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Illinois Fruit and Vegetable News:A Newsletter for Commercial Growers of Fruit and Vegetable Crops Vol. 13 , No. 11, August 10, 2007 |
"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." --Aristotle Address any questions or comments regarding this newsletter to the individual authors listed after each article or to its editor, Rick Weinzierl, 217-333-6651, weinzier@uiuc.edu. To receive email notification of new postings of this newsletter, call or write the same number or address. This issue's words of wisdom ... which usually means the jokes ... are at the end of newsletter ... check the last page. In This Issue:Upcoming Programs (Three Rivers CSA, SIU Grape Viticulture Summer Meeting, St. Charles Summer Viticulture Meeting, Illinois Pumpkin Field Day) Regional Updates (from Elizabeth Wahle, Jeff Kindhart, and Maurice Ogutu) Fruit Production and Pest Management (codling moth phenology; raspberry crown borer) Vegetable Production and Pest Management (notes on vegetable insects) University of Illinois Extension Specialists in Fruit & Vegetable Production & Pest Management Upcoming Programs
Regional UpdatesIn southern and southwestern Illinois, the heat is on. Temperatures have soared with no rain for much of the region. For all but a few, drought conditions are widespread. A few stray storms gave relief to scattered areas late last week, some strong enough to cause some wind damage. Ponds and wells are being relied on heavily. Many in the region received less than an inch in rainfall throughout July, and the weather forecasters aren't giving much hope for relief. They did mention a cold front coming through early next week, and instead of the 100-plus degree F temperatures, it will only be in the mid to upper 90s. It's good to be an optimist. Surprisingly, as hot and dry as it seems now, last year was worse at this time. Harvest continues despite the intense heat. Peach, apple, and blackberry picking continues, and grapes are just getting started. Those with late blueberries should have harvest wrapped up now. Heat lovers such as corn, melons, and tomatoes are still in full harvest. The heat coming off these crops is incredible - blackberries actually feel hot to the touch when harvesting. Rapid post-harvest chilling is a must for any level of self life. Despite heat concerns, flavor on all the crops has been outstanding. Elizabeth Wahle (618-692-9434; wahle@uiuc.edu) From the Dixon Springs Ag Center ... Plasticulture strawberry growers are beginning initial field preparation and spreading fertilizer. Tips will be rooted in the next week or two. Problems observed in the past couple of weeks in matted row strawberries include black root rot and strawberry rootworm beetles. The late spring frost and subsequent high volumes of water used in attempt to reduce injury likely is a contributing factor to the black root rot that is common in some southern Illinois strawberry fields. Current hot and dry conditions make it easy to observe that something is wrong with afflicted fields. Information on black root rot is available from OSU , PSU and OrSt . Growers noticing holes in strawberry leaves but not seeing the pest may need to inspect by flashlight to catch the strawberry rootworm beetles causing the feeding injury. Information on this pest can be found from UIUC and control mechanisms are discussed in the 2007 Commercial Small Fruit and Grape Spray Guide . Primocane fruiting blackberries are being harvested at the Ag Center, and harvest of tomatoes continues, while pepper harvest has been completed. It has been an outstanding year for fruit quality for both tomatoes and peppers. On the tobacco production front, what a difference a week makes (along with 1 inch of rain). Below are pictures of the tobacco taken on 8/2 and 8/8. Topping of the tobacco will occur next week, and spays for aphids and budworm continue. Good news: it appears deer don't chew tobacco!!! They probably are too heath conscience, hoping to live a long full life damaging peach trees and such.
During the field day at DSAC on August 2, about 70 people toured the tomato, pumpkin, soybean, and wheat plots in our traditional, best management, and organic production systems project. Other ongoing projects at DSAC include a sweet corn earworm insecticide trial. The corn has been silking for a little over a week now and earworm trap catches have been high enough we anticipate having substantial enough pressure for a good evaluation of the efficacy of the materials in the trial. On a final note, anyone with suggestions for topics during the winter meetings: Illinois Specialty Crops Conference, Southern Illinois Vegetable Growers School, Illinois Small Fruit and Strawberry Schools, etc., please drop an email to Rick, Elizabeth or myself. We would sincerely appreciate your input! Jeff Kindhart (618-695-2444; jkindhar@uiuc.edu) In northern Illinois, clear sunny days prevailed during the first week of August, followed by cloudy, humid days during the period of August 4-8, with day temperatures in the upper 80s to low 90s. Night temperatures have been in the 60s to 70s. Rockford and other areas in the region recorded more than 5 inches of rainfall, with over 4 inches falling on the night of August 6. Soil moisture is adequate in most parts of the region. Summer spray programs continue in orchards, and apples are sizing well. Picking of early-maturing varieties such as Lodi, Redfree, Jerseymac, Duchess, and Williams' Pride is ongoing. Peaches and pears will be ready for harvest very soon, but this varies from one orchard to another. Summer-bearing raspberry picking is over in most farms, and some fall-bearing raspberries will be ready for picking towards the end of this week. Some early grape varieties are in the veraison stage, and bird protection devices are already up in vineyards. I observed Japanese beetles feeding on leaves of raspberries last week, San Jose scale on apple fruits, and anthracnose on raspberry leaves and canes. Orchardists need to be keen on their spray programs, as the wet and humid weather occurring in the region is very conducive for development of apple scab and other summer diseases of fruit trees such as sooty blotch and fly speck. Harvesting of cucumbers, squash, sweet corn, early tomato varieties, and other vegetables continues on most farms. Muskmelon and watermelon harvesting is ongoing in the Kankakee area and will soon commence in other areas in the region. Corn borer and corn earworm moth counts are still very low in general, although one grower in the area reported corn earworm counts above 30 in one night. I observed powdery mildew on pumpkin vines and leaves in the research plots at the St. Charles Horticulture Research Center, and I also noted squash vine borer damage on pumpkins, squash bugs on pumpkin leaves, early blight on tomatoes, and bacterial spot on pepper leaves. In addition to the above, I received reports of pumpkin leaves turning yellow, premature ripening of pumpkin fruits, abortion of newly developing pumpkin fruits, smut on sweet corn ears, flea beetles on eggplants, and tomato hornworm larvae damaging tomato fruits. Western corn rootworm beetle and cucumber beetle population are also building. Maurice Ogutu (708-352-0109; ogutu@uiuc.edu) Degree-Day AccumulationsDegree-day accumulations listed below for weather stations in the Illinois State Water Survey WARM data base have been summarized using the Degree-Day Calculator on the University of Illinois IPM site (http://www.ipm.uiuc.edu/degreedays/index.html). The list below includes only degree-day accumulations and projections based on a 50-degree F developmental threshold and a January 1 starting date, but other options that use different thresholds and specific biofix dates are available on the Degree-Day Calculator. The Degree-Day Calculator is available as a result of a joint effort of current and former extension entomologists (primarily Kelly Cook) and Bob Scott of the Illinois State Water Survey. If you have questions about how to use the site, contact me or Bob Scott (rwscott1@uiuc.edu). Rick Weinzierl (217-333-6651; weinzier@uiuc.edu)
Degree-day accumulations, base 50 degrees F, starting January 1.
Fruit Production and Pest ManagementCodling Moth PhenologyDevelopmental events for the codling moth based on degree-day accumulations are presented below. Remember that "biofix" refers to the date of the first sustained capture of first-generation moths in traps. Codling moth development:
(Table based on Orchard Pest Management by Beers et al., published by Good Fruit Grower, Yakima, WA.) * Extrapolated from the model presented by Beers et al. Degree-day updates and codling moth comments from south to north, for select locations in Illinois: See previous issues of this newsletter for the names of specific orchards where biofix dates were observed and reported. All degree-day accumulations and predictions are based on nearest weather station data; temperatures recorded within your orchard provide more accurate data; use the numbers from the table below as approximations only. For codling moth:
Rick Weinzierl (217-333-6651; weinzier@uiuc.edu) Raspberry Crown BorerFlights of raspberry crown borer, a clearwing moth, are underway in southern Illinois, but now is not the best time for treatments aimed at reducing damage from larvae feeding in crowns and roots. Research published by Jacquelyn McKern, Donn Johnson, and Barbara Lewis at the University of Arkansas (Journal of Economic Entomology 100 (2): 398-404, April, 2007) found that late fall was the best time for application of Capture to the base of canes because small larvae are located just beneath the cambium in the lower canes then and are vulnerable to the insecticide at that time. Although the timing of events in the life cycle of raspberry crown borer differs from southern to northern portions of its range, small larvae are located just inside the cane at the base of the plant through the fall and winter in Illinois as well. Where Capture is used to control this insect, apply 6.4 fluid ounces per acre in at least 50 gallons of water per acre, with sprays directed to the lower few inches of plants; make applications in October or November (or very early in the spring). Rick Weinzierl (217-333-6651; weinzier@uiuc.edu) Vegetable Production and Pest ManagementBrief Notes on Vegetable Insects
Rick Weinzierl (217-333-6651; weinzier@uiuc.edu) Words of Wisdom ...
University of Illinois Extension Specialists in Fruit and Vegetable Production & Pest Management
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