This article introduces a new soil test for high tunnel growers. Why is there a need for a new soil test for high tunnel production? Soil tests are valuable tools helping growers decide how much fertilizers and/or other soil amendments to apply for growing a specific vegetable crop. It also helps growers to detect soil…Read more about A New Soil Test for High Tunnel Growers[Read More]
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Warm-season vegetables like tomato, cucumber, pepper etc. often receive premium prices if they were sold at farmers’ markets earlier in the season. The same happens on summer squash, with the different fruit shape and color, summer squash provides a great diversity to the market. High tunnels that are planted with warm-season vegetables are often closed…Read more about Summer Squash Cultivar Selection for High Tunnel Production[Read More]
Recent studies have suggested that on-farm food safety practices can have unexpected economic and ecological impacts. Despite the potential for negative consequences, limited data is available on the costs and benefits of implementing specific practices. Co-managing farms for food safety and sustainability is further complicated because farms are linked to adjacent environments so that management…Read more about New Survey to Shed Light on Trade-offs Between Food Safety and Conservation Practices on Produce Farms in the Eastern United States[Read More]
Vegetable growers in Northwest Indiana may want to take advantage of a March 17 Specialty Crop Irrigation Meeting in Benton Harbor, Michigan. Presenters Phil Ausra, Trickl-Eez Irrigation Inc., Dr. Younsuk Dong, MSU Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Irrigation, and Lyndon Kelley, MSU Extension/Purdue Extension Irrigation Educator will cover irrigation scheduling, irrigation design process, and…Read more about Specialty Crop Irrigation Meeting[Read More]
Southwest Indiana Melon and Vegetable Growers annual meeting will be held in French Lick, IN on March 13, 8:30 am to 4:00 pm. Participants will learn from Purdue extension specialists about the newly searchable Midwest Vegetable Production Guide; new updates on food safety; watermelon grafting; impacts of pesticide use on pollinator health; weed management; lessons…Read more about Southwest Indiana Melon and Vegetable Growers Annual Meeting[Read More]
Thanks to the support from NC-SARE, we are going to continue the study of evaluating grafted cucumbers for early season production in greenhouses and high tunnels by collaborating with farmers in 2020. You can find our 2019 on-farm trials’ summary here: https://ag.purdue.edu/arge/swpap/Documents/Summary%20of%202019%20On-farm%20Grafted%20Cucumber%20Trials.pdf. The same as in previous years, we are going to supply grafted and…Read more about Call for Growers’ Participation of Grafted Cucumber Research[Read More]
Agricultural producers face a plethora of wildlife issues on the farm, from biosecurity in animal agriculture to food safety requirements for fresh produce farmers. Many wildlife species have social or economic value and may be regulated or protected, constraining timely mitigation strategies. Additionally, research and science-based management recommendations to help farmers address wildlife on the…Read more about Survey for Wildlife Damage[Read More]
The fungus Rhizoctonia can be a nuisance to many vegetable growers. Readers may recognize this unusual name as a cause of many diseases such as damping off and root rot in many different crops. This article is about Rhizoctonia as the cause of wirestem in broccoli. Rhizoctonia may affect several brassica crops such as broccoli,…Read more about Wirestem of Broccoli[Read More]
This disease was recently observed in southern Indiana. Moderate damage to leaves in broccoli does not usually cause yield or quality loss. However, Alternaria leaf spot may also affect Chinese cabbage, bok choy and leafy brassicas such as cabbage. The most common symptom is a leaf spot (Figure 1). The lesions start out small; as…Read more about Alternaria Leaf Spot of Broccoli[Read More]
Cool nights have finally arrived after the first week of October. Before, we had quite a few days when temperatures were above 90°F. The unusual high temperature has caused problems on early-planted broccoli. Broccoli is a heat-sensitive crop. The critical period for heat sensitivity is when plants shift growing tips from vegetative growth to flower…Read more about Broccoli under Heat Stress[Read More]
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