Most growers are in the midst of fruitworm and fungicide spraying. The week is looking to be either windy and then pretty hot, so grab whatever spray window you can get. Exercise caution when applying Bravo; try to avoid applications right before a burst of hot weather. Altacor for fruitworm is a good choice and you should allow at least 7 days between applications. It does have a good residual but don’t take chances and possibly missed your application window. Do not exceed 9 oz/A per season.
If you have areas of dead vines or areas that look burned, check them out closely. It could be scale infestations. We have seen A LOT of them this year. I have heard of several more reports of Evital damage showing up. Your yield in these spots will be reduced. Try to nurse the vines along but it could take several years for them to recover fully. I have also heard of some yellow vine syndrome symptoms showing up. To the best of our knowledge, the symptoms show up after stressed conditions usually associated with too much or too little water. The vines will recover from this. If you have been light on your nitrogen applications, shooting a bit of urea may help to nurse the vines along.
We are hosting 4 plant pathology candidates next week (July 16-19). Seminars will be held from 11-12 each day in the library, preceded by a meet-and-greet at 10:30. Please come by, if you have the time, to meet your potentially new plant pathologist.
