Fruit Program News
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International Fruit Tree Association 2019 Conference
December 28, 2018 -
Apple Maggot Fly on watch
November 12, 2018 -
Apple (and other tree fruit) crop insurance deadline is November 20
November 1, 2018A reminder that the deadline for getting apple (or other tree fruit) crop insurance for the 2019 crop year is November 20, 2018. For more information, see the information sheet "November 20th Deadline Nears for Fruit Producers" provided by the UMass Risk Management Education team of Tom Smiarowski and Paul Russell.
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UMass Summer Scholar Nicole Foley presents results at poster session
September 12, 2018At a poster session for UMass CAFE Summer Scholars on September 12, 2018 at the UMass Amherst Campus Center, Nicole Foley presented the results of her study "Evaluation of plant-based materials for attractiveness to the invasive spotted wing Drosophila, Drosophila suzukii " UMass Extension Fruit Entomologist Jaime Pinero was Nicole's advisor. Here is the poster...Poster-Evaluation of plant-based materials for attractiveness to the invasive spotted wing Drosophila, Drosophila suzukii
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Brown Marmorated Stink Bug on the uptick in Massachusetts orchard
September 11, 2018According to a recent (September 11, 2018) Healthy Fruit Pest Update, "UMass Extension has been tracking the invasive Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB), Halyomorpha halys, since 2012. For the past six years, the number of BMSB captured in pheromone-baited traps had remained relatively low, until now. Trap-capture data for 2018 have shown that, this year, BMSB populations are greater than any of the six previous years. Suspected feeding injury by stink bugs (allegedly BMSB) has been reported in a couple of orchards. However, the actual levels of damage have not been quantified yet." Growers are encouraged to monitor/scout their situation and only use control measures where damage by BMSB is documented or trap catches exceed threshold. For more information, see Brown Marmorated Stink Bug.
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2018 apple maturity report updated
September 11, 20182018 apple maturity report updated, 11-September
http://ag.umass.edu/fruit/2018-apple-maturity-report
All observations from UMass Orchard, Belchertown, MA unless otherwise noted
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Annual Summer Meeting of the Massachusetts Fruit Growers' Association
July 4, 2018Annual Summer Meeting of the Massachusetts Fruit Growers’ Association
and UMass Orchard tour, in cooperation with University of Massachusetts Fruit Team
TUESDAY, July 10, 2018
UMass Cold Spring Orchard
391 Sabin St., Belchertown, MassachusettsFor more information and to pre-register on-line using a credit card...
Or to mail in your registration...MFGA Summer Meeting Info and Mail-in Registration
To request Accessibility accomodations for this event, please visit the UMass disability services website and fill out a brief request form. https://www.umass.edu/disability/events
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What was your UMass Extension Fruit Team up to last year? (FY 2017, which runs 1-October, 2016 to 30-September, 2017)
July 3, 2018 -
Brown rot in tart cherry...
June 18, 2018A particularly nasty case of brown rot has afflicted shoots of Danube and Balaton tart cherry at the UMass Orchard in Belchertown. It was confirmed as brown rot by Dan Cooley's lab, there was the thought it might bacterial canker, but that has been ruled out. Many shoots are afflicted and will have to be pruned out. Interestingly, we wonder if it is a case of European brown rot, which appears to be quite more virulent than the garden variety American brown rot. This outbreak emphasized the importance of timely bloom fungicide sprays, as this is when the brown rot infection got started. Fruits will have to be protected with fungicides when ripening too. For more information on European vs. American brown rot, see this article in Good Fruit Grower. And for timely fungicide application choices, see see the Cherries Spray Table in New England Tree Fruit Management Guide.
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Potato leafhopper have arrived...
June 16, 2018Potato leafhopper (PLH) have arrived in Massachusetts, and pose a pest threat to young apple trees in particular. Scout for the presence of PLH in young apple planting and treat with an effective insecticide before they damage and stunt apple foliage on newly planted trees. PLH on older, bearing orchards do not present as much a threat.