This winter was significantly colder than normal in the northern half of Indiana. Many areas north of “I-70” experienced temperatures between -15 and -20˚F in early January. That is cold enough to cause considerable cold injury to grapes, peaches, and blackberries. Ten below zero is a commonly accepted threshold for seeing damage to cold sensitive[Read More…]
Grapes
One way insects communicate with individuals of the same species is with pheromones. Pheromones are volatile chemicals released by an insect that usually can be detected only by individuals of the same species. There are a number of different types of pheromones, but the most common type is the sex pheromone. Usually the females will[Read More…]
The Midwest Fruit Pest Management Guide is updated each year by the Midwest Fruit Workers group to provide the most complete information and recommendations for controlling weeds, diseases and insect pests of all major fruit crops grown in the Midwest. For the past three years, the guide has combined information on tree fruit, small fruit[Read More…]
Spring freeze damage can be a significant economic problem for Midwest grape growers. Widespread damage occurred in 2007, 2012 and 2017 when warm temperatures in February and March were followed by freezing temperatures. Obviously this year has been very cool so far so there is hopefully less risk of early budbreak and frost damage. But,[Read More…]
This winter was significantly colder than normal in the northern half of Indiana. Many areas north of “I-70” experienced temperatures between -15 and -20˚F in early January. That is cold enough to cause considerable cold injury to grapes, peaches, and blackberries. See the map below for minimum winter temperatures. We have evaluated crops at the[Read More…]
Powdery and downy mildew can develop on grapes in the late season, post harvest. It is important to keep vines as healthy as possible going into winter. With the long fall we are experiencing, downy and powdery mildew are both becoming prevalent in many vineyards. Growers should consider a late season application of fungicides to[Read More…]
Crown gall is a common disease of many perennial plants. It causes fleshy tumors to develop on the plant and usually results in plant death. Grapes are among the most sensitive fruit crop to crown gall. The disease is caused by the bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens. This is the same bacterium that is used to genetically[Read More…]
There are a number of common grape pathogens that can cause fruit rots each year in the region. Black rot and Phomopsis cane and leaf spot are by far the most common fruit pathogens. We also see Botrytis gray mold on some cultivars in cooler regions and years. Another common rot is Sour rot, but[Read More…]