Sustained catch in Essex, Montgomery, Rensselaer, Schoharie & Washington Counties

Sustained SWD catch in Eastern NY with some site totals in the double to triple digits — the Capital District, Mohawk Valley, and Champlain Valley. Berries are being harvested and will continue ripening over the next several weeks. This will create an SWD paradise for fruit infestation.

Farms with trap catch in the double to triple digits should sample fruit and do a salt flotation test to assess fruit infestation. Methods described in Guidelines for Checking Fruit for SWD Larvae in the Field by Laura McDermott, available on Cornell Fruit Resources SWD pages.

It's time to pay attention to SWD and protect ripe and ripening fruit crops from infestation with an insecticide program.

Details about each County's sustained catch:

• Essex: 7/2/2019, 22 females & 9 males, blueberry – total 31
• Montgomery: 7/1/2019, 40 females & 24 males, raspberry – total 65
• Rensselaer: 7/2/2019, 1 female & 2 males, blueberry – total 3
• Schoharie: 7/1/2019, 67 females & 44 males, raspberry – total 111
• Washington: 6/24/2019, 4 females, blueberry – total 4

Re-set raspberry and blackberry fields:
Because raspberry and blackberry continue to flower and set fruit over a protracted period of time, it is possible and advisable to “re-set” the field. When fruit infestation is found via salt flotation or high numbers of SWD are caught in traps in the field, clean pick all ripe and cull fruit. Remove this fruit from the planting and solarize it or freeze it to kill SWD. Solarize in sealed, clear plastic bags set in the sun. After clean picking, spray insecticide. Choose a material with excellent efficacy against SWD and an appropriate days-to-harvest interval.

See insecticide quick guides online:

SWD Insecticides for Berries, www.hort.cornell.edu/fruit/pdfs/swd/berry-insecticides.pdf

SWD Insecticides for Stone Fruit & Grapes, www.hort.cornell.edu/fruit/pdfs/swd/treefruit-grape-insecticides.pdf

More information on SWD is online:

• SWD management
• SWD monitoring
• Crops of concern
• SWD identification
• NY distribution map

Thank you for monitoring SWD in the Counties with sustained catch!

• Andy Galimberti, CCE Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program (Essex County)
• Natasha Field, CCE Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program (Montgomery and Schoharie Counties)
• Crystal Stewart, CCE Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program (Montgomery and Schoharie Counties)
• Laura McDermott, CCE Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program (Rensselaer and Washington Counties)