Thank heavens for rain Thursday.  Not nearly enough but anything is better than nothing.

 

Want to see what the drought conditions look like from June 30-July 21 for the country (is that misery loving company?)?

http://blogs.cornell.edu/yourenewa/2020/07/24/newa-drought-summary-for-week-ending-21-july-2020/

 

So what did I find out from my expert panel on drought and shearing? (16 responses – thank you very much!)

 

Most people don’t stop shearing because of drought conditions. For many time and opportunity are the most important determinants of shearing schedule in order to get it finished in time.  Also most growers have not seen any adverse reactions to shearing during a drought and think that skipping a year is not a good idea (specifically ‘that would be crazy!).  Although people that have skipped a year didn’t have trouble catching up the next year. But as in all things biological, it depends. White pine doesn’t adapt well to a skipped year. Doug fir might produce a second growth spurt requiring additional pruning.

 

A few other notes:

Drought effects are worse on the small trees, which usually aren’t sheared much anyway.

People might wait to shear if the leaders or laterals are droopy or delay/shear less if growth is delayed or less due to the drought.

Some things you might consider in a drought – shearing in the morning when the trees are most ‘full’ of water, shearing your wetter fields first, shearing north slopes first.

 

Thanks for the question and all the answers! I always learn something.

 

GDD                       July 24                                  July 29

 

Champlain           1359                                      1478

Geneva                 1498                                      1618

Riverhead            1793                                      1941

 

Nothing much new – lots of reports (not all Christmas tree) on gypsy moth and Japanese beetle.

 

Cooley spruce gall adelgid on spruce – prune out and destroy galls before 1850-1950 GDD. Monitor on Doug fir (control comes later)

 

Two spotted spider mite control GDD 1300-2000 – remember to tap test for the insects, not just look for the damage.

 

Japanese beetle adults 1029-2154 GDD

 

Did you go out and look for comet Neowise?  I finally found it with binoculars – very clear and LONG tail.

 

I still have that reaction to August that I have to go back to school so the summer must be ending and I haven’t done all the fun stuff yet!  This fall there is no going back to school for me – but I still feel like I need to fit all the fun stuff in?

 

 

Have a great week!  And I’ll try to get back on schedule.