This Seasons Challenges

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This Seasons Challenges
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• Powdery mildew on rosemary
• Pests in apple orchard
• Crop-nibblers slugs beetles
• Blight in tomatoes

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Powdery Mildew on Rosemary
Powdery Mildew on Rosemary
PROBLEM - In winter rosemary plants in hoop
house infected with powdery mildew.
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Powdery Mildew on Rosemary

• Rosemary a Mediterranean plant
• Likes temp and humidity
• Rosemary overwintered in hoop house
• with plastic row covers
• Covers maintain temp above freezing
• but also humidity
• Ideal conditions for fungal growth

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Powdery Mildew on Rosemary

• Economic Impact
• Cut rosemary sold to restaurant supplier at
  5.50 per ½ lb
• At current rate of 120 lb/mo, monthly rosemary
  income 1,350
• Rosemary plants also sold at 15 per flat, but
  market variable
• (and as yet largely untested, due to fungus)
• Maximum possible loss from fungus if entire
  crop destroyed
• 1,500 per month

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Powdery Mildew on Rosemary
Powdery Mildew on Rosemary

• HYPOTHESIS - Powdery mildew might be controlled
  by
• Changing watering methods
• 2. air circulation around plant leaves
• 3. Anti-fungal sprays
• Sulfur-lime
• Serenade
• Baking soda

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Powdery Mildew on Rosemary
Seven different conditions (60 plants each)

• Bottom-up Watering

Outside Fan
Sulfur-lime spray Serenade
spray Sodium bicarbonate spray
Control
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Powdery Mildew on Rosemary
The Greenhouse
OUT 3
OPEN
FAN
FAN3
FAN
FAN 1
ROSE- MARY PLANTS
S U N S IDE
S H A D O W S I D E
FAN 4
FAN 2
BAS 1
B-U 3
SUL 1
B-U 4
SER 1
ROSE- MARY PLANTS
SER 3
CON 1
SUL 3
B-U 1
BAS 3
B-U 2
CON 3
SUL 2
BAS 2
SER 4
SER 2
CON 4
CON 2
SUL 4
BAS 4
O U T 1
GH-FAN
OUT 2
O U T 4
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Powdery Mildew on Rosemary
Powdery Mildew on Rosemary
Results
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Powdery Mildew on Rosemary
Powdery Mildew on Rosemary
Results
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Pests in the apple orchard
Pests in the apple orchard

• Orchard on 1 acre slope
• Cultivars Liberty, Pristine, Williams Pride,
  Priscilla, Redfree, Goldrush, Jonafree Prima,
  (resistant to scab, fire blight and powdery
  mildew)
• Rootstocks Most cultivars planted on M.7
  rootstock (resistant to fire blight and root
  diseases)

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Apple Moths
Pests in the apple orchard
Tufted Apple Bud Moth
Oriental Fruit Moth
Codling Moth
Oblique-banded Leaf Roller
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Apple Moths
Pests in the apple orchard
Pests in the apple orchard

• Pheromone traps for each moth in orchard
• Number of moths counted each week
• Entrust, Dipel and Surround sprays timed
  accordingly

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Pests in the apple orchard
Pests in the apple orchard
Apple Moths
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Pests in the apple orchard
Apple Moths
Comparison of Kretschmann Farm data with PSU
Experiment Station data
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Other pests in apple orchard
Apple Maggots
Plum Curculio
Mites
European Apple Sawfly
Dormant oil spray used in spring to reduce mite
eggs
Sticky red spheres placed in orchard to attract
maggots
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Crop nibblers Slugs

• Dont cause significant crop losses in mature
  plants, but have caused cosmetic damage to large
  proportions of several crops (lettuce, basil,
  cabbage, radicchio)
• CSA subscribers are more forgiving of produce
  imperfections than wholesale markets, but Don
  wants to provide high quality produce to all
  customers
• The solution to slug-nibbled cabbage SAUERKRAUT!

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Crop nibblers Japanese beetles
Population grew in end of July Most prevalent in
basil patch Pheromone traps installed for
control
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Crop nibblers Flea beetles

• Primarily affect mesclun, but also
• many other crops
• Row cover reduce damage
• Stunt growth of seedlings and give
• mature plants lacy look
• Seedlings dusted with rotenone
• Eggplant no longer planted because
• of severe infestation

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Blight on tomatoes
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Blight on tomatoes

• - Cool, wet summer ideal
  conditions
• for blight spread
• - Began spraying copper hydroxide as
  preventative in early July
• - First signs of blight in mid-July mix of
  early and late blight?
• - Poses significant threat to tomato crop and
  to potatoes if spreads. Thus far it has stunted
  some plants but not visibly damaged yields

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