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Month: June 2020

Published on Leave a comment on First & sustained catch in Erie County

Sustained catch of a single male SWD in a trap set in a blueberry planting was found in Erie County. The traps were checked on June 24, 2020. Interestingly, the prior week when first catch was obtained on June 17 there were more SWD caught — one male and two females.

This can sometimes happen if weather conditions are unfavorable, extreme heat and dry conditions, or could result from insecticide applications that were made to manage SWD or other insects. These traps are being monitored by Sharon Bachman, Erie County Cornell Cooperative Extension.

So far, SWD has been caught in 21 of the 23 counties where traps are being monitored across NY State. Sustained catch – two weeks in a row – has occurred in about 11 of those counties.

Fruit is ripening across western NY and becoming susceptible to egg-laying. Brush up on SWD management, http://fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/management/ on Cornell Fruit Resources.

Learn more about SWD. Check out the information on Cornell Fruit Resources Spotted Wing Drosophila, http://fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/.

Published on Leave a comment on First catch in Wyoming County

One female SWD was caught in a trap set in a blueberry planting in Wyoming County. The traps were checked on June 25, 2020. The crop is developing nicely. It is essential to keep close watch on the stage of ripeness, to know when fruit becomes susceptible to egg-laying — at pink to purple color. These traps are being monitored by Don Gasiewicz, Wyoming County Cornell Cooperative Extension.

Picture of strawberry fruit with an egg-laying site.
Evidence of oviposition into June strawberry found today, 20 June 2019, by Jim O'Connell, CCE Assoc of Ulster County. Notice the delicate white breathing tubes and the small area of sunken, tan tissue where the larva is inside the fruit.

This blueberry planting is immediately adjacent to a large strawberry planting. We know from prior years and reports from other states that when June strawberry harvests are done, the number of SWD caught in traps often spikes. Whether this is coincidence or related to something specific with June strawberries serving as a resource for SWD, we aren’t quite sure. But, suffice it to say, that if you have June strawberries and are also growing blueberries or raspberries or cherries nearby, renovate the June strawberry fields ASAP. Please review methods for doing this effectively on the post by Laura McDermott, Renovate June Strawberry Fields Promptly, https://blogs.cornell.edu/swd1/2018/06/27/renovate-strawberry-plantings-promptly/

SWD Resources

SWD Management, http://fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/management/ on Cornell Fruit Resources.

Insecticide Quick Guides for NY State are found here (refresh the page to see the latest version):

SWD Management in Blueberry

SWD Management in Raspberry and Blackberry

Check out the information on Cornell Fruit Resources Spotted Wing Drosophila, fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/.

Published on Leave a comment on First catch in Onondaga County

A single female SWD has ushered in SWD management in a blueberry planting in Onondaga County. The offending insect was caught in one of the four traps checked on June 23, 2020. Fruit is starting to color and, as it ripens, will be susceptible to egg-laying. These traps are being monitored by Grace Marshall, NYS IPM Program, Cornell Cooperative Extension.

Across New York, SWD reports are coming in – either first or sustained catch. This is at a time when berries and cherries are ripening up for harvest. This co-occurrence of events places these susceptible crops at high risk of infestation. It will be very important to bring to bear every management tactic and monitoring tactic available to stay ahead of SWD and protect your harvests. Read up on SWD Management, fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/management/, on Cornell Fruit Resources.

Pest management for SWD includes:

  • Mowing – to reduce humidity and niches for SWD harborage and to increase sun penetration.
  • Weed management – to reduce humidity, alternate fruiting hosts and harborage and to increase sun penetration.
  • Pruning – to reduce humidity and to increase sun and spray penetration.
  • Monitoring – to know if SWD is present when fruit is ripening.
  • Sanitation – to reduce reproduction harborage and overall SWD population.
  • Cold storage – to slow or kill any eggs and larvae in harvested fruit.
  • Timely application of insecticides – to protect the crop from egg laying.
  • Insecticide Quick Guides for NY State are found here (refresh the page to see the latest version) -
A picture showing two male SWD on a blueberry.
Two male SWD on a blueberry, photographed in early September 2013. SWD populations typically build to very high levels in late summer and early autumn.

Organic Growers: insecticides allowable in organic production are in the quick guides. Please note, Entrust must be rotated with other organically-approved insecticides in different IRAC groups to prevent resistance developing in SWD against Entrust. One option is Grandevo. We have new information showing it has moderate activity against SWD. The listing on the quick guide has been revised for stone fruit and grapes, but still needs to be updated for berries.

Learn more about SWD. Check out the information on Cornell Fruit Resources Spotted Wing Drosophila, fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/.

Published on Leave a comment on SWD webinar for cherry growers

Please learn more about summer insect management in cherry orchards by listening to the recorded webinar about managing SWD and Rhagoletis fruit flies in cherries. Learn how to protect your cherry harvests.

A trap to monitor SWD set in a tart cherry tree.
SWD trap set in a tart cherry tree.

As SWD has now been trapped in most locations across the state, and fruit begins to blush, it’s time to be sure to keep a tight control schedule in any orchard with SWD pressure.

This webinar was organized by LOF and NYS IPM and sponsored by Valent and FMC.

We discuss the best management tactics to combine control for SWD and Rhagoletis fruit flies in cherry and other crops.

Agenda:

12:00 - Intro, sponsorship, SWD biology basics – Janet van Zoeren, Lake Ontario Fruit Program

12:10 - SWD management in tart cherry – Julie Carroll, NYS IPM Program

12:25 - Managing cherry fruit fly, black cherry fruit fly, and European cherry fruit fly – Art Agnello, Department of Entomology

12:45 - Questions and answers

Timing of talks will be relatively flexible and fluid, but we'll make sure to leave plenty of time for Q and A.

This event was free, but pre-registration was required. If you missed it, you can now listen to the webinar as if you were there!

Organized by Lake Ontario Fruit program and NYS IPM. Proudly sponsored by FMC and Valent USA.

Any questions or concerns please contact Janet van Zoeren, jev67@cornell.edu, IPM Specialist, CCE Lake Ontario Fruit Program.

This post was contributed by Janet van Zoeren, jev67@cornell.edu, IPM Specialist, CCE Lake Ontario Fruit Program.

Published on Leave a comment on First catch… Everywhere?

Not quite everywhere, but all of the Eastern NY network is now at first or sustained catch and all but four counties in the Lake Ontario, Central, Finger Lakes, and Southern Tier regions are at first catch. That’s seven counties reporting first catch, most from traps checked on June 22!

  • Cayuga County had 2 males and 2 females in a raspberry field. Checked June 18.
  • Chemung County had 3 males and 2 females in a blueberry planting. Checked June 22.
  • Columbia County had 2 males and 3 females in a tart cherry orchard. Checked June 22.
  • Orleans County had 1 female in a raspberry field. Checked June 22.
  • Tioga County had 5 males and 3 females in a blueberry field. Checked June 22.
  • Washington County had 1 male and 2 females I a blueberry field. Checked June 22.
  • Wayne County had 2 females in a raspberry planting. Checked June 22.
Photo of a male SWD on a blueberry.
A male spotted wing drosophila (SWD) on blueberry; another likely SWD is in the background.

Fruit across the region is ripening – blueberries, cherries, possibly even raspberries. Other summer fruits like haskaps and June berries are susceptible to SWD. June strawberries could be at risk. Day neutral strawberries will be at risk. Peaches and plums? – pick them before they are deliciously tree ripe and soft.

And now, I’m going to repeat myself.

Pest management for SWD includes:

  • Mowing – to reduce humidity and niches for SWD harborage and to increase sun penetration.
  • Weed management – to reduce humidity, alternate fruiting hosts and harborage and to increase sun penetration.
  • Pruning – to reduce humidity and to increase sun and spray penetration.
  • Monitoring – to know if SWD is present when fruit is ripening.
  • Sanitation – to reduce reproduction harborage and overall SWD population.
  • Cold storage – to slow or kill any eggs and larvae in harvested fruit.
  • Insecticide treatment – Insecticide Quick Guides for NY State:
Photo of a high tunnel with exclusion netting to protect the raspberry crop inside from SWD.
Exclusion netting over high tunnel raspberries will protect them from SWD.

Those who choose not to spray will have to take every measure possible to prevent population build up. Exclusion netting should be the plan for these growers going forward, because without exclusion netting and without insecticide protection it’s impossible to bring sufficient fruit to harvest in years like 2020 when SWD populations build up early and crop development is delayed.

Learn more about exclusion netting, Thinking Exclusion?, blogs.cornell.edu/swd1/2020/03/27/thinking-exclusion/

Clean picking and treating with insecticide to “reset the field” is a management tactic used in large-scale commercial blackberry production in North Carolina. You may want to consider that tactic in your raspberry and blackberry plantings, if SWD has gotten ahead of you. It will only work in such fruit crops that continue to flower and set fruit.

Use salt flotation to routinely sample your fields. Read, Guidelines for Checking Fruit for SWD Larvae in the Field.

Renovate June strawberry fields promptly, blogs.cornell.edu/swd1/2018/06/27/renovate-strawberry-plantings-promptly/

SWD Management, fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/management/ on Cornell Fruit Resources.

SWD Management in Blueberry

Read this blog, Managing SWD in blueberries at blogs.cornell.edu/swd1/2019/08/02/managing-swd-in-blueberries/ .

Spotted Wing Drosophila IPM in Blueberries from the NE IPM Center SWD Working Group, neipmc.org/go/swdpub2

SWD Management in Raspberry and Blackberry

Read this blog, Managing SWD in raspberries and blackberries at blogs.cornell.edu/swd1/2019/07/17/managing-swd-in-raspberries-blackberries/

Spotted Wing Drosophila IPM in Raspberries and Blackberries from the NE IPM Center SWD Working Group, neipmc.org/go/swdpub1

Learn more about SWD. Knowledge is power! Check out the information on Cornell Fruit Resources Spotted Wing Drosophila, fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/.

Thanks go out to

  • Grace Marshall, CCE NYS IPM, who is monitoring the sites in Cayuga and Wayne Counties;
  • Liz Alexander, CCE Chemung County, who is monitoring the sites in Chemung County (she’s a first year CCE educator. Go, Liz!);
  • Natasha Field, CCE ENYCHP, who is monitoring the Columbia County site;
  • Janet van Zoeren, CCE Lake Ontario Fruit Program, who is monitoring the Orleans County site;
  • Barb Neal, CCE Tioga County, who is monitoring the Tioga County site; and
  • Laura McDermott, CCE ENYCHP, who is monitoring the Washington County site.

Published on Leave a comment on Sustained catch: Ulster and Albany Counties

Sustained catch, that is two weeks in a row, was obtained in two counties in Eastern NY, Ulster on June 19 and June 21 and Albany on June 22. Indeed, SWD catch was prevalent across New York State’s monitoring network in traps checked at the end of last week and early this week.

  • Ulster site 5 had 1 male and 1 female in a blueberry field – fruit is ripening and will need to be protected. Checked June 19.
  • Ulster site 6 had 4 males and 2 females in a raspberry planting – pink fruit will be picked clean and an insecticide applied to reset the field. Checked June 19.
  • Ulster HVL had 5 males and 11 females in a cherry orchard – fruit is ripening and will need to be protected. Checked June 21.
  • Albany had 10 males and 26 females in a raspberry field – ripening fruit will need to be protected. Checked June 22.
Picture of honeysuckle, an early-season host for SWD.
Fruit of tartarian honeysuckle, also considered an invasive plant in NY, can support SWD development.

Are you seeing a pattern? With numbers this high, it will be imperative to begin a spray program to protect fruit. SWD populations have built up just as fruit are beginning to ripen. This translates into a challenging year for SWD management.

Those who choose not to spray will have to take every measure possible to prevent population build up. Exclusion netting should be the plan for these growers going forward, because without exclusion netting and without insecticide protection it’s impossible to bring sufficient fruit to harvest in years like 2020 when SWD populations build up early and crop development is delayed.

Learn more about exclusion netting, Thinking Exclusion? blogs.cornell.edu/swd1/2020/03/27/thinking-exclusion/

Renovate June strawberry fields promptly, blogs.cornell.edu/swd1/2018/06/27/renovate-strawberry-plantings-promptly/

Use salt flotation to routinely sample your fields. Read, Guidelines for Checking Fruit for SWD Larvae in the Field.

Pest management for SWD includes:

  • Mowing – to reduce humidity and niches for SWD harborage and to increase sun penetration.
  • Weed management – to reduce humidity, alternate fruiting hosts and harborage and to increase sun penetration.
  • Pruning – to reduce humidity and to increase sun and spray penetration.
  • Monitoring – to know if SWD is present when fruit is ripening.
  • Sanitation – to reduce reproduction harborage and overall SWD population.
  • Cold storage – to slow or kill any eggs and larvae in harvested fruit.
  • Insecticide treatment – Insecticide Quick Guides for NY State:

Clean picking and treating with insecticide to “reset the field” is a management tactic used in large-scale commercial blackberry production in North Carolina. You may want to consider that tactic in your raspberry and blackberry plantings, if SWD has gotten ahead of you. It works best in such fruit crops that continue to flower and set fruit season-long.

SWD Management, fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/management/ on Cornell Fruit Resources.

SWD Management in Blueberry

Read this blog, Managing SWD in blueberries at https://blogs.cornell.edu/swd1/2019/08/02/managing-swd-in-blueberries/ .

Spotted Wing Drosophila IPM in Blueberries from the NE IPM Center SWD Working Group, http://neipmc.org/go/swdpub2

SWD Management in Raspberry and Blackberry

Read this blog, Managing SWD in raspberries and blackberries at https://blogs.cornell.edu/swd1/2019/07/17/managing-swd-in-raspberries-blackberries/

Spotted Wing Drosophila IPM in Raspberries and Blackberries from the NE IPM Center SWD Working Group, http://neipmc.org/go/swdpub1

Learn more about SWD.

Check out the information on Cornell Fruit Resources Spotted Wing Drosophila, http://fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/.

Thanks go out to Jim O’Connell, Ulster County CCE who is monitoring Ulster 5 and 6; Lydia Brown, Hudson Valley Research Laboratory, who is monitoring Ulster HVL (traps set in honeysuckle were at first catch this past week, too – one female); and Natasha Field, ENYCHP CCE, who is monitoring the Albany County site.

Published on Leave a comment on Juneteenth – let’s celebrate freedom!

Juneteenth, what a great day! I first learned of Juneteenth when I bought a calendar and Juneteenth was listed on June 19th.  I think this was just last year. I'll never forget it now, nor should you. I quote here from the post What Is Juneteenth?
by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (Originally posted on The Root). The order Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger issued, in establishing the Union Army’s authority over the people of Texas:

The First Juneteenth
“The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.” —General Orders, Number 3; Headquarters District of Texas, Galveston, June 19, 1865

I encourage you to read the entire What is Juneteenth? post and perhaps kindle a keen interest in Civil War history and the history of black people in the United States. We must end slavery in our hearts and embrace freedom for all. Cornell University President Martha Pollock brought this post to our attention. Juneteenth is now an official holiday for all Cornell University.

I was born in Little Rock, Arkansas. The day I was born, riots broke out in the city over school desegregation. My mother made note of it in my baby book. White people yelled at the black children, teenagers, who were going to school with their white children for the first time. The yelling, angry white people lined the streets around where the black children walked to school. The police protected those black students then, from those unruly white adults. To protect and to serve. We must relearn and revisit our priorities. Black Lives Matter.

What is it like to live with fear of police brutality, racial profiling, and random acts of unkindness? What is it like to have those fears realized? Within my lifetime, I want to make these questions obsolete, the need to ask them irrelevant, and their answers a distant memory that fades from view, serving only to remind us of the better world we live in where such questions don't need to exist nor even come to mind.

I share the New York State IPM Program statement with you —

Our Statement
As a statewide program focused on reduced risk in agricultural and community settings, we are honored to work with diverse stakeholders across NY and pledge to do more to support our CCE Director’s desire to improve and foster a culture of inclusion.

I share the CCE Director's statement with you —

 Dear Cornell Cooperative Extension Community,

Like so many of you, I am devastated by racist violence and senseless killing of Black men and women, including those that we have heard about in recent weeks: George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor. We firmly denounce the ways in which structural racism and white supremacy disproportionately and detrimentally impact the lives of Black members of our community. We also recognize the resulting racialized trauma that stifles dreams, smothers hope, and compromises our shared humanity across race.

Cornell Cooperative Extension’s strong ties in diverse communities across New York State compels us to fully embody the principles of equity and inclusion in our programs, in our interactions with community members, and with each other. To this end, CCE pledges to foster a culture of belonging in our communities where all are supported and welcome to pursue their dreams and opportunities for growth without fear or apprehension.

We invite all members of the extension community to join our collective efforts to transform ourselves, our relationships, and our systems through critical self-reflection, courageous conversations, and bold actions. Our intentional efforts in doing so will lead us to a more just, healed, and thriving community for all.

Sincerely,

Christopher B. Watkins
Director, Cornell Cooperative Extension

Enjoy Juneteenth! Let's take steps towards a more just, healed, and thriving community for all.

Published on Leave a comment on First catch in Orange County

A single male SWD was caught in a trap set on the edge of a fall raspberry planting in Orange County. This is first catch at this location. These traps are being monitored by Sarah Tobin, Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program.

Fall raspberries are not yet ripe, but typically once they are, they are highly susceptible to SWD infestation.

A map showing the current distribution of SWD trap catches, by County.
The current distribution map of SWD trap catches, showing where SWD has been caught by County.

It is striking how different the current SWD trap catch across the network is for Eastern versus Western NY. Reports in for the monitoring network show the counties where SWD has been found on the distribution map, as compared to those where none have yet been caught in traps (gray).

Published on Leave a comment on First catch in Saratoga County

At both trapping sites in Saratoga County, first catch occurred this week. In tart cherry, two male and one female were caught in traps set in the interior of the orchard. In blackberry, two male and three female SWD were caught in a trap set close to the hedgerow next to the planting. These traps are being monitored by Natasha Field, Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program, Cornell Cooperative Extension.

Tart cherries are starting to color and will become increasingly susceptible to infestation as ripening continues. Plan now for an effective insecticide program. Review the choices of insecticides for SWD and plan accordingly. Refer to the Insecticide Quick Guides for NY State for stone fruit and grapes www.hort.cornell.edu/fruit/pdfs/swd/treefruit-grape-insecticides.pdf.

A picture of the breathing tubes of SWD eggs on a blackberry.
Breathing tubes of SWD eggs as seen, magnified by a microscope, on the surface of blackberry fruit.

The blackberries are still hard and green and developing, therefore not susceptible to SWD just yet. once ripening begins, fruit will become susceptible to oviposition. Take time to review the insecticide options for berries, at www.hort.cornell.edu/fruit/pdfs/swd/berry-insecticides.pdf.

Published on Leave a comment on Sustained catch in Rensselaer County

In the Capital District things are heating up. Five male and four female SWD were caught this week ending June 15, 2020, ushering in sustained catch at this blueberry site in the two traps set on the edge of the planting. Traps at this site are being monitored by Laura McDermott, Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program.

A picture of blueberries showing signs of beginning to ripen.
Blueberry fruit beginning to show signs of ripening. be watchful of fruit development on your farm.

As blueberries ripen, they will become increasingly susceptible to infestation by the local SWD population. Keep the population down with judicious choices of insecticides used for insect pests such as blueberry maggot, cranberry fruitworm and cherry fruitworm. Cross reference the insecticides listed for these insect pests in the Cornell Pest Management Guidelines for Berry Crops and the SWD insecticide quick guide.

Remember, knowledge is power. Find out the basics on Cornell Fruit Resources Spotted Wing Drosophila, fruit.cornell.edu/spottedwing/. Drill down to specifics for blueberry in these two resources on SWD management in blueberry:

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