The Midwestern Regional Climate Center recently released a freeze date tool. It makes it easy to find historical temperature information that may help growers plan. This article provides a quick introduction to the tool. Many readers are familiar with the average first fall frost and last spring frost dates, and the frost-free growing season between…Read more about A Look at the Freeze Date Tool from Midwestern Regional Climate Center[Read More]
Vegetable Crops - General
PCNB fungicides include Blocker 4F® and 10G®. PCNB is an acronym for the chemical pentachloronitrobenzene. In Indiana, PCNB fungicides are used for bottom rot, club root, and wirestem in brassica crops. Brassica crops for which PCNB products are labeled for include: Broccoli, Brussels sprout, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, kale, kohlrabi, and mustard greens. Be sure to…Read more about EPA Proposal to Cancel all uses of PCNB Fungicides[Read More]
This article was originally published in the August 2022 Center for Crop Diversification Newsletter. Dakota Moore is the Grower Outreach Coordinator of Kentucky Horticulture Council. You can reach Dakota at dakota@kyhortcouncil.org “That’ll never happen to us.” “It’s always been this hot and dry.” “This storm won’t be that bad.” If the last year has taught…Read more about Protect Your Livelihood with Crop Insurance[Read More]
We discussed wetting patterns in drip irrigation in a previous article. The take home message is drip irrigation applies water to only a portion of the soil. Uneven water distribution in the soil profile is not a problem as long as enough water is applied to the crop. However, the water wetting pattern might influence…Read more about Water Affects Efficacy of Soil-Incorporated Fertilizers and Amendments[Read More]
Purdue University will host the 2023 Indiana Horticulture Conference at the Beck Agricultural Center, West Lafayette, IN on Jan.23 and 24. This two-day conference will feature educational sessions for commercial fruit and vegetable producers. CCA credits will be available. We look forward to seeing you there. More information will be available soon. If you have…Read more about 2023 Indiana Horticulture Conference Save the Date[Read More]
Vegetable growers may be wondering when to apply the final fungicide application. It is important to leave the crop protected until the last harvest. Yet, it is important not to waste fungicides. In most cases, the last fungicide application should occur 10 to 14 days from the final harvest. Most fungicides that are designed to…Read more about The Final Fungicide Application[Read More]
We announced in a previous newsletter article that we are doing a survey to understand the extent of root-knot nematode (RKN) damage on vegetable crops in Indiana. Among the 18 soil samples from high tunnels of 14 farms, RKNs (juvenile or adult) were found in 13 samples at 9 farms. Only 3 farmers knew RKN…Read more about Root-knot Nematode may be a Hidden Problem in High Tunnels[Read More]
A major difference between drip irrigation and other irrigation methods is that drip irrigation applies water to only a portion of the soil. This works great for vegetables grown on the plastic mulch, since no irrigation water is applied between the row middles; water applied to row middles encourages weed growth. So, does the soil…Read more about Understanding Wetting Patterns in Drip Irrigation[Read More]
At Pinney Purdue (PPAC) 2.67 inches of rain fell July 27 through August 9. The potential evapotranspiration (PET) over the period was 1.68 inches. Estimates for water use by the crops are equal to or just slightly lower than potential evapotranspiration. For tomatoes, estimated water use was 1.68 inches, and for watermelons, 1.52 inches. There…Read more about Irrigation Demonstration Update Aug 9, 2022, Pinney Purdue Ag Center[Read More]