The recent cool and cloudy weather has influenced conditions in the field as well as in greenhouses and high tunnels. I have observed more Botrytis gray mold of tomatoes in greenhouses this spring than usual. This is due in part to the weather. This article will discuss this disease on tomatoes and some management options….Read more about Botrytis Gray Mold on Greenhouse Tomatoes[Read More]
Plant Disease Management
Gummy Stem Blight – this fungal disease causes dark brown leaf spots, however, the diagnostic feature of this disease is the water soaked lesion that is often formed under one of the seed leaves (cotyledons). Such lesions often start at the point where the seed leaf joins the stem (hypocotyl) and do not extend to…Read more about Cucurbit Transplant Diseases[Read More]
Recently, this disease was observed in a greenhouse in Indiana. This article will serve as a review of this important disease. The symptoms of bacterial canker vary considerably. In most cases, the edges of the leaves may turn yellow and/or brown. That is, the margins of the leaves may become chlorotic and/or necrotic (Figure 1). This symptom, which…Read more about Bacterial Canker of Tomato[Read More]
I have never had as many questions about how to use MELCAST as I did in 2015. The interest in this program is growing both here in Indiana and nationally. Read on to find out how to apply fungicides according to the weather and perhaps save money in the process. MELCAST (MELon disease foreCASTer) is…Read more about MELCAST 2016[Read More]
Cool season crops such as lettuce are becoming a more popular crop among Indiana greenhouse/high tunnel growers. One of the most important diseases of lettuce is known as lettuce drop. The symptoms of lettuce drop are often noticed after the thinning stage, early in the crop development. The early symptoms may include browning of leaves. Later…Read more about Lettuce Drop[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]
The last two summers, I have had pretty good fungicide trials for powdery mildew of pumpkin. Since all of the products trialed are now labeled or close to being labeled, I thought it was time to share this information with vegetable growers of Indiana. First, a bit of background about this disease. In Indiana, powdery…Read more about Powdery Mildew of Cucurbits[Read More]
In a separate article in this issue, I discussed management of powdery mildew with conventional fungicides. Here I would like to talk about powdery mildew management of cucurbits with organically approved products. I will describe two studies, one with all organically approved products and a second with a combination of organic and conventional products. All…Read more about Organic Powdery Mildew Control[Read More]
You might have heard about tomato grafting, or you might even already have tried the new technique. Yes, it has multiple benefits: control of soilborne diseases, enhanced tolerance to abiotic stresses, and increased productivity. It works for some growers, but not all. Why? There are several reasons. First, effects of grafting on controlling soilborne diseases…Read more about Are You Interested in Tomato Grafting?[Read More]