Two female SWD were caught in two traps, one in each trap, in a tart cherry block near Lake Ontario's shore in Wayne County during the week ending on May 31, 2018. This tart cherry block had significant SWD infestation in 2017. Fruit are still hard and green in this block and are not yet susceptible to SWD.
Five other farms we are monitoring in Wayne County and one in Ontario County had zero SWD caught.
Reviewing 2017 tart cherry spray records from several farms in the Lake Ontario region showed (1) spray intervals were long, between insecticides effective against SWD, as harvest approached; and (2) blocks with 14- to 30-day-long spray intervals that escaped SWD injury were harvested before SWD either arrived or had built to damaging population levels.
In Michigan tart cherries, where SWD has been problematic for several years, the tactics are to (1) monitor for SWD in the tart cherry orchard; (2) keep an eye on fruit ripening stage, blush signals susceptibility; (3) apply insecticide to protect susceptible fruit if SWD has been caught in the orchard.
In an effort to spare your spray bill, be mindful of the other insects you are targeting in your tart cherries and choose insecticides that will also prove effective against SWD. The SWD insecticide quick guide for stone fruit is available on Cornell Fruit Resources Spotted Wing Management page.
If you're targeting plum curculio, consider using Exirel, Asana, Imidan, or Minecto Pro. If you're targeting cherry fruit fly or black cherry fruit fly, consider using Delegate, Exirel, Asana, Imidan, or Minecto Pro. If you're targeting obliquebanded leafroller, consider Entrust, Delegate, Exirel, Danitol, or Minecto Pro.
Be aware that only a couple materials effective against SWD for tart cherry have short, 3-day, pre-harvest intervals: Exirel (only 3 applications per year) and Danitol (only 2 applications per year). Grandevo, a biological has zero days to harvest and has been shown to be a good rotational product with Entrust in organic systems against SWD in blueberry. Make sure you plan a spray program that will spare these crucial short pre-harvest interval materials for use as harvest approaches.