June 21 Berry Bulletin

Strawberries

It has been a very hot week across the province and berries are ripening quickly. Strawberry harvest is in full swing; mid- and late-season cultivars are being picked including Kate and Valley Sunset. Malwina is at the bloom to green fruit stage.

New, spring-planted day-neutrals are establishing well and growers are leaving bloom on as the plants reach the 4 to 6 leaf stage. Runners should be removed from these new fields. Apogee can be used for runner suppression in day-neutrals where runners aren’t needed. Apply before runner formation. Use an adjuvant where permitted for optimum control.  

• Renovation: Renovate as soon as harvest is over to help manage SWD (see monitoring update below). Do not wait for late varieties to be harvested to renovate earlier blocks. Broadleaf herbicides need to be applied 5 to 7 days before mowing. Avoid applying herbicides if temperatures are above 25C. Note where cyclamen mite injury is present and plan to control after renovation.
• New plantings: Are beginning to runner, and are looking good. Watch for potato leafhoppers, flea beetles, and aphids. Viruses are still a concern, so make sure to maintain regular aphid control in new and established fields. Rotate through different products- options include Cygon/Lagon/Diamante, Admire, Assail, Cormoran, Exirel, Sivanto Prime, and Beleaf. Admire can only be applied to non-bearing plants or after bloom. Check the youngest, folded leaves to find aphids. Once the population starts to increase it is time for another spray, likely every 3-4 weeks. If the population begins to build up after a spray, consider making another application.
• Day-neutrals: Once bloom is left on new day-neutrals it is time to begin regular fungicide applications for powdery mildew, botrytis and anthracnose. It is a good time to apply broad spectrum fungicides for disease control, including Captan/Maestro products. Overwintered fields will have the highest disease pressure- use broad spectrum fungicides when you can, remove diseased fruit from the field, and work in older fields last. Do not rely on group 11 products for anthracnose control alone.

Blueberries

Are at the green fruit – fruit colouring stage. Similar to raspberries and strawberries, blueberries seem to be about a week early. Bird netting should go up soon as berries ripen. Continue to check for scale crawlers (Putnam and Lecanium scale) with black electrical tape. Movento can be used at this time when lecanium scale crawlers are present.  

Raspberries

Early raspberries are beginning to be picked in southern Ontario. Growers should start planning to control for SWD. Keep your fields picked clean and cool fruit after harvest. Raspberry cane borer injury can be found with 2 zipper-like rings and wilting cane tips. Pruning the injured canes out is often sufficient for control. Prune about 2 cm below the lower girdle, or further down until no tunneling damage in the cane is present. Remove and destroy the prunings.

Spotted wing drosophila monitoring

Traps are in Niagara, Norfolk, Elgin, Middlesex, Oxford, and Renfrew counties. Spotted wing drosophila was identified this week in three counties. Thank you to the multiple consultants for their help monitoring these traps!

Week traps collected	county/region where SWD was found	crops where SWD was trapped
June 8-14	0	–
June 15-21	Norfolk, Middlesex, Oxford	Raspberries, blueberries, and wild hosts

The Berry Growers of Ontario and OMAFA are supporting SWD monitoring this season.

Spraying for SWD isn’t necessary until there is ripe fruit present + SWD is active in your area. Do not count on sprays alone– use as many of these tools as possible through the season to control SWD: 

• Keep your fruit picked regularly and clean!
• Cool fruit immediately after harvest.
• Keep alleys clean- either remove unmarketable fruit or crush it in the alley
• After unmarketable fruit is removed it should be destroyed (disposed of, or leave in plastic bags in the sun).
• Make the environment less favourable to SWD- prune the canopy and manage water to reduce humidity (repair leaking drop lines).
• Calibrate your sprayers now to ensure excellent coverage once you start to spray.
• Insecticides target SWD adults- make sure to spray when adults are active, in the morning and evening.
• Using Up-Cyde can lead to a mite outbreak. Reserve this product for fields that are in their final year of production.

NASGA Summer Tour

The North American Strawberry Growers Association Tour is scheduled for August 13-15 in Massachusetts. Check the NASGA website for more information and to register.