If an additional assistance is needed, please contact Hemant Gohil (Program Organizer) at 856-224-8029 prior to the meeting.
With Support from the New Jersey Center for Wine Research and Education (NJCWRE)
Mechanization of Pruning in NJ Container Nurseries
In the 2017 survey of labor and mechanization of New Jersey’s nursery industry, pruning was ranked, the third most important operation, that needs mechanization the most (41 responses). In spite of obvious benefits such as efficiency, quality, and consistency, lack of practical information about the mechanized pruning is delaying the rapid adoption by container nursery growers. This article summarizes inputs from Chris Ruske of (Cumberland Nursery), Donald Blew (Centerton Nursery) and Ed Overdevest (Overdevest Nurseries) on pruning mechanization, shared during the panel discussion at Clayton in Gloucester County in January 2018. [Read more…]
Spacing Robots – Experiences of the Container Nursery
Spacing is one of the most labor intensive and least desirable jobs on the nursery. Continuous moving, bending and twisting with filled containers is also the common cause of workers’ injuries. Using robots for spacing and moving, can address these challenges, however has its own challenges. During a panel discussion on the Nursery Mechanization, held at Clayton in Gloucester County on Jan 16, Donald Blew of Centerton Nursery, shared their experiences in using robots.
- Efficient Utilization of the Space: The big reason for Blews was not because they could not find the labor or because it was cheaper, but the fact that robots are good at spacing pots in hexagonal pattern and saving spaces and saves money on that. “If you draw a square and put your four pots in it, you have that extra space in the middle that is not being used. If you put them in a hexagonal pattern, you can use a little bit more of that free area that you have”. Robots can do that with precision. It saved them right around 10 greenhouses last year! At eighteen hundred square feet a piece, it is quite a bit of area gained. Previously, they could fit 24,000 three-gallon hydrangea in one greenhouse. Now, with spacing robots can add 6,000 more, with the same center-to-center distance between pots. So, for every three and a third house they saved at least one house. Other thing is that it lets you know exactly how many plants are going into the greenhouse which gives an ability to refill greenhouse after, say you shipped half of the greenhouse. There are calculations and online spreadsheets that make it easy.
- How does it works? No, they don’t work on GPS. They have very simple lasers and sensors. It is actually taking the number of wheel count, so it knows how far it is going by how many revolutions making. You apply a boundary marker, along one edge/side of the bed, and then put at least one container down-faced to establish the reference point or boundaries. Then enter certain parameters such as specifying either the square or hexagonal pattern, spacing between and within the rows, on robot’s human interface. “Mark the center with D.O.T. tape and now you can use two Robots”, said the owner of four such robots.
- Challenges: Biggest challenge is that it needs a skilled labor to operate and maintain, including charging batteries, every four to five hours. If you have four of them, you may need one person dedicated to just do that. According to Donald Blew ‘there are days when it can take a full day just to troubleshoot or repair the robots’. Machine is expensive, costs around 35,000 per piece. On an average people are getting five to ten years out of them. By the time you have paid off, it’s time to get a new one. However you can lease them through Farm Credit.
- Do your math before buying. Ask yourself how many man-hours you spend, doing the operation that robots could replace. Then do the math as far as payroll. If number make sense and handle the challenges then by all means, buy the Robot.
Spotted Lanternfly Basics Webinars
In conjunction with the New York State IPM Program and the Department of Agriculture and Markets, the Northeastern IPM Center will host a collection of webinars, titled “Spotted Lanternfly Basics.” Each webinar will focus on, and be tailored to, a specific commodity group:
Spotted Lanternfly Basics for Grape and Apple Industries (Feb. 26, 2019, 1:00 p.m.). Registration link: https://cornell.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_d_3KfxQ9SuKHyhk6pM7NCA
Spotted Lanternfly Basics for Hops, Berry, and Vegetable Growers (Feb. 26, 2019, 10:00 a.m.). Registration link: https://cornell.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ONViZLocSBCOKIv-sjoZVg
Spotted Lanternfly Basics for Christmas Tree Growers (Mar. 4, 2019, 10:00 a.m.). Registration link: https://cornell.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_7eehVeBvSBOgM3aTXOtaew
Spotted Lanternfly Basics for Nursery, Greenhouse, and Landscape Industries (Mar. 4, 2019, 1:00 p.m.). Registration link: https://cornell.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_u5mYQOHMSESWFcNoftt2Nw
All webinars will follow a similar format that covers spotted lanternfly biology, identification, and hosts, monitoring and management strategies, and a regulatory update. While the content may be relevant to audiences throughout the Northeast, management practices covered will be specific to New York. Participants will be encouraged to ask questions.
For more information and registration links, go to: