The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) at USDA publishes information about prices, supplies, movement, and quality of vegetables every business day. On Thursday, July 16, 2015, 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time, AMS will offer a webinar about the Fruit & Vegetable Market News, what information on organic crops is available, and how to use the…Read more about USDA Offers Webinar on Organic Market News Reporting[Read More]
Vegetable Crops - General
Preparing for the 2015 Melon Season. Tuesday, June 30, 2015. 8:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. EDT. Oaktown Produce Depot, 13990 N. Old U.S. 41, Oaktown, IN. This program is designed primarily for cantaloupe and watermelon growers, although all produce growers are welcome to attend. The Indiana State Department of Health will be on hand to…Read more about Upcoming Events[Read More]
High rainfall amounts lead to loss of nitrogen from the soil. Sometimes the loss is great enough that a crop will benefit from additional nitrogen application. This article will describe how nitrogen is lost and factors to consider in deciding whether to apply extra nitrogen. There are two main ways nitrogen is lost from wet…Read more about Nitrogen Loss from Wet Soils[Read More]
Much of the state has seen excessive rains in recent weeks (Fig. 1). When soils are saturated vegetable crops suffer. This article, slightly revised from its original publication date in July 2003, describes and explains problems that are likely to occur. Vegetable crops become stressed in waterlogged soils. Aboveground wilting, yellowing and death of leaves,…Read more about Waterlogged Soils and Plant Growth[Read More]
The Indiana State Department of Agriculture is officially launching the Indiana Grown Initiative on July 7, 2015. This free marketing program will enable all Indiana agricultural and food products to be labeled and marketed with an Indiana brand. It is a very comprehensive program that will include many market channels and farm products. This program…Read more about Indiana Grown Initiative to be Launched[Read More]
”Planning for Success: Food Safety Plan Writing” began Thursday June 4 and will continue on June 18 and July 1. The program is offered via WebEx, or by phone for audio only. Each program includes a presentation followed by time for discussion and questions and answers. “The programs are designed so that growers can participate over a lunch hour and…Read more about Planning for Success: Food Safety Plan Writing[Read More]
A field day will be held on July 9 to share with the public the various research activities at the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center in Vincennes, IN. The day will start at 7:30 A.M. with a health fair. Registration starts at 8:30 A.M. Presentation topics include: managing cucumber beetles while protecting bees, production of vegetables…Read more about Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center Field Day[Read More]
On May 29, 2015, the EPA issued a proposal to protect bees from acutely toxic pesticides. As stated in the announcement, “EPA is proposing to prohibit the application of pesticides that are highly toxic to bees when crops are in bloom and bees are under contract for pollination services. These restrictions would prohibit application of…Read more about EPA’s Proposal to Protect Bees[Read More]
Indiana is working on a state pollinator protection plan, which is being spearheaded by the Office of the Indiana State Chemist with input from various stakeholders, including growers, farm chemical company representatives and beekeepers. A large part of the plan will involve protecting bees from pesticides. This plan is part of a national movement initiated…Read more about Notes on Recent Pollinator Health Initiatives[Read More]
During the past two weeks, I am aware of two beehives that were almost decimated when insecticides were used nearby. In both cases, the commercial applicators had used the DriftWatch program before spraying to look for sensitive crops or bees near the targeted crop. However, neither hive was recorded in DriftWatch. DriftWatch is a web-based program to help…Read more about DriftWatch.org Worth the Effort[Read More]