This is the time of year when growers begin planting seed—whether you are child planting a few seeds in Dixie cup for a school project, home tomato growers, or professional horticulturists. Unfortunately, one problem you may share in common is damping-off. Damping-off describes the death of seeds or seedlings and includes all of the following…Read more about Damping-off[Read More]
Vegetable Crops - General
This article is my response to a grower’s question about lowering soil pH in a high tunnel. The soil test indicated pH of the soil in his high tunnel was 7.7. The high pH could be partially caused by alkaline water he used to use for irrigation. The grower has changed the water source, but…Read more about Lowering Soil pH in High Tunnels[Read More]
On January 1, products containing >6.5% dicamba and an agriculture use label are now restricted use pesticides. In order to purchase these herbicides, buyers must carry a private or commercial pesticide applicator license. While dicamba herbicides have been on the market for over 50 years to control broadleaf weeds, the recent development of dicamba resistant…Read more about Using Driftwatch/Fieldwatch to Help Dicamba Applicators Locate Sensitive Crops[Read More]
If you have not joined this free marketing and network program for growers, buyers and food producers in Indiana, take a moment to join today! Visit www.indianagrown.org to submit your Member application. Indiana Grown has received recognition and funding from the State Legislature to strengthen our local and regional food networks. Once you join, you…Read more about Indiana Grown[Read More]
Welcome to a new year of the Vegetable Crops Hotline (VCH), Purdue Extension’s newsletter for people in the business of growing vegetables. As usual, we will have fifteen issues throughout the 2018 growing season. The first issue of the year is sent to all who subscribed to VCH via US-mail in 2017 as well as new subscribers for 2018. To…Read more about Welcome to a New Year of Vegetable Crops Hotline[Read More]
This is the final issue of the Vegetable Crops Hotline (VCH) for 2017. Now is the time for subscribers who receive a paper copy in the mail to renew. A renewal form is included with this issue. Note that we provide an up-to three years’ subscription of VCH with a reduced price. You can also sign-up for…Read more about Time to Renew[Read More]
Farmers markets are a centerpiece of local food systems. These markets connect farmers with consumers and provide important economic benefits. While Indiana farmers can take advantage of the opportunities from selling directly to consumers, they face a dearth of information regarding pricing and marketing strategies. Information about pricing and product quality requirements are generally available…Read more about Indiana Farmers Markets Price Reports: How, Where, and Why[Read More]
Winter is the best time to recharge. In the last issue of this years’ Vegetable Crops Hotline newsletter, I would like to highlight a few free webinar resources that I found very useful in the past season. Hopefully, you can also benefit from them, and have a productive winter. eOrganic webinars http://articles.extension.org/pages/25242/webinars-by-eorganic A lot of great…Read more about Educational Resources[Read More]
In the last two months, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released several communications dealing with the Produce Safety Rule (PRS). The following is a brief summary of those communications: Guidance On September 5, FDA released Guidance for Industry: Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption: What…Read more about Produce Safety Rule Updates[Read More]
The new SafeProduceIN website is now live and may be accessed at www.SafeProduceIN.com. SafeProduceIN is a collaboration between Purdue Extension, the Indiana State Department of Agriculture, and the Indiana State Department of Health. The purpose of the collaboration is to assist Indiana produce growers with implementation of the Produce Safety Rule. The new website will…Read more about New SafeProduceIN Website is Up and Running[Read More]