“During the past few years considerable complaint has been made in this state of the loss of apples through rotting.” George P. Clinton, 1902. It’s been quite a season for rot. High temperatures, coupled with regular rains created a perfect storm of summer rots. If you were one of the orchards with problems, you need[Read More…]
Insect Management
I am still catching significant numbers of codling moths in my pheromone traps. That means that they are still mating and laying eggs on fruit. Even though you may be well into the harvest period, don’t forget that those later varieties still need to be protected from codling moth. Don’t forget to pay close attention[Read More…]
We just completed a new publication that will assist fruit and vegetable growers in protecting pollinators while still managing their insect pests. The title is “Protecting Pollinators in Fruit and Vegetable Production.” It can be found at https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/publications/POL-2/POL-2.html. There are two companion publications in this series, “Protecting Pollinators in Home Lawns and Landscapes” and “Protecting[Read More…]
Grape harvest is underway in the southern part of the state, and early varieties have been harvested in central Indiana. The recent storms and heavy rains could not have come at a worse time, especially for varieties near harvest, and tight clustered varieties such as Vignoles, Seyval Valvin muscat, etc. Excess rain causes fruit[Read More…]
Spotted wing drosophila continue to plague raspberry, blackberry, blueberry, and grape growers. I have had some reports of poor control. There are a number of reasons that control of any insect may be poor. If you are not getting the level of control you expect, here are a few things to consider. Is your sprayer[Read More…]
Grape harvest has began in the southern part of the state and will begin in central areas over the next week or so. Early varieties are nearing full maturity while late varieties are just at, or not yet at veraison. Overall fruit quality looks excellent. Apple harvest continues. Summer varieties are mostly done and early[Read More…]
Populations of spotted wing drosophila continue to increase. As best I can tell, numbers are not at the devastating levels that they were a couple of years ago, but there are still plenty around to cause very serious injury to small fruit. Raspberry, blackberry, and blueberry growers should be on a regular spray program at[Read More…]
This pest has been extremely common in many locations this year. They can cause defoliation of a number of fruit crops and can be especially devastating to young trees, so they need to be controlled to prevent losses. They also like to feed on most of the small fruits, early maturing varieties of apples, and[Read More…]
Mites continue to be a concern for both fruit and vegetable growers. We are just now at the historical peak population time for European red mites. Fruit growers should be scouting their more susceptible blocks regularly for the next few weeks. The thresholds for treatment increase as we get later in the season. See https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/publications/E-258/E-258.html[Read More…]
I continue to catch low numbers of codling moths in my pheromone traps. As I explained in a previous FFF article, in the lower Midwest, we don’t have distinct generations. Out moth catches seldom go down to zero, so there is always a threat for codling moth. Apple growers should be sure that they are[Read More…]