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.
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:
- 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