Facts for Fancy Fruit 2002-04

Crop Conditions: Summer-like conditions across the state over the past
two weeks put the growing season into high gear. Peaches were blooming
in Lafayette on tax day and apples went from silver-tip to pink
overnight!  Apples are now at pink in northern parts of the state, full
bloom here in Lafayette and petal fall in southern areas. Grapes are at
budbreak to 2-inch shoots. A light frost was recorded April 23 in many
places across the state.  The coldest temperatures we saw reported were
28F in LaPorte and Kendallville while many other areas got down to
about 31F.  We wouldnÕt expect these temperatures to cause widespread
damage, although they made have caused a small amount of thinning for
us.  Strawberry growers stayed up late (or got up early) to run frost
protection in many areas.  Another possible frost is forecast for later
this week.

Signup for Apple Grower Assistance Program Begins April 29th:
WASHINGTON, April 17, 2002 The U.S. Department of Agriculture today
announced that signup for the 2000 Apple Market Loss Assistance Program
(AMLAP-II) will begin April 29, 2002. AMLAP-II will provide about $75
million to eligible growers for their 2000-crop apple production.  The
payments will help offset economic losses due to low prices in the U.S.
apple market.  Growers can receive a payment per pound for their
2000-crop apple production, and they will be paid on a maximum of 5
million pounds per separate apple operation. To receive cash payments,
eligible apple producers must: (1) have produced and harvested apples
during the 2000-crop year; (2) not have received compensation from any
other federal program, other than crop insurance, for the same market
loss; and (3) apply for cash payments during the application period for
each apple operation.  The deadline for application under the AMLAP-II
program will be announced later. (Hirst)

Fire Blight: The best prevention for fire blight is the application of
streptomycin during bloom. Apply streptomycin just as blossoms begin
opening and repeat every 3-4 days if weather favorable for blossom
blight infection persists. Streptomycin is most effective when applied
the day before or the day of an infection event.  The ÒMARYBLYTÓ
computer software program will help you in determining when and if an
infection event occurred as well as predict the risk for future
infection periods.  We strongly recommend its use for those growers at
high risk.  Speaking of high risk, be especially diligent in your fire
blight program if you have blight susceptible varieties (Ida Red,
Jonathan, Gala, Rome, Lodi, etc.) in combination with M-26, M-9 and/or
Mark rootstocks and/or interstems.  These DYNOMITE combinations have
the potential to explode into rootstock blight, which usually means a
dead tree! (Pecknold)

Apple Scab:  The peak period for scab infection is NOW!  Primary scab
spores are ripe and ready to infect, all they need is a good scab rain.
 Are you prepared?  For growers on a curative schedule, or for those
who get caught with their pants down (unprotected), we suggest Nova,
Flint, or Sovran.  These fungicides will provide up to 96 hours
Òcurative activityÓ.  However, the sooner you apply them the better! Do
not sit around thinking there is no need to rush.  NOTE: see comments
below on the Strobilurins. (Pecknold)

Rust Diseases:  Cedar apple and cedar quince rust are now actively
infecting foliage and fruit. Except for the northern areas of the
state, we are now into the peak period for rust infection.  The
sterol-inhibiting fungicides, Nova and Rubigan, are excellent in
preventing rust problems, as well as providing excellent control of
powdery mildewÉ, which is also infecting new leaf tissue, right now!
(Pecknold)

Nova, Rubigan & Tank Mixes:   All Nova or Rubigan applications should
be tank-mixed with a standard protectant fungicide to avoid problems
with resistance to apple scab.  However, it is especially important
that your final spray (petal fall or first cover) of Nova or Rubigan be
combined with a protectant fungicide such as captan, ziram, mancozeb,
or Polyram.  The addition of a protectant fungicide at this time will
help provide protection from summer diseases such as black rot, sooty
blotch and fly speck and also give added protection from fruit scab.
Refer to Rubigan and Nova labels for additional information on tank
mixes. (Pecknold)

The Strobilurins:  The new strobilurin fungicides, Sovran and Flint,
are excellent in control of many diseases.  Unfortunately they are also
very prone to the development of resistance.  Therefore growers should
be extremely judicious in their use of these compounds.  We suggest you
consider the use of Flint or Sovran in ONLY the FIRST, THIRD and
SEVENTH cover sprays (three times only) for control of fruit scab and
sooty blotch and flyspeck (SBFS).  Our field trials this past year
confirmed our previous findings that Sovran, applied at the full rate,
gives excellent control of both fruit scab and SBFS when applied at
these three times (first, third and seventh cover).  While the
strobilurins are effective in precover sprays for the control of other
diseases, we believe their real strength lies in the control of fruit
scab and sooty blotch and flyspeck. So lets use them when they will do
the most good and hopefully avoid future resistance problems.
(Pecknold)

Strawberries and Botrytis Fruit Rot:  The most important sprays for
control of Botrytis fruit rot (gray mold) of strawberry are those
applied at bloom - starting at 10% bloom.  There have been some major
changes in fungicide registrations for Botrytis control in
strawberries.  Ronilan can no longer be used on strawberries.  The
current Rovral label states Òdo not make more than 1 application per
season and do not apply after the first fruiting flowerÓ therefore, it
is no longer recommended for control of Botrytis on strawberries.
Elevate received registration in 2000, and Switch received registration
this year.  Both should provide excellent control of gray mold.  So,
the options for Botrytis control are Elevate, Switch, Benlate, and
Topsin M.  None of them should be used alone for season-long control of
Botrytis because of the potential for development of resistant pathogen
strains.  Benlate cannot be used on strawberries once the crop has been
turned into ÒU- PickÓ or ÒPick-Your-OwnÓ or similar operation.
However, it can be used preharvest (bloom) and post-harvest as long as
the field is not open to U-Pick.  See ID-169, 2002 Indiana Commercial
Small Fruit & Grape Spray Guide, for the complete strawberry spray
recommendations. (Bordelon)

Eastern Flower Thrips:  One of the factors we believe may be associated
with problems with eastern flower thrips on strawberries is having
sustained, strong southerly winds early in the growing season. These
winds may blow eastern flower thrips to Indiana from southern areas. It
would be prudent for strawberries growers to watch for thrips as we
approach bloom. We recommend looking at the early flowers, especially
on early varieties.  Although an exact threshold has not been
established for Midwest conditions, data from elsewhere suggest that
control is warranted if counts exceed 2 to 10 thrips per blossom. This
is a wide range, but more precise information is not available. Lorsban
or Thiodan are probably the best choices among conventional
insecticides, and Brigade and Danitol also are likely to work well.
Growers may also want to consider using an insecticide containing neem
extracts (Align or Neemix) that is less toxic to bees. (Foster and
Bordelon)

Grape Sprays:  Grapes are at budbreak to 2 inch shoots in Lafayette and
further ahead in southern areas. Growers should have made their first
fungicide application recently.  This early (1- to 3 inch shoot) spray
is primarily for Phomopsis cane and leaf spot, so mancozeb or captan
are effective materials. Over the next two weeks shoots should double
in length and addition of one of the sterol inhibitors (e.g. Nova,
Rubigan, etc.) should be considered. The most important sprays of the
year for fruit rot control are the sprays surrounding bloom. Plan now
to have one of the strobies on hand for those sprays.  Refer to the
Commercial Small Fruit and Grape Spray Guide
(www.hort.purdue.edu/hort/ext/sfg) and the Midwest Small Fruit Pest
Management Handbook (www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~sfgnet/) for complete
discussions of grape IPM. (Bordelon)

Planting a New Vineyard?  If youÕre planting a new vineyard this year
and plan to use grow tubes, follow the manufacturerÕs directions on
installation.  Wait until newly planted vines have shoots that are a
few inches long and we are past the date of the last frost before
installing the tubes.  IÕve seen several situations where grow tubes
were installed at planting and the vines budded out early, only to have
the new growth frozen by subsequent cold weather. (Bordelon)

Host families wanted:  Purdue International programs in Agriculture is
looking for farm families (from all types and sizes of farms) to host
undergraduate students from our exchange universities in Japan.  The
students will only be here for about 4 weeks (approx. Aug 6th-Sept
5th).  They all have English skills, and are anxious to learn about
what you do everyday.  They are coming to learn, and would be expected
to help around the farm just as any other family member.  By hosting
you also allow us to continue sending our Purdue Agricultural students
to Japan on the exchange.  They too stay with host families while they
conduct their internships.  Please feel free to contact Prudie Miller
for further information.  She can be reached at (765) 494-8458 during
the day.  Her email address is prudie@purdue.edu. (Hirst)

Abundant Harvest of Indiana:  Many of you heard the excellent
presentation on Abundant Harvest of Indiana by Stanley Parker at the
luncheon at Hort Congress. The following is more information for those
who may be interested. (Hirst)

Abundant Harvest of Indiana (AHI) is a non-profit organization, based
in Hancock County, devoted to increasing the quantity and quality of
produce donated to Indiana food banks.  Food banks distribute this
nutritious bounty to feed many of the 738,000 Hoosiers that would other
wise go hungry. I discussed the concept of produce donation at the 2002
Horticultural Congress and you may have heard about it from my fellow
members of the Indiana Vegetable Growers Association. Abundant Harvest
of Indiana compensates Indiana produce growers that share the produce
they normally till under each year with their local food bank.  In
exchange for the gracious donation of fresh produce by growers, AHI
reimburses them for the cost of harvesting, grading, washing, packing
and delivering the produce to their local food bank.  AHI is the first
organization of its kind in the state of Indiana, but the concepts and
goals defining the organization are sound. The success of this kind of
reimbursement program among the produce farmers and food banks of
Michigan and Ohio shows that goodwill is still a cherished value in the
Midwest. Indiana is certainly no exception.  As a sign of commitment to
the success of this program, AHI has allocated $25,000 to compensate
produce farmers for their time, effort and donations.  This investment
will help our organization reach the goal of generating 250,000 pounds
of surplus produce to feed hungry Hoosiers.  A local group of Hancock
County volunteers currently donate over 20,000 pounds each year to
Gleaners Food Bank.  Imagine the possibilities of a statewide effort.
The idea is already in the minds of growers in your county.  As this
donation program builds across the state, Abundant Harvest of Indiana
will be an organization that active educators hear about at grower
meetings and one-on-one visits.  Contact the AHI home office if you
would enjoy learning more about how growers in your community will be
strengthening their relationships with local food banks and charitable
organizations in the coming months. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely, Stanley J. Parka, Director

Bee Locator Database:  Zachary Huang, Michigan State University
entomologist has set up a nationwide database to help growers locate
bees for pollination.  The database is available at
http://beebase.cyberbee.net.


Upcoming Meetings:

April 27 -	Grape Planting Day. Madison Vineyards. Contact Steve Palmer
812-273-6500

May 8 - 	Eastern Indiana Horticultural Society.  Twilight meeting.
Grabow Orchard. For directions, see http://www.graboworchard.com  For
other information, call Dave Clamme, 765-747-7732

May 14 - 	LaPorte fruitgrowers twilight meeting. 6.30 pm Garwood
Orchard.  For directions, see http://www.garwoodorchard.com  For other
information, call Walt Sell, 219-326-6808 ext 271

June 4 - 	Eastern Indiana Horticultural Society.  Location and time to
be announced. For more information, call Dave Clamme, 765-747-7732

July 17-19 -Workshop on developing and implementing HACCP for Juice and
Cider Industries. Location to be announced. For further information,
contact Dr. Richard Linton, Purdue University, (765) 494-6481 or Dr.
Les Bourquin, Michigan State University, (517) 353-9664.



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bruce Bordelon, 1165 Dept. of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture,
Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN  47907-1165, 317/494-8212,
e-mail: bordelon@hort.purdue.edu

Peter Hirst, 1165 Dept. of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture,
Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-1165, 317/494-1323, e-mail:
hirst@hort.purdue.edu

Paul Pecknold, 1155 Dept. of Botany & Plant Pathology, Purdue
University, West Lafayette, IN 47907- 1155, 317/494-4628, e-mail:
Pecknold@btny.purdue.edu

Rick Foster, 1158 Dept. of Entomology, Purdue University, West
Lafayette, IN 47907-1158, 317/494- 9572, e-mail:
Rick_Foster@entm.purdue.edu

Disclaimer:  Reference to products in this publication is not an
endorsement to the exclusion of others that may be similar.  Any person
using products listed in this newsletter assumes full responsibility
for their use in accordance with current label directions of the
manufacturer.

It is the policy of Purdue University that all persons shall have equal
opportunity and access to its programs and facilities without regard to
race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, marital status,
parental status, sexual orientation, or disability. Purdue University
is an Affirmative Action employer. This material may be available in
alternative formats.