In January 2016, Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption, otherwise known as the Produce Rule, became law. This rule, as part of the Food Safety and Modernization Act, sets a standard for produce food safety. Not all growers are covered by the rule. An excellent flowchart to help determine coverage…Read more about Produce Rule Water Testing Requirements[Read More]
Vegetable Crops - General
One way insects communicate with individuals of the same species is with pheromones. Pheromones are volatile chemicals released by an insect that usually can be detected only by individuals of the same species. There are a number of different types of pheromones, but the most common type is the sex pheromone. Usually the females will…Read more about Pheromones and Pheromone Traps[Read More]
Updates to the MW Vegetable Production Guide for Commercial Growers 2016 (ID-56)-The table below gives the changes that have been made to the on-line version of the ID-56 as of this date. If you have purchased, or will purchase, a hard copy of this guide, please make these changes. If you use the ID-56, these…Read more about Updates to the 2016 MW Vegetable Production Guide for Commercial Growers[Read More]
New fungicide – I would like to announce the release of a new fungicide, Orondis® from Syngenta. It is a good product and should help commercial vegetable growers in combating downy mildew of cucurbits, Phytophthora blight of cucurbits, peppers and tomato, Buckeye rot of tomato and late blight of potato and tomato. However, I also want to…Read more about New Fungicide for Vegetables[Read More]
If you are an organic grower and use manure and compost, you might be interested in spending a few minutes to participate this survey conducted by University of California-Davis, The Organic Center and Organic Trade Association. The purpose of the survey is to characterize the use of manure and compost based soil amendments. Results from…Read more about Survey about the Use of Manure and Compost[Read More]
2016 Indiana Small Farm Conference Location: Danville, Indiana Date: March 3 to 5, 2016 Keynote speaker of this year’s conference is Mary Dee Berry the executive director of The Berry Center, and Ben Hartman the author of The Lean Farm. More information regarding registration, conference schedule, as well as directions and lodging is available at…Read more about Upcoming Events[Read More]
In December 2015 I presented a talk at the Certified Crop Advisors Conference in Indianapolis titled ‘Specialty Crops of Indiana’. The information gathered for the talk was so interesting that I thought I would share it with all the Vegetable Crops Hotline readers as well. Data Sources. Information used to compile this article has been…Read more about Vegetables: An Overview of Production and Economic Significance in Indiana[Read More]
Welcome to a new year of the Vegetable Crops Hotline! Starting with this issue, I will be the new editor of VCH newsletter. If you do not know me yet, I am the horticulture specialist located at Vincennes, IN. I am excited to work more closely with VCH. I also feel responsible to continually provide you…Read more about Welcome to the 2016 Season from the New Editor[Read More]
In November 2015 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published the final version of Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption, otherwise known as the Produce Rule, in the Federal Register. Sixty days later, in January 2016, the rule became law. The Produce Rule is one of several new…Read more about The Produce Rule is Here![Read More]
How many times have you had to explain to a customer how to select, prepare or store a product that you have grown and are offering for sale? Did you ever wonder if more shoppers might buy your product if they had a clear understanding of how to prepare it? How many of us would…Read more about FoodLink is NOW READY for Your Use[Read More]