Berry Bulletin May 25, 2018

May 25, 2018

Berry Bulletin May 24

Strawberries: Green fruit is present in day neutral fields, and harvest is quickly approaching across the province. Harvest has begun in the earliest areas.  Bloom has begun in early June bearing varieties in southern, central and eastern Ontario. Fields overwintered with row covers and with row covers used in the spring look great. Other overwintered June bearing fields are a little slow coming out of winter, but will hopefully catch up with the heat this week.

Spring planted day neutrals are beginning to leaf out and are looking good. Remove flower buds and bloom until the plant is well established.  Planting is almost complete.

Clipper weevil: clipper weevil damage can be found now in strawberry fields. Check border rows for damage. The risk for clipper weevil damage is over when all flower buds are open. We are also seeing active cyclamen mite populations so be cautious when spraying for clipper weevil as pyrethroids are the only insecticides registered for clipper weevil and are harmful to beneficial insects, which can help manage cyclamen mite. Only spray where it is necessary, which can be limited to field edges and older plantings.

Tarnished plant bugs (TPB): nymphs can be found in strawberry fields. Check for TPB by tapping flower clusters onto a paper plate. The threshold is approximately 25% of clusters infested.  Beleaf will suppress TPB and control aphids at the high rate. Rimon and groups 3s are other options for control during bloom. Growers are limited to 2 applications of group 4As per season (including Assail, Admire, Clutch, Actara and Alias).  Do not spray when bees are active.

Strawberry Aphids: Aphids populations are low but rising. Prepare to manage for aphids once the population begins to build and before the aphids begin to fly and spread virus to new fields. We learned last year during our virus survey that aphid management is having a positive impact on controlling strawberry viruses, but it is very important to continue to manage aphids to maintain these healthy fields. Beleaf can be used once bloom has started and will also provide suppression of tarnished plant bug at the high rate. In newly planted fields control aphids with a soil drench of Admire. Check table 3-12, Activity of Insecticides and Miticides on strawberry pests in Pub 360, Guide to fruit protection, to see what activity these products have on other pests.

Mites: cyclamen mites are active. If you have a history of cyclamen mites or see damage (distorted, shrunken leaves and stunted growth) control may be necessary. Work in clean fields first before moving to older, infested fields.   Your options for control at this time are Vegol Crop Oil and Agri-Mek SC. Do not apply Agri-mek once bloom is present, or Vegol Crop Oil in high temperatures. Cyclamen mites can be protected in the crown so a high volume spray is necessary to ensure thorough coverage.

Two spotted spider mites (TSSM):  TSSM populations can rise quickly in hot temperatures. Avoid using pyrethroids for TPB and clipper weevil to avoid mite flare ups.

Anthracnose and botrytis: the first couple fungicides have been applied for botrytis control before and during bloom. Bravo must be applied before bloom for botrytis control. Anthracnose builds up in warm weather and is spread by splashing rain or irrigation.  For anthracnose Pristine (7+11), Cabrio (11), and Switch (9+12) are registered for control.  Incorporating a group M, broad-spectrum fungicide in your disease program for botrytis and anthracnose is important.  Avoid working in fields when they are wet.

Angular leaf spot: check older leaves for angular leaf spot. The bacterial ooze can spread by rain or irrigation. The calyces can turn black if they get infected and leave the fruit unmarketable. Copper 53 W or Tivano can be used for suppression.

Blueberries: are blooming in southern and eastern Ontario. The crop is looking promising. It is important to maintain a balance between vegetative growth and fruit production so there is enough vegetative growth to support fruit production every year.

Disease: during bloom growers will need to apply a fungicide if you expect rain for anthracnose and botrytis fruit rot. Use fungicides that control both botrytis and anthracnose fruit rots during bloom

Insects:  Cranberry fruitworm and cherry fruitworm begin to fly at bloom. Prepare to apply a spray at petal fall. There are multiple products available for control of cranberry and cherry fruitworm.

Raspberries: fruit buds are present in southern and central Ontario.

Disease: Make sure new growth is protected before the next rain. Apply Tanos and Ferbam when there is 25-30 cm of new growth.

Insects: Begin to monitor for raspberry fruitworm and clipper weevil once fruit buds are present. Raspberry fruitworm beetles are now active. Check for raspberry fruitworm and clipper weevil by tapping flower buds gently over a paper plate- similar to strawberry monitoring. At this time there are no insecticides registered for control of raspberry fruitworm. Check Pub 360, Fruit Crop Protection Guide, table 3-8 Activity of Insecticides on Raspberry Pests for products that may provide some activity on this pest when applied for different raspberry pests.

Haskaps: berries are forming.

Twitter: Follow me on twitter @PateErica and our ONfruit blog for regular updates and berry information.

Upcoming events:

• Blueberry IPM workshop. 9am-1pm. Wednesday, May 30^th. 1283 Blueline Rd, Simcoe, Ontario. Minimum ten participants.

This workshop is free. Handouts are provided. Bring your own lunch. To register contact OMAFRA’s Agricultural Information Contact Centre at 1-877-424-1300.