The 2018 Ontario Potato Conference will be held on Tuesday March 6, 2018. More details to follow.
Category Archives: Pest Management
Nozzle choice in vegetable crops – an Australian perspective
Here is a great article on sprayers101.com about spray nozzle selection in vegetable crops.
During my many years of work in the Australian vegetable and horticultural industry, I am continually asked:
What is the best spray unit to use?
My answer is quite simple:
The one that has been correctly set up and matched to the crop you are spraying.
That can be hard to achieve, especially in vegetable crops where the target can vary enormously from bare ground to upright leaf crops (e.g. onions), to horizontal leaf crops (e.g. potato and brassica).
Generally, I have found that air-assist booms offer the best starting point for achieving good spray coverage of vegetable crops. However, like any spray boom, they must be set up correctly. Air-assist booms are more expensive and require a few more horses to operate, which is why most Australian vegetable growers prefer to make do with a non air-assist boom.
So, if air-assist isn’t an option, it then becomes imperative to determine the most suitable nozzles for their particular requirements. I have worked in many vegetable crops over the years. I’ve held my share of “fluorescent dye nights” and checked spray coverage and canopy penetration with many grower groups. Based on my experience, there are three types of nozzles I recommend for most vegetable crops:
Read more here:
http://sprayers101.com/nozzle-choice-in-vegetable-crops-an-australian-perspective/
Corn Earworm and Late Planted Sweet Corn
Corn earworm pressure often increases as we head into September. With turbulent weather patterns originating in the Gulf of Mexico, flights of airborne moths are generally quite high. As the tradewinds mix with the cooler air of the great lakes, these high populations are dropped into Southern Ontario. Any sweet corn at the green silk stage is highly susceptible to corn earworm infestation.
For earworm control, cover green silks with an insecticide such as Coragen or Voliam Express. Avoid insecticides from the pyrethroid family. Corn earworm are known to be resistant to the pyrethroids. Lannate TNG is a good rotational partner for Coragen and Voliam Express.
Muck Crops Research Station Grower Field Day
If you are a carrot or onion grower, or just interested in the latest vegetable research you are invited to the University of Guelph Muck Crops Grower Field Day on Thursday, September 7. See the announcement below:
Grower Field Day Variety Trials 2017 invitation
The carrot and onion variety trials will be on display with entries from the major vegetable seed suppliers.
You can also view the onion research trials on topics like Stemphylium leaf blight, downy mildew and onion maggot. Research trials on carrot weevil control, carrot weed control and celery leaf curl will be featured and it’s also great opportunity to interact with University of Guelph researchers, other growers and industry reps.
The Muck Crops Research Station is at 1125 Woodchoppers Lane, King ON, L7B 0E9 with Stokes Seeds providing coffee and donuts and a free lunch compliments of Solar Seeds.
Downy mildew of brassica vegetables
Downy mildew of brassicas (Hyaloperonospora parasitica syn. Peronospora parasitica) is a fungal-like oomycete that can be devastating in cooler, wet weather. While the ideal temperature for downy mildew development is 8-16˚C it can infect in temperatures outside that range. Prolonged leaf wetness due to fog, dew, or evening irrigation can create ideal conditions for the pathogen to develop.
Downy mildew is most devastating on Continue reading Downy mildew of brassica vegetables
Matador/Warrior/Silencer and Imidan proposed phase out
The PMRA have proposed to cancel the registration of both lambda-cyhalothrin (Matador/Silencer/Warrior) and phosmet (Imidan). The decisions can be found here:
The decisions state that lambda-cyhalothrin poses an unacceptable risk from dietary exposure (worst case scenario cumulative food residues would be too high), while phosmet poses a risk during application and post-application activities. The proposed precautions such as revised restricted entry intervals would not be agronomically feasible (e.g. 12 day REI for scouting carrots, 43 days for moving irrigation pipe).
Public consultation is now open until September 23 (lambda-cyhalothrin) or September 30 (phosmet) so if growers wish to make comments on these proposed decisions you can submit them to pmra.publications@hc-sc.gc.ca, or talk to your growers’ association who can comment on your behalf.
Switch® Fungicide label expanded for Celery Leaf Curl
J. Chaput, OMAFRA, Minor Use Coordinator
The Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) recently announced the approval of an URMULE registration for Switch® Fungicide for control of anthracnose (leaf curl) on celery in Canada. Switch® Fungicide was already labeled for use on a number of crops in Canada for control of several diseases.
This minor use project was submitted as a result of minor use priorities established by growers and extension personnel.
The following is provided as an abbreviated, general outline only. Users should be making pest management decisions within a robust integrated disease management program and should consult the complete label before using switch fungicide.
Switch® Fungicide is TOXIC to aquatic organisms. Fludioxonil is persistent and may carryover. It is recommended that any products containing fludioxonil not be used in areas treated with this product during the previous season. Do not permit Switch Fungicide to contaminate off-target areas or aquatic habitats when spraying or when cleaning and rinsing spray equipment or containers.
Follow all precautions and detailed directions for use on the Switch® Fungicide label carefully.
For a copy of the new minor use label contact your local crop specialist, regional supply outlet or visit the PMRA label site.
This article is not intended to be an endorsement or recommendation for this particular product, but rather a notice of registration activity.
