Apple Pest Report:
Wednesday,
June 25, 2003
Vol. 11 No. 8
|
Scab Some orchards are clean, others have heavy scab. If your orchard is still scab free, then pat yourself on the back but don't completely relax vigilance. While all of the first generation scab has had time to appear, there is still about 20% of the second generation scab potential that has not yet had time to appear. By June 30 in Sanford, and July 4 in Monmouth, just about all of the seasons 2nd generation scab potential should have had time to become visible. If you are finding more than 5 scab-infested leaves per 100 shoots consider the "burn-out" options in Dave Rosenberger's article included in the June 17 Apple Pest Report.
New Orchard Radar site There is a new Orchard Radar site for Corinna. The location is a potato field not an orchard, but I can apply the same weather data to the apple models, using a McIntosh petal fall biofix from an orchard near Newport. Since this site started late, it does not have the early season dates for scab infections, fire blight etc. Any dates you see in the tables prior to June 4 are based on data from the Morrill site. While it would be possible to get the older data retrospectively, at this point the benefit doesn't seem to justify the cost. The new site will provide graphical forecasts, insect dates etc. for the rest of the season using Corinna weather data. Corinna is due west of Bangor. The new site is north of most orchards, but provides a northern bracket for growers north of Monmouth. By looking at both the Monmouth and Corinna estimates, you can get a pretty good idea of the forecast and estimated dates for intermediate locations. |
|
|
Scouting
It has taken a while, but we now
have a scout hired, oriented and on the road. Brian Miller is an incoming
freshman at UMaine who will be majoring in Forestry. I tried to fit as
many orchards as possible into the route. Doing so required that some
folks be visited on alternate weeks. The scout serves to report
independent pest observations only, and is not a pest management advisor. Over the coming weeks Brian will spend most of his time checking for scab, mites and leafminers. In organic blocks the focus is on scab and codling moth. Brian, like all previous apple scouts, has been trained as a "Handler" as per EPA Worker Protection rules. Handlers are allowed to enter treated areas before the REI expires if they use the protective equipment (coveralls, etc.) specified on the label for early entry. While the drive to the orchard poses a measurable risk, my understanding is that working within an REI wearing the proper clothing does not, with the exception of the potential for heat stroke caused by scouting on a hot day while wearing Tyvek coveralls and waterproof gloves. However, the other U Maine scouting programs avoid REI altogether, and I've decided to do the same with the apple scout. This isn't really about safety, it's about perception, or more specifically the potential liability from misperception. I wish it were different, but that's how it is. That means that the scout cannot visit your orchard within 4 days after a captan application. To avoid wasted trips to your orchard only to find that it is under REI from captan (or any other pesticide) please contact Brian at BMsheepscot@mac.com. If you need to get a message to Brian before he may be checking email, his car phone number is 485-0918. But that phone is only going to be answered if you catch him in the truck. Since his whole family isn't on the payroll, I'd rather people contact Brian by email or work phone than at home. Crop insuranceThe following is from the June 24 University of Massachusetts Healthy Fruits newsletter. UMaine Extension is hiring a new Farm Management specialist who will be providing more information about this and related programs in Maine. "Growers are now eligible to apply for financial assistance at the Farm Service Agency (FSA) for crop losses caused by adverse weather conditions during the 2001 or 2002 growing seasons. To be eligible, crop losses must exceed 35 percent of expected production. Most crops, including apples, are covered. Payments will be made based on 50 percent of the established price for insured crops or for crops which insurance was not available. Note that growers without insurance will have to purchase buy-up insurance for the next two years to be eligible for a payment. Crop insurance is an important aspect of risk management, and growers are encouraged to include it into the cost of their operation." |
INSECT and MITE PESTS
|
Plum Curculio
European apple sawfly are creating messy wounds with wet reddish brown frass (= insect poop) as they bore into a second and third apple per cluster. This is often misidentified as codling moth. Codling moths have just started hatching. In the next few weeks, their feeding will begin to appear dark brown pellets accumulating in the calyx end of infested apples. |
European red mites are hatching into second generation nymphs now. The second generation will start laying eggs for a third generation starting around June 27 in Sanford, and June 30 in Monmouth, Morrill and Corinna. Twospotted spider mites have reached threshold level in some strawberry plantings, and may soon start moving from ground cover apple leaves. A recent article in the Cornell Scaffolds newsletter presented field trial data showing that Sevin or Asana used for apple maggot control led to European red mite population increase to above threshold levels because of mortality to beneficial mite predators. Danitol is also a pyrethroid and also harsh on predators, but because it also kills ERM, they did not exceed threshold in that treatment. Come mid-late July, If mites are not over threshold and you are spraying for apple maggot, leafrollers, and codling moth, insecticides such as Imidan and Avaunt can control those pests without disrupting beneficial species as much as Danitol would.
Codling moth Organic growers who will be using Bt or Entrust to protect against codling moth should begin applications now. Growers who had Imidan or Avaunt protection lasting into this week for plum curculio control should get also codling moth protection from those applications. But if codling moth has been a problem in the past, the optimum single spray data for codling moth is June 28 - July 1 in Sanford and Corinna, respectively. |
||
Sincerely,
Glen
Published and distributed in furtherance of the Acts of Congress of May 8 and June 30, 1914, by the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, the Land Grant University of the state of Maine and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Cooperating. Cooperative Extension and other agencies of the USDA provide equal opportunities in programs and employment. A member of the University of Maine System. Where company or brand names are used, it is for the reader=s information. No endorsement is implied nor is any discrimination intended. Always consult product labels for rates, application instructions and safety precautions. Users of these products assume all associated risks.
If you are a person with a disability and will need any accommodations to participate in programs, please call the Highmoor Farm at 1-800-924-5258 to discuss your needs. Please contact us at least one day prior to the event to assure fullest possible attention to your needs.
