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Illinois Fruit and Vegetable News:A Newsletter for Commercial Growers of Fruit and Vegetable Crops Vol. 14 , No. 17, December 5, 2008 |
"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. In This Issue:Upcoming Programs (see the extensive list below) Regional Updates (from Elizabeth Wahle -- with notes on Private Pesticide Applicator training and testing) Fruit Production and Pest Management (Dixon Springs blackberry trial data) Vegetable Production and Pest Management (results of rye cover and fertilizer rates on pumpkin production) University of Illinois Extension Specialists in Fruit & Vegetable Production & Pest Management Upcoming Programs
Deborah Cavanaugh-Grant (217-968-5512; cvnghgrn@illinois.edu) Regional UpdatesFrom southwestern Illinois ... Winter has finally arrived, with temperatures just barely making it above freezing during the day. Compared to the northern regions, the southern counties just received a dusting of snow and ice. Outside of horseradish, harvesting is finished for the season. Horseradish digging is ongoing with reports of rough soil conditions resulting in some equipment breakage--the crop itself is looking good overall. Many of you have recently or should be receiving a letter from Illinois Department of Agriculture if your private pesticide applicators license is due to expire at year's end. The Private Pesticide Safety Education Program Clinic Schedule for the 2008/2009 season is available at http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/psep/training/private/index.cfm. If you do not currently hold a private applicators license and wish to qualify for one, contact your local University of Illinois Extension office to register for the next available class and to obtain the training material. For those who have already been through a training session three years ago, you should have or will be receiving a letter in the near future from your local UI Extension office with details for the next training session. There will be a $30 fee associated with the training session. Some counties are offering testing-only sessions that are free of charge. The Illinois Specialty Crop and Agritourism Conference in Springfield is just a month away. Illinois apple cider makers will again get a chance to see who is the best in the state. After a successful run last January, the 20th Annual Cider Contest and the 7th Annual Hard Cider Contest will again be hosted at the Illinois Specialty Crops and Agritourism Conference in Springfield, January 7-9, 2009, and will be sponsored by the Illinois State Horticulture Society. Illinois contestants will compete against other Illinois producers for the Illinois State awards. Illinois cider makers will also have the opportunity to submit their best ciders to challenge the out-of-state entries for the North American and Midwest Awards. Midwest awards are open to states surrounding and including Illinois, and North American awards are open to all cider makers in North America. For the Apple Cider Contest, contestants are asked to submit a one-gallon full container of unclarified apple cider that may be fresh or have been stored frozen. Previously frozen samples must be thawed by10:00 a.m. on Thursday, January 8, in time for judging. For contestants unable to register in person, ship your cider directly to the conference: Crowne Plaza, Attn: Sarah Lynch, 3000 Dirksen Parkway, Springfield, IL 61703. Be sure to label shipped packages "Cider Judging Entry -- Keep Refrigerated." Shipped entries will be accepted by the hotel 48 hours prior to the start of the conference. Those making hard apple cider will want to make sure your product is hard apple cider, not hard apple cider wine. Although there is no definite break or definition where hard apple cider stops and where wine starts, we are looking for a hard apple cider product with alcohol content below 8%. Hard apple ciders containing other fruit flavoring, such as pear, cherry, peach, or cranberry will not be considered for judging. Hard apple cider contestants are asked to submit a one-quart, but no more than a one-gallon, container of product for the hard apple cider-judging contest. Registration for all apple cider contests will be on Thursday, January 8, from 8:00 to 9:45 am. Judging will commence at 10:00 am. The fee will be $10 per entry for each contest with one entry per orchard and/or farm family. Awards will be announced during the dinner banquet on Thursday, January 8. Entry forms can be found at: http://www.specialtygrowers.org/confagenda.htm. For additional Cider Contest and Hard Cider Contest information, contact Elizabeth Wahle, Cider Contest Coordinator, Illinois Specialty Crop and Agritourism Conference, University of Illinois Extension, 200 University Park Drive, Ste. 280, Edwardsville, IL 62025-3649; wahle@uiuc.edu; 618-692-9434; FAX 618-692-9808. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time to see an active wild honey bee hive in a tree. I had never seen honeycomb in the open before and thought readers would enjoy seeing pictures as well ... truly fascinating.
On behalf of University of Illinois Extension, I would like to express my condolences to the family of Louis Keller,87, who died Monday, Dec. 1, 2008, at St. Louis University Medical Center following a car accident. He is survived by his wife, Shirley, and his grandson and best friend, Cory Michael Keller Knight. Louis was retired after a lifetime of farming with his brother John in Collinsville, growing a variety of crops including potatoes, sweet corn, horseradish, and row crops. He was a founding member of the International Horseradish Festival Committee and will be remembered well for his enthusiastic and dedicated support of the horseradish industry. Elizabeth Wahle (618-692-9434; wahle@illinois.edu) Fruit Production and Pest ManagementDixon Springs Blackberry Trial
A blackberry cultivar trial was established at the University of Illinois Dixon Springs Ag Center in 2006. The following table contains the floricane yield harvested in 2008. Several of these cultivars also have primocane yield as well. Primocane yields will be listed in the next newsletter. Results of Blackberry Trial at DSAC -- 2008 Floricane Crop Only (6/13-7/24).
Jeff Kindhart (618-695-2444; jkindhar@illinois.edu) Vegetable Production and Pest ManagementEffects of seeding rates of rye cover crop and nitrogen fertilizer application rates on pumpkin yield in northern IllinoisPumpkin varieties 'Magic Lantern' and 'Howden' were direct seeded in strip-tilled areas where rye was seeded at the rates of 90 and 120 lbs per acre and compared with pumpkins planted on bare ground. In each plot, nitrogen fertilizer was applied at the rates of 45 and 90 lbs N per acre on a 5-ft wide band and incorporated into the soil before planting. There were significantly higher numbers of orange fruit and total weights of harvested fruit in strip-tilled plots than in bare ground plots. Rye seeding rates and nitrogen fertilizer application rates did not affect pumpkin yield. The average fruit size in strip-till plots was over 80% the size of fruits in bare ground plots for both varieties. Fruits from bare ground plots had more soil cover on the fruits (over 60% of the fruits) than fruits from strip-tilled plots (less than 20% of the fruits). There was higher incidence of pumpkin fruit rots in bare ground plots (over 20% in 'Howden', and over 8% in 'Magic Lantern') than in strip-tilled plots (less than 2% in both varieties). Maurice Ogutu (708-352-0109; ogutu@illinois.edu) Less seriously ...All right, there's humor in most everything. From Dave Barry's colonoscopy journal (by way of Lee Rife) ... A few of the funniest comments heard by doctors from their male patients during colonoscopies ...
And the best one of all ...
University of Illinois Extension Specialists in Fruit and Vegetable Production & Pest Management
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