Are you still thinking about varieties for the upcoming season? Purdue has been keeping a record of vegetable variety trials in the Midwest since 1999. The Midwest Vegetable Trial Report series includes reports of applied research relevant to vegetable and melon production in the Midwest. Here are some abstracts of the most recent reports. Visit the Midwest Vegetable Trial Report webpage (https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/mwvtr/) for more information.
Colored Sweet Bell and Tapered Pepper Cultivar Evaluation for High Tunnel Production in West-Central Indiana, 2022 (Petrus Langenhoven, Lian Duron, and Eduardo Miranda)
Colored sweet bell-shaped and tapered peppers are a staple at the farmers’ market. Many small and medium-sized farming operations in Indiana grow this summer crop. High tunnels allow growers to protect their crops and extend their growing season. Sweet peppers, in particular, benefit from the unique growing environment created by the high tunnel. Planting of peppers can start at least 2-4 weeks earlier in the spring, and production can continue into the fall until the first hard freeze. Pepper variety performance data for Indiana is not readily available. We are working hard to change that. Currently, we have evaluated twenty-five pepper varieties, and each variety is assessed in two production cycles. This paper reports on five sweet bell and five tapered pepper entries.
2022 Seedless Pickling Cucumber Cultivar Trial (Ben Phillips and Jenny Schoonmaker)
A pickling cucumber cultivar trial was planted at the Southwest Michigan Research and Extension Center (42.088261, -86.351980, Benton Harbor, Michigan). Bejo (BJ), Nunhems (NU), and Rijk Zwaan (RZ) seed companies donated parthenocarpic (seedless) cultivars for mechanical once-over harvest. Overall, trial quality was marginal due to being the first trial on a new research farm with different equipment parameters, task procedures, and responsibilities. Factors affecting trial quality were logged for next year’s trial, and include machine planting, incorporating the entire nitrogen recommendation ahead of planting, and adjusting the final plant population to 30-inch row spacings.
2022 Summer Squash Cultivar Trial (Ben Phillips and Jenny Schhomaker)
A summer squash cultivar trial was planted at the Southwest Michigan Research and Extension Center (42.081985, -86.354087, Benton Harbor, Michigan). HM Clause (HM), PanAmerican (PA), Rupp (RP), Sakata (SK), and US Agriseeds (UA) seed companies donated four zucchini cultivars, three patty pan cultivars, and one yellow summer squash cultivar for plastic-mulch bedded hand harvest. Trial quality was excellent.
No-till Pumpkin after Winter Rye Cover Crop, Northern Indiana, 2021 (Elizabeth Maynard)
No-till planting of pumpkin into a killed winter rye cover crop is a system used by growers in several states, including Indiana. Advantages mentioned by producers in addition to soil health benefits from the cover crop include cleaner pumpkins at harvest, and in rainy seasons, less mud in the field at harvest time. This paper reports on a project to develop a workable no-till system at a university research farm that can be used for demonstration and in future research to better understand and improve production practices. The trial included two methods for killing rye in no-till systems: herbicide applied at the boot stage of rye and roller-crimping at the time of planting.
Jack-o-lantern pumpkins produced greater yield in conventional tillage than in no-till in this trial. The effects of tillage treatment on marketable yield were similar for direct-seeded and transplanted crops, with conventional plots producing 40% more by number and 58% more by weight than no-till plots. In direct-seeded plots, the conventional treatment produced the largest marketable pumpkins, 22% heavier than in no-till plots. In transplanted plots, pumpkin size was not affected by tillage treatments. Weed pressure differed among the tillage treatments before in-season control measures in July: herbicide-killed rye and conventional tillage had more weed pressure than roller-crimped rye.
For direct-seeded crops, emergence was slower and more variable in no-till treatments than in conventional tillage. The longest delay in emergence occurred when rye was killed by roller-crimping. Key challenges that remain for direct-seeded no-till pumpkins are achieving good furrow closure and reducing seed predation. For both direct-seeded and transplanted pumpkins, the next steps include exploring ways to overcome other factors that reduce growth and yield. Certainly, pumpkin yield is not the only measure of success in this system–the benefits of reduced tillage and biomass input to the soil that many others have documented also have much value.
No-till Sweet Corn after Winter Rye Cover Crop, Northern Indiana, 2021 (Elizabeth Maynard)
No-till planting of sweet corn into a killed winter rye cover crop is not a widely used practice in Indiana. Still, it has the potential to provide soil health benefits such as reduced compaction, improved soil water-holding capacity, and reduced evaporation from the soil surface, in addition to other benefits. This paper reports on the second year of a project to develop a workable system at a university research farm that can be used for demonstration and in future research to better understand and improve production practices. The trial included two methods for killing rye in no-till systems: herbicide at the boot stage of rye and roller-crimping either before or after seeding. Emergence and stand establishment problems in no-till plots last year led to changes in methods this year: weight was added to planter units for no-till plots, and irrigation was applied soon after seeding. An early and main season sweet corn cultivar responded similarly to treatments. Compared to conventional tillage, the marketable ear number was reduced for sweet corn no-tilled planted into rye. When rye was killed by rolling, the number of marketable ears per plant was less than when rye was killed with herbicide. Marketable yield differences appear related to differences in emergence timing and uniformity. In rolled plots, harvest was delayed approximately 10 days. Future work on the no-till system should include continued improvement in stand establishment as well as considering whether changes in nutrient and other management practices are warranted.
2022 Standard-sized Triploid Watermelon Cultivar Evaluation in Indiana (Wenjing Guan, Dean Haseman, Dennis Nowaski, and Dan Egel)
A total of 6,600 acres of watermelons were planted in southern Indiana in 2021, making Indiana the sixth largest watermelon production state in the US, following Florida, Texas, Georgia, California, and North Carolina (USDA, 2022). Farmers select cultivars based on yield, disease resistance and fruit quality. This annual watermelon cultivar evaluation trial aims to provide watermelon producers and seed companies with information on the performances of different watermelon cultivars in southern Indiana.
2022 Personal-sized Triploid Watermelon Cultivar Evaluation in Indiana (Wenjing Guan, Dean Haseman, Dennis Nowaski, and Dan Egel)
Personal-sized (mini) watermelons refer to fruit weighing 4.4 to 8.8 lb (Vinson et al., 2010), with 6-7 lb considered the ideal size. Both seeded and seedless personal-sized cultivars are commercially available. In the annual cultivar trial, we evaluate the performance of personal-sized triploid watermelons in southern Indiana.