Dear Valued VCH Readers, Welcome to issue 750, the third edition of the 2025 Vegetable Crops Hotline newsletter! Indiana has undoubtedly experienced a stormy couple of weeks. I hope you all are doing well. Purdue Extension has a great resource to help you prepare for extreme events https://www.purdue.edu/engineering/ABE/INPREPared/. Next week, temperatures across the state might…Read more about From The Editor’s Desk[Read More]
Vegetable Crops - General
It happens every year. A warm wave moves into the area, and I immediately get the urge to run to the nursery and start planting for the spring. Of course, there is another little voice inside my head warning me not to fall for it. There are plenty of other things I can do outside…Read more about A False Sense of Spring?[Read More]
University of Florida researchers developed this survey to investigate issues associated with slugs and snails in horticultural crops. Your survey participation can assist researchers in developing Extension and research control methods. For more information about this survey, please check the survey link.
Join us for an exciting new endeavor, the Tri-State High Tunnel School, focused on high tunnel production with information to benefit commercial growers, beginning farmers, and educators, among others. It is hosted by Extension Specialists and Educators with Michigan State University, Purdue University, and The Ohio State University. Indiana host locations and contacts: Goshen, IN…Read more about Tri-State High Tunnel School on March 14, 2025[Read More]
Let’s face it, growing a specialty crop is hard work and expensive. Battling mother nature, insects and disease are just a few of the obstacles growers face. Pesticide drift shouldn’t be one of them. DriftWatch offers a reliable and FREE mapping tool that promotes communication between specialty crop producers and pesticide applicators. (Beekeepers can also register…Read more about How Much is Your Specialty Crop Worth?[Read More]
The Purdue Ag Center is seeking a Specialty Crops Systems Specialist. In this role, you will provide expertise and assistance to faculty and graduate students in the Departments of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Botany and Plant Pathology, Entomology, and others by implementing and maintaining applied field research trials related to fruit, vegetable and specialty crops…Read more about Horticulture Research Manager Position at Purdue University[Read More]
Purdue Extension is offering the Farmers Market Certificate, a virtual training designed to equip market managers, vendors, and community leaders with the knowledge and skills necessary to operate successful and sustainable farmers markets. This program will provide essential insights into best practices, food safety regulations, legal considerations, marketing strategies, conflict management, and customer engagement techniques…Read more about Purdue Extension to Host Virtual Farmers Market Certificate[Read More]
Numerous educators and extension volunteers took advantage of the annual Summer School for Consumer Food Safety Education program. The 2024 speakers of the second webinar session were Carla Schwan, an Extension food safety specialist from the University of Georgia, and Melissa Rupp, an Extension educator from Ohio State University. They focused their presentation on safety…Read more about Safety Considerations of Freeze-dried Foods: Learnings From the Consumer Food Safety Education Webinar Series[Read More]
Optimizing light management is crucial for producing high-quality vegetable transplants in greenhouse environments. As greenhouse growers gear up for the spring production season, managing light conditions becomes a critical factor in producing high-quality vegetable transplants. With varying natural light levels and the challenges posed by greenhouse structures, understanding and optimizing daily light integral (DLI) is essential…Read more about Managing Daily Light Integral to Improve Vegetable Transplant Quality[Read More]