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…]
Crop Management
Summer rots continue to rear their ugly heads (Fig. 1). This year, we are even seeing them on late season apples like Evercrisp (Fig 2) and GoldRush. On the plus side, we are seeing some level of control with all fungicides in our trials (data will be presented at the Indiana Hort Congress); unfortunately,[Read More…]
Fruit rots continue to pose a problem for those of us in the wetter parts of the state. Frequent rains and warm temperatures really set the stage for bitter rot, black rot, white rot, and even brown rot. Any rain event that produced more than 2” of rain would remove the majority of fungicide, meaning[Read More…]
Grape harvest is in full swing across the state. The weather could not be more ideal. Warm sunny days and cool nights are ideal for fruit quality. Lack of major rainstorms is also a plus. This year is almost a complete opposite of 2016, when high temperatures and rain persisted through July and August, causing[Read More…]
June bearing strawberries are “short day” plants that set flower buds in response to short days. As we get into late summer, days shorten and strawberry plants respond by setting the flower buds that will result in the crop next spring. It is important to maintain appropriate nutrition and soil water status during this time.[Read More…]
Grapes are starting to ripen (veraison) in Lafayette. Marquette and Brianna are the earliest varieties and both are about 2 weeks from harvest. Floricane producing blackberry harvest continues. Primocane fruiting blackberries and raspberries are just getting started. Japanese beetles continue to be a major problem in addition to Spotted Wing Drosophila. Peach harvest is winding[Read More…]
Grape harvest is just about to get started in the southern part of the state. Early varieties will be harvested starting next week. Most varieties are slightly ahead of normal this year. In Lafayette, Marquette and Brianna are at full veraison and shold be ready to harvest in the next couple of weeks. We generally[Read More…]
Although PristineTM was selected in 1982, its history goes back to the early days of the PRI breeding program. From an original cross of Rome Beauty with Malus floribunda 821, selections and hybridizations were made incorporating Golden Delicious, McIntosh, Starking Delicious and Cazumat along the way. The cross that resulted in PristineTM was Coop 10[Read More…]
Weather the past couple of weeks has been a bit unsettled. Many parts of the state have experienced rounds of heavy rainfall from storm fronts. More are predicted. Peach harvest is underway in Lafayette and quality is very good. Early apples such as Pristine are also ready for harvest. Summer fruit blackberry harvest continues. Spotted[Read More…]