Spring weather is unpredictable. One of the major risks associated with strawberry production is cold damage in the spring. Open strawberry flowers can not tolerate temperatures lower than 30°F, popcorn stage flowers and tight buds may tolerant temperatures low to 26 and 22°F, respectively. If strawberries are in the early blooming stage, the damage might[Read More…]
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Over the last week many areas of the state have experienced minimum temperatures likely to cause bud damage. Many areas experienced low temperatures of 24-26 F (according to weather stations) although one grower reported a low of 22 F. As experienced growers know well, it’s not just the temperature as such that’s important, but the[Read More…]
In Lafayette and more northern areas of the state, it’s been a pretty typical spring. Temperatures at this time of the year are a two-edged sword. Cooler temperatures and the delay in crop development, reduces the chance f freeze damage to crops, but if flowers are already open, we want warm temperatures for bee movement,[Read More…]
The Climate Prediction Center’s outlook for May is dominated by uncertainty regarding both temperature and precipitation (Figure 1). The computer models could not settle on a consistent pattern for either above- or below-normal temperatures for the month and precipitation outlooks are only slightly confident that there will be above-normal precipitation in southern Indiana. Shorter-term outlooks[Read More…]
Spring is here and with it comes the emergence of weeds- especially problematic perennials like Canada thistle (Figure 1). Many weeds in perennial fruit crops are controlled during site preparation, but can become problematic again after crop establishment. Below is some information about Canada thistle and methods to manage it. Keep in mind two things:[Read More…]
Late spring freezes and severe winter cold regularly causes stone fruit crop losses to approach100%. With this level of irregular cropping, disease management must focus on protecting foliage to ensure a good potential crop for next year, while reducing over wintering spore loads. Copper is fairly phytotoxic to peaches and should be avoided. Bravo is[Read More…]
At Southwest Purdue Agriculture Center in Vincennes, IN. We are conducting trials to evaluate annual plasticulture strawberry production systems. Here are the updates of strawberries from different production systems. In a high tunnel, harvest of fall-planted strawberries started in early April. Cultivars Sensation, Radiance, Ruby June were early cultivars; followed by Beauty, Fronteras. So far,[Read More…]
In the Midwest, extreme weather events are, unfortunately, regular occurrences, even in extremely unusual times. At this point, though, it just feels like a pile-on. Most fruit crops planted in Indiana are tolerant of the cold when they are fully dormant. In the spring, as trees break bud and begin to flower, they lose cold[Read More…]
This winter-spring has been my first excursion into growing strawberries in a high tunnel. It didn’t take much for our own Wenjing Guan to convince me to plant some; who doesn’t love to eat fresh strawberries? We planted them back in October and I just peeked at them every couple of weeks throughout the winter,[Read More…]
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