This disease appears to be more important each year. It is not clear to me why. This article reviews Plectosporium of pumpkin, sometimes called white speck. I would rank Plectosporium blight behind powdery mildew, bacterial leaf spot and Phytophthora blight in economic damage caused. The occurrence of this disease is usually sporadic. However, when it…Read more about Plectosporium blight of Pumpkin[Read More]
Squash
Question: What happened to these fruit? Answer: Hail damage. A storm that happened in middle July brought hail to parts of Indiana. Hail hit small fruit, and damage became pronounced as fruit grow. More information about the damage to vegetable crops can be found in the article Hail Damage published in Vegetable Crops Hotline Issue…Read more about Answer to Question from Last Issue (8-13-2020)[Read More]
Downy mildew has been observed in LaPorte County in northern Indiana on cucumber. In addition, downy mildew on cucumber has been reported in southern Kentucky and on watermelon in the Kansas City area of Kansas. Growers in northern Indiana should manage for downy mildew on valuable cucurbit crops (Figure 1). Growers throughout the state should…Read more about Cucurbit Downy Mildew[Read More]
In the past two weeks we have heard reports of the Squash vine borer (Figure 1) being spotted in some local gardens. This pest of cucurbit crops tends to be sporadic in our region; you are either battling it every year or it hardly makes an appearance. The squash vine borer is a member of…Read more about Watch for a New Culprit Wilting Your Cucurbits![Read More]
Warm-season vegetables like tomato, cucumber, pepper etc. often receive premium prices if they were sold at farmers’ markets earlier in the season. The same happens on summer squash, with the different fruit shape and color, summer squash provides a great diversity to the market. High tunnels that are planted with warm-season vegetables are often closed…Read more about Summer Squash Cultivar Selection for High Tunnel Production[Read More]
Winter squash – butternut, acorn, and kabocha – in our downy mildew sentinel plot at Pinney Purdue were showing some wilted and stunted plants by late July (Figure 1). They are easily pulled up, the stem breaking off at ground level, revealing a brown stringy decayed-looking stem base (Figure 2). Sometimes there is a little…Read more about Wilting Cucurbits! What could it be?[Read More]
Finally the time has come to plant warm season crops. Zucchini is a popular summer squash grown throughout Indiana and the United States. It always delivers a bounty of fruit. Yes, technically zucchini is a fruit (botanically classified as a modified berry) but as per the USDA it is listed under the ‘Vegetables and Vegetable…Read more about Growing a Bountiful Zucchini Crop[Read More]
Gowers always want to know which variety is the most suitable one for their farming location and market. I do understand the frustration of growers when looking online at all the varieties being sold by different vendors. There are a plethora of varieties available that have different fruit types and growth habits. Characteristics like potential…Read more about Yellow and Green Zucchini Varieties for the Local Market[Read More]