By Tim King In 1903, the Massachusetts State Board of Agriculture commissioned a report on the browntail moth following a substantial outbreak of the pest, which had been introduced to Cape Cod, Massachusetts, only a few years earlier. Among other things, in “A Report on the Life History and Habits of the Imported Brown-Tail Moth,”
August 13, 2021 With the exception of protected growing for season extension, most growers’ seeding thoughts have moved beyond late-season edible crops, and toward squeezing in autumn/winter cover crops before it’s so late they don’t produce much biomass. (I say this now, and who knows, it may be a long, warm autumn … )
July 2, 2021 June’s dry start to the growing season has made for a generally low disease pressure around the region. Most of us have not experienced conditions which allow for the prolonged leaf wetness that many diseases require to take hold. Two similar tomato diseases may begin to show up if you experience
June 4, 2021 Recent rains provided very welcome relief for most growers around the region. Long-term forecasting (two-three weeks out) is showing probabilities of temperatures that are above the normal range for June, with a slight probability for precipitation to be below normal. As of June 1, most of Maine was considered “abnormally dry” by U.S. Drought
Cucurbit downy mildew has been verified on cucumbers and cantaloupe in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Because of prevailing west-to-east weather patterns, and the projected path of tropical storm Elsa, there is a chance that this disease will continue its spread toward us.The Cucurbit Downy Mildew Forecasting website is predicting much of New England and Maine to
Hello and welcome to the first Pest Report of 2021!The Pest Report is a compilation of short discussions of pests, diseases and practical growing considerations relevant to the time of year. The Pest Report is not prescriptive – just a warning of current issues in the broader Northeast region that may or may not reach
By Jonathan Mitschele In late July 2017 I discovered that my potato plants were not doing well. Leaves were yellowing and the plants were not growing as expected. Suspecting some sort of blight, I sent photos to Eric Sideman at MOFGA. He thought the problem was potato leafhoppers and referred me to a MOFGA pest
By Will Bonsall Note: Certified organic producers should check with their certifier before using any pesticides (including pest repellents) not mentioned on their organic farm plan. When using pesticides on crops grown commercially and intended for human consumption, an applicator’s license may be required. See https://www.maine.gov/dacf/php/pesticides/applicators/licensing.html. One of the main problems with growing the foods we
Swede midge larvae, circled Broccoli leaves contorted by swede midge larvae feeding Swede midge damage in broccoli Multiple heads of Veronica cauliflower – a result of swede midge feeding By Caleb Goossen, Ph.D. Photos by David Fuller Over the coming years, farmers and home gardeners in Maine will likely encounter damage on their brassica plants
Browntail moths. English photo March 1, 2020 If you find browntail moth webs within reach, clip them by mid-April and destroy the webs by soaking them in soapy water or burning them. Winter is the best time to clip webs due to the low risk of exposure to the caterpillars’ toxic hairs, due to caterpillar dormancy,
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