Found 843 Articles
A natural wonder will occur in 15 states this year: the emergence of the Brood X, 17-year periodical cicadas! Also known as “17-year or 13-year locusts” the last mass emergence of these insects occurred in 2004. Now, 17 years later, the immature cicadas will emerge from the ground, molt one last time to gain wings,[Read More…]
With many orchards suffering severe frost damage last year, our expectation is for very heavy flowering this spring. We’ll talk more about thinning next time, but it’s a pretty safe prediction that flowering will be heavy and so growers will really need to have their act together regarding thinning. So make sure now that your[Read More…]
Warm temperatures over the last week or so have accelerated growth rapidly. In Lafayette, apples are nearing green tip, and strawberries at full bloom. Blackberries are pushing half-inch green. Further south in the state, temperatures are in the mid 70’s, apricots are in full bloom and peaches not quite at pink (thanks to Applacres for[Read More…]
A special project group of the North Central Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Center wants to learn about your concerns and experiences with herbicide drift. The group is surveying growers of fruits, vegetables, and other specialty crops in the upper Midwest. To truly understand the frequency, severity, and economic impact of herbicide drift on specialty crops,[Read More…]
The old adage says that March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. The first few days of March started off quite normal and then quickly transitioned to lamb-like (not an official meteorological term) conditions. Then the roller coaster ride began with above-normal temperatures, followed by cooler, stormier conditions, followed by milder[Read More…]
Did you know that almost half of the food we consume every day comes from crops the USDA categorizes as “minor” or “specialty” crops? Compared to the acreage of corn and soybean in the Midwest, fruit and vegetable crops are only a small percentage of crops grown. Not surprisingly, agrochemical companies focus their effort on[Read More…]
Due to the COVID crisis, most Purdue Extension meetings will be held virtually. Most Purdue Extension staff are working from home and are available to answer your questions by email, phone or through social media. Our contact information is at the end of the newsletter. September 10-12, 2020 Purdue Extension Master Gardener State Conference Sponsored[Read More…]
The USDA Coronavirus Assistance Program (CFAP) is accepting applications up until tomorrow (Sept. 11). These should be made by contacting a USDA-FSA office. Producers of specialty crops are eligible for CFAP payments for losses for the following three categories: Had crops that suffered a five percent-or-greater reduction in sales price between mid-January and mid-April as[Read More…]
For those keeping track of my articles over the last few weeks, the outlooks of wetter and cooler than normal conditions have been the theme. The cooler temperatures never really came to fruition. In fact, most of Indiana was 1°F to 3°F above normal over the past two weeks (Figure 1)! Regarding the wetter-than-normal precipitation[Read More…]
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