Sell Your Potatoes by Variety Name

Sell Your Potatoes by Variety Name
John Mishanec, Cornell Cooperative Extension
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Most people do not give potatoes much thought. For a while, potatoes were on the outs because of the popularity of the many low carb diets. But people just love potatoes and it's hard to keep a good vegetable down.
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Potatoes are grown in most regions of the country. If asked to name a potato variety, most people would be hard pressed to come up with a single variety name. Yukon Gold is probably the variety with the most name recognition. It originated in the Pacific Northwest. It has name recognition because consumers could recognize it for its yellow flesh. Another variety with name recognition is one of the russet varieties, Russet Burbank. This variety was also developed out west.
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Potato varieties grow best where they were developed so western varieties do not grow well here in the east. New York farmers would like to grow Yukon Gold or Russet varieties but they yield very poorly and many growers say they will go broke growing those varieties. New York has one of the best potato breeding programs in the country at Cornell University. Cornell has developed many great varieties.
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The New York potato harvest season is beginning and you will want your customers to come back and ask for the great potatoes they bought from you. The only way they can do that is if you tell them what variety they are purchasing. New York varieties have great flavor, good cooking characteristics plus a wide range of textures and colors. Potatoes are one of the vegetables grown in NY that you can get almost year round. And best of all, they have not traveled 2000 miles.
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Here are some of the more common NY potato varieties:
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Adirondack Blue - low starch
A new potato that is very popular because of its blue skin and blue flesh. Excellent flavor. You cannot go wrong with this potato. Combined with Adirondack Red and a low starch white potato, makes a great red, white and blue potato salad. People love the color. Good for showing your patriotism.
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Adirondack Red - low starch
Another new potato developed by Cornell. It has red skin and flesh. It's great for potato salad. People love the pink flesh color. You can make great chips from both the red and blue varieties.
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Keuka Gold - intermediate starch content
A pail yellow fleshed variety with good disease resistance. Very good eating quality, and also the highest-yielding variety ever released by Cornell. This is why many farmers like this variety.
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Salem - low starch content
Round to oblong, slightly flattened fresh-market variety with bright white skin. Has probably the best flavor of any potato you will find. Try it and you will be hooked.
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Eva - intermediate starch content
A very attractive white-skinned variety, released by Cornell in 1999. The tubers have shallow eyes and bright skin. Does everything well in the kitchen and has good flavor. Named after the mother of the Cornell potato breeder who developed it.
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Lehigh- low starch
This is the newest variety released by Cornell. It is a good looking table-stock potato. Good boiling quality. Has a pail yellow flesh
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Other varieties grown locally
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Carola - intermediate starch content
Gold skin and bright gold (yellow flesh). Very moist cooking qualities. A European variety that has gained some acceptance here in NY.
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Katahdin - intermediate starch content
An older fresh market variety, and the most widely grown variety in NY in the 1950s through the 70s. White flesh and bright white skin. Developed in Maine, and named after Mount Katahdin. Good all rounder and stores very well.
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Chieftain and Red Norland - low starch content
Both are red varieties that are widely grown in NY. Good eating quality. Great for mashed potatoes. Both are the standard red varieties.
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Cooking tips
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* When boiling, the higher the starch content, the more disintegration you'll see. Red varieties are almost always low in starch, and thus hold together well.
* For baking: just about anything will bake. A low starch baked potato will be moist while a high starch potato will be drier. Baking texture comes down to personal preference and so it is hard to come to a consensus.
* For frying, high starch potatoes will chip or fry better. Sugar turns brown when cooked so you don't want a brown potato chip
* Generally high starch potatoes do not mash well.
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John Mishanec
Area Vegetable IPM Educator
Cornell Cooperative Extension
90 State Street
6th Floor, Suite 600
Albany, New York 12207
Phone 518-434-0016
Fax 518-426-3316
E-mail jjm27@cornell.edu

Vegetable Pest Status Report September 2, 2009

Vegetable Pest Status Report September 2, 2009
By John Mishanec, IPM Vegetable Program
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General Conditions
Scattered rains keep things from completely drying out. Right now, there are still a number of very dangerous fungal diseases threatening the crops. Late Blight is still a problem for tomatoes and there are more and more reports of Downy mildew on both pumpkins and cucumbers. If you have to carry the crops longer than normal this year, keep up your protective fungicide sprays.
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Sweet Corn
With the storms coming from the south, they carry along with them corn ear worm (CEW). The CEW arrived over the weekend and we are averaging between 5-7 per night. That translates to a four day spray schedule. At this point in the season, the European corn borer (ECB) flight is pretty much over so all you are spraying for is ear worm. Everything that has silk needs to be sprayed and maintain the 4 day schedule till the silks turn brown.
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Trap catch numbers
Trap Location (ECB – NY, CEW)
Albany Co. North 1 30+
Albany Co. South 0 30+
Saratoga West 2 -
Saratoga East - 25+
Schoharie north 0 -
Schoharie South 0 19
Washington Co. North 0 -
Washington Co. South 0 -
Kingston - -
Orange Co. South 2 35+
Orange Co. North 3 35+
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Tomatoes
On tomatoes, we are seeing some growers experience a problem with Botrytis. The flower is staying attached to the bottom of the fruit. The flower then rots and leaves a small black area on the bottom of the tomato. This is a wound that does not look particularly bad but when the tomatoes are stacked in a box, they leak through the wound. A suggestion is to pick the fruit a little earlier in blush, as it seems to get worse as the fruit gets more mature.
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Even though the weather has become hot and dry, continue with your fungicide applications. We are still having heavy due and fog in the mornings. There is so much late blight around, unprotected plants are an easy target for LB.
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Another problem we are seeing more and more of is bacterial spot on the fruit. (http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Tomato_Bacterial.htm) For both conventional and organic growers, copper is the best product. Conventional growers, mixing mancozeb with the copper will increase effectiveness.
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Early blight is also getting more serious at this time of year. (http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Potato_EarlyBlt.htm)Early blight takes advantage of stress in the plant (fruit sizing up) and can defoliate the plant fairly quickly if nothing is done. Copper, Sonata and Serenade Max for organic growers are products labeled for early blight. We are seeing more and more early blight with conventional growers as resistance to the Quadris group of fungicides has shown up. Bravo at higher rates after fruit set also works well at preventing the spread of early blight. Increase your water to insure good coverage of the fruit and penetration into the canopy.
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The only late blight resistant tomato variety is Mountain Magic. It is a semi determinant large cherry tomato Up to this year it has been experimental but Seedway has bough the rights and will be distributing it for the coming season. If you know your Seedway salesman, give him/her a call and order Mountain magic seed right away. I am sure it will sell out quickly with all the problems we have had this summer.
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Lastly, many people are still asking about late blight and next year. Late blight will absolutely not over-winter in tomato. It needs living tissue to survive. It is another story with potatoes. If you have LB in potatoes, the danger is the possibility of the disease surviving on un-harvested tubers or volunteers in the field next year. It is impossible to harvest all the tubers in a plot. An infected tuber will over-winter the disease. Be careful what you plant next year in this years potato plot. Plant something low growing so you will be able to spot volunteer potatoes coming up. Next spring, if you see volunteer potatoes, pull them out immediately. Do not throw bad potatoes in your cull pile. Any place where infected tubers can sprout next year, you have a chance of reintroducing late blight.
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Vine Crops
We are finding more and more Downy Mildew (DM) on pumpkins and cucumbers. That DM came from the west, originating in the greenhouses of Canada. The strain of DM that is affecting pumpkins is coming from the south and along the coast. For DM, Prof Zitter recommends Curzate, Gavel, Tanos, Previcur Flex, Ranman in order of effectiveness. Always rotate with a protectant like Bravo or copper.
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Powdery mildew (PM is also coming on strong as the pumpkins size up. Quintec (NOW registered on winter squash, pumpkins, gourds, muskmelon, spec. melons and watermelon); begin usage early in the PM cycle and see below). Quintec is labeled for use at 4-6 fl oz/A in alternation with other fungicides for a maximum of 50% of the total number of powdery mildew applications, 4 applications per crop, and 32 fl oz per year. The re-treatment interval is 10-14 days, which compels use of an alternation schedule under high disease pressure that warrants a 7-day fungicide program. Pre-harvest interval is 3 days. Quintec is only effective for powdery mildew. It is recommended that Quintec be used in a tank-mix with a protectant fungicideUse the following in an alternating program:2Sulfur (good protectant, alone or tank-mixed with Quintec or those below)Rally , (or OLP) orProcure , (or OLP) or alternated with other protectants like JMS Stylet mineral oil, coppers, etc.)
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Vegetable MD online
The very best source for pictures and information about vegetable diseases is the Vegetable MD online site at Cornell. It has everything you will need to figure out what disease if affecting your particular crop. Check it out at -(http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/Home.htm )
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Cornell Vegetable Guidelines
The online version of the 2009 Integrated Crop and Pest Management Guidelines for Vegetables is now available at http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/recommends/
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John Mishanec
Area Vegetable IPM Educator
Cornell Cooperative Extension
90 State Street
6th Floor, Suite 600
Albany, New York 12207
Phone 518-434-0016
Fax 518-426-3316
E-mail jjm27@cornell.edu

Vegetable Pest Status Report August 25, 2009

Vegetable Pest Status Report August 25, 2009
By John Mishanec, IPM Vegetable Program
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General Conditions
Generally dry weather but there have been some location where they are still receiving significant amounts of rain. It has been difficult for some growers to get into the fields to maintain protective coverage of crops
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Vine Crops
Just as Prof. Tom Zitter predicted a couple weeks ago, we have found Downy Mildew (DM) on pumpkins to the south the Capital District. For the past couple of years, we have only had to deal with a strain of DM that affects cucumbers. That DM came from the west, originating in the greenhouses of Canada. The strain of DM that is affecting pumpkins is coming from the south and along the coast. For DM, Prof Zitter recommends Curzate, Gavel, Tanos, Previcur Flex, Ranman in order of effectiveness. Always rotate with a protectant like Bravo or copper.
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Powdery mildew (PM is also coming on strong as the pumpkins size up.
Quintec (NOW registered on winter squash, pumpkins, gourds, muskmelon, spec. melons and watermelon); begin usage early in the PM cycle and see below). Quintec is labeled for use at 4-6 fl oz/A in alternation with other fungicides for a maximum of 50% of the total number of powdery mildew applications, 4 applications per crop, and 32 fl oz per year. The re-treatment interval is 10-14 days, which compels use of an alternation schedule under high disease pressure that warrants a 7-day fungicide program. Pre-harvest interval is 3 days. Quintec is only effective for powdery mildew. It is recommended that Quintec be used in a tank-mix with a protectant fungicideUse the following in an alternating program:2Sulfur (good protectant, alone or tank-mixed with Quintec or those below)Rally , (or OLP) orProcure , (or OLP) or alternated with other protectants like JMS Stylet mineral oil, coppers, etc.)
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Sweet corn
The numbers of European corn borer (ECB) has dropped off but we are still catching a steady low number of corn ear worms (CEW). The ear worm is far more dangerous but in most of the region we are catching less than two per night. This is a relatively low number. Most reports from growers is that their corn is pretty clean. A 5 day schedule should be adiquet for any corn with silk. CEW is a very dangerous pest as it lays its eggs directly on the silk and once the eggs hatch, the larvae will follow the silk directly into the tip of the ear. You only have a small widow to get the larvae. Low populations like we have now allow you to space out your sprays. Once inside the tip, they are impossible to control. For organic growers, Entrust will work very well with low populations of CEW. Once the populations jump, even conventional growers using harder products will have a difficult time with CEW.
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Trap catch numbers
Trap Location ECB - NY CEW
Albany Co. North 2 4
Albany Co. South 0 8
Saratoga West 0 0
Saratoga East - 4
Schoharie north 0 6
Schoharie South 0 3
Washington Co. North 0 6
Washington Co. South 0 0
Kingston - -
Orange Co. South 2 6
Orange Co. North 3 7
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Tomatoes
First off, some good news. From visiting a number of organic farms this past week, it is apparent that if the grower had a good spray program of copper, the tomato crop was not totally lost. This means that copper needs to be applied on a 3-5 day schedule and you have to get good coverage of all the plant tissue (especially within the canopy). The problem is that many organic growers are not set up to do regular spraying. Most organic growers do not have spray equipment and if they do, it is usually just a small back-pack sprayer with limited range. Another factor is that many organic growers are afraid of copper toxicity. Toxicity levels in the soil are in the range of 200 parts per million (PPM). If you apply copper at the recommended rate, 1.5-2.0 lbs./acre you are putting out 1 PPM per application. Even if you made 10 applications this summer, you are still way below the toxicity level. If you are worried about copper in your soil, according to Jim Ballerstein at the Geneva Agricultural Experiment Station, sweet potatoes need and utilize copper in production. They may make a good rotational crop next year where you grew tomatoes this summer.
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Even though the weather has become hot and dry, continue with your fungicide applications. We are still having heavy due and fog in the mornings. There is so much late blight around, unprotected plants are an easy target for LB.
A problem that we are seeing a lot of lately is blossom blast on tomatoes. The blossoms turn brown and you have lost production. This is probably caused by hot weather.
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Another problem we are seeing more and more of is bacterial spot on the fruit. (http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Tomato_Bacterial.htm) For both conventional and organic growers, copper is the best product. Conventional growers, mixing mancozeb with the copper will increase effectiveness.
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Early blight is also getting more serious at this time of year. (http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Potato_EarlyBlt.htm)Early blight takes advantage of stress in the plant (fruit sizing up) and can defoliate the plant fairly quickly if nothing is done. Copper, Sonata and Serenade Max for organic growers are products labeled for early blight. We are seeing more and more early blight with conventional growers as resistance to the Quadris group of fungicides has shown up. Bravo at higher rates after fruit set also works well at preventing the spread of early blight. Increase your water to insure good coverage of the fruit and penetration into the canopy.
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The only late blight resistant tomato variety is Mountain Magic. It is a semi determinant large cherry tomato Up to this year it has been experimental but Seedway has bough the rights and will be distributing it for the coming season. If you know your Seedway salesman, give him/her a call and order Mountain magic seed right away. I am sure it will sell out quickly with all the problems we have had this summer.
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Lastly, many people are still asking about late blight and next year. Late blight will absolutely not over-winter in tomato. It needs living tissue to survive. It is another story with potatoes. If you have LB in potatoes, the danger is the possibility of the disease surviving on un-harvested tubers or volunteers in the field next year. It is impossible to harvest all the tubers in a plot. An infected tuber will over-winter the disease. Be careful what you plant next year in this years potato plot. Plant something low growing so you will be able to spot volunteer potatoes coming up. Next spring, if you see volunteer potatoes, pull them out immediately. Do not throw bad potatoes in your cull pile. Any place where infected tubers can sprout next year, you have a chance of reintroducing late blight.
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Potatoes
When you harvest your potatoes, do a good job in grading and inspecting the tubers. Infected tubers will have a black area on the skin. If you cut across the black spot, you will see a red discoloration of the flesh if it is a fresh infection. The older an infection, the more rot will be in the potato. After harvest, allow the tubers time to cure. To cure the tubers, store the potatoes at a higher temperature, with lots of air movement before you move them into the cool, moist conditions of winter storage.
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If you can, avoid storage of your potatoes by selling them quickly. You will be better off not washing potatoes before bagging as the moisture will speed rot if you have an infected potato in the bag. Store your potatoes in as reasonably small quantities as possible. If you have some bad tubers, you will not rune a large quantity.
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According to Vern Grubinger,UVM, organic growers can use Storox (Oxidate) or chlorine (must dilute to 4ppm before discharge) at labeled rates in wash water; another more effective option for suppressing late blight tuber rot appears to be Phostrol but it is labeled for russet-skinned varieties only.
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Lastly, if you have more than one variety of potato, assess which varieties show the disease more.I have received 3-4 responses to this question and it will be good information for growers to have for next year. Email me, jjm27@cornell with your observations. It is really good information to share.
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Peppers
We have seen a surprising lot of Phytophthora blight on peppers. It looks like late blight with a big dark gray spot the size of a quarter on leaves but there is no sporulation on the underside of the spot. You will also see black spots on the stems, especially at the soil line. Check your peppers that are along your spray tracks in the field. Water tends to hang on longer where there is soil compaction and phytophthora loves standing water. There is very little you can do but try to stay out of areas where you find Phytophthora blight as it is better to abandon those locations than spread the disease to un-infected plants.
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Vegetable MD online
The very best source for pictures and information about vegetable diseases is the Vegetable MD online site at Cornell. It has everything you will need to figure out what disease if affecting your particular crop. Check it out at -(http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/Home.htm )
.
Cornell Vegetable Guidelines
The online version of the 2009 Integrated Crop and Pest Management Guidelines for Vegetables is now available at http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/recommends/
--
John Mishanec
Area Vegetable IPM Educator
Cornell Cooperative Extension
90 State Street6th Floor, Suite 600
Albany, New York 12207
Phone 518-434-0016
Fax 518-426-3316
E-mail jjm27@cornell.edu

Mid-Summer Report Card on the Occurrence and Affects of Late Blight on Tomato and Potato in New York, 2009

Tom A. Zitter, Department of Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology, Cornell University, August 19, 2009
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Although admittedly dreading a trip to eastern NY last week (Aug 10-13) for fear of seeing one dead tomato or potato field after another, I was pleasantly surprised to see that not every grower (conventional or organic) had experienced a complete wipeout of their crops. To be sure, some sporulating late blight was found in many fields examined at each stop, still it was apparent that the disease, although wide-spread, was not causing total destruction either, and that growers had taken the appropriate steps to minimize their losses. To be sure, this was at the expense of many fungicide applications and a lot of time and sweat expended to control the disease, but the results were gratifying to see. Homeowner gardeners and smaller organic operations suffered the greatest losses, and they will be glad to garden another season in the absence of late blight.
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Why an endemic problem but not an epidemic catastrophe in susceptible crops this summer?
As previously documented, the spring and early summer of 2009 was setup for losses in tomato and potato crops of unprecedented proportions, given that infected tomato plants had been sold to unsuspecting home gardeners from large "big box" stores and environmental conditions (frequent rains and cool temperatures) were common throughout the NE. Additionally, in the case of potatoes, late blight occurrence in 2008 in some seed producing states, also could provide inoculum on infected tubers used for the 2009 crop. Based upon tests to identify the clonal lineages of Phytophthora infestans conducted in Dr Fry's lab at Cornell, the isolates recovered from infected tomato and subsequently infected potato did not fit any of the previous late blight genotypes previously identified in NY. The new genotype is mating type A2 (perhaps P-T, but not as virulent as some in the past), unlike the previous genotypes like US-11 (P-T) and US-17 (p -T by laboratory tests only) which are A1 mating types and were even more destructive on tomato. The pathogenicity indicated by (P-T) refers to pathogenic specialization on both crops, where capital P and T indicates primary pathogens of both crops, while a lower case letter indicates less pathogenicity for the crops. Separate infections did occur in potato in western NY and were identified as US-8 (mating type A2, P). US-8 is now the primary genotype of late blight infecting potato on a regional basis. So, our salvation this summer was that the primary genotype(s) spread throughout the region were apparently not as pathogenic on tomato and potato as we have encountered in other years. This is little consolation to homeowners and organic growers who suffered total loses, but does explain how some growers were able to keep losses to a minimum.
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What steps worked for growers faced with late blight in 2009?
I will divide this discussion into two parts, since we are dealing with the two different genotypes in NYS, and the actions taken are different. In the case of the unidentified A2 type originating initial from tomato (not quite P-T, but close) that spread to tomato and potato, growers (both conventional and organic) relied upon a tight fungicide program (5-7 day schedule) with late blight specific fungicides in conventional operations (products including contact materials like chlorothalonil, Gavel, and Ranman, and translaminar materials like Curzate, Previcur Flex, Revus, and Tanos). Organic growers relied on copper fungicides applied on a 3-4 day schedule (Nu-Cop and Basic Copper 53). Another procedure followed, especially by organic growers, was to flame out of the most aggressive hot spot areas located near tree lines to remove the most heavily infected plants early in the initial spread of late blight. This practice undoubtedly saved a lot of the crop and allowed copper sprays a chance to reduce remaining infections. In organic operations we also saw growers cutting down infected potato foliage of more susceptible varieties in an effort to reduce the inoculum level in their fields.
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In the case of commercial potato fields faced with the need to control US-8 (mating type A2, P) within their crop (likely originating from infected seed tubers), the steps take were more aggressive. Hot spots of infection in fields were killed as soon as detected and then an aggressive 4-5 day spray schedule was followed using the late blight specific products mentioned above. The bottom line in both cases this season, the successfully control on late blight hinged on the application of appropriate fungicides on a very tight schedule.
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What can we expect for the remainder of the season?
Unfortunately, we are not out of the woods by any means, as what I call "back filling" of infections is still occurring in remaining susceptible crops (potato and tomato) in both homeowner gardens and commercial acreages (both organic and conventional). Reports of late blight infections just now appearing in home gardens and isolated cropping areas are just now coming in. Although a brief spell of hot weather may have slowed down late blight a bit, it is still sporulating and producing inoculum during our heavy evening dew periods. All concerned interests must continue on a regular fungicide program until the crops are finished. Special care must be made in the case of potato to examine harvested tubers to make sure they are free of tuber blight. It is advisable to move the crop as soon as possible to reduce tuber infections in storage. The other significant reminder is to make sure that all tubers are harvested and that special attention is directed to removing and destroying volunteers that may survive the winter season and have the potential of carrying over late blight to next year. A common problem is encountered when corn is planted as the rotational crop in fields that had late blight this season. Volunteer potatoes are difficult to rogue out when hidden by the emerging corn or other rotational crop.
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What can we learn from tomato and potato crops with more limited infections?
Differences in the amount of infection of potato and tomato, both traditional varieties and heirlooms, have been observed this year across the state. For sure there are definitely differences in the amount of infection for both crops. However, given that the predominate clonal lineage that occurred this year is apparently not as aggressive as those encountered recently, this might lead one to consider a variety as resistant or tolerant to late blight, when in fact in another year is could perform differently. One fact does remain, with the exception of comments made about overwintering of inoculum on potato tubers, next year we begin the season with a "clean slate", one that will be more kind to all fanciers of tomato and potato.
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John Mishanec
Area Vegetable IPM Educator
Cornell Cooperative Extension
90 State Street
6th Floor, Suite 600
Albany, New York 12207
Phone 518-434-0016
Fax 518-426-3316
E-mail jjm27@cornell.edu

Correction to Vegetable Pest Report August 15, 2009

I made a mistake in the recommendation for Botrytis gray mold. In the tomato recommendations, it said,
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A problem that we are seeing a lot of lately is blossom blast on tomatoes. The blossoms turn brown and you have lost production. This is caused by Botrytis gray mold. While fungicides can protect against the disease, even with good coverage, blossom blast will sill occur. With the very wet conditions we've experienced, blast is certainly another problem to be aware of. Conventional growers can use Bravo while organic growers can use the biological fungicide Contans WG.
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Dontans WG is only recommended for white mold, which is completely different problem (and much more serious) than Botrytis gray mold. I spoke with Prof. Tom Zitter today and he felt that the blossom blast we are seeing on tomatoes is due to the hot weather and unless you are seeing gray mold on the leaves, it is more than likely the heat.
I apologize for the mistake.
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John
--
John Mishanec
Area Vegetable IPM Educator
Cornell Cooperative Extension
90 State Street
6th Floor, Suite 600
Albany, New York 12207
Phone 518-434-0016
Fax 518-426-3316
E-mail jjm27@cornell.edu

Vegetable Pest Status Report July 15, 2009

Vegetable Pest Status Report July 15, 2009
By John Mishanec, IPM Vegetable Program
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General Conditions
The unremitting rain seems to be remitting a little. The last few days have been wonderful for drying things out. The factor that will slow late blight the most is hot, dry weather.
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Tomatoes
Also, for the first time, I have something good to report. Growers that have late blight and have made applications of Curzate + Previcur Flex + Bravo are controlling the disease. New growth is moving along and the infected leaves are on the bottom of the plant. In a week or so, it will be hard to see the diseased parts of the plant if we continue to have warm, dry weather. When you look at the plants, you can still see spots but the ring of spores that circles the spot does not appear. You can still see some sporulation on the undersides of the spots that are deep in the canopy of the plant but the disease does not appear to be spreading like crazy. Cornell recommends 3 day schedule when it is raining but you may be able to spread the sprays out a little if it remains dry.
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Another observation is that the disease does not appear to move as quickly in potatoes. It makes sense as the disease came in on tomato plants from the big box stores so it is probably a tomato strain. It will affect potatoes but prefers tomatoes. Check your potatoes. Look into the canopy of the plant. That is where it is most moist and better conditions for spores to germinate. Potatoes are growing pretty vigorously this time of year so you should have a pretty big and dense canopy. It is very important to scout your fields.
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Organic options
We have been getting lots of organic control questions and Meg McGrath has done some research. According to an experiment conducted with potato in Oregon in 2007, all 3 copper fungicides were the best and equally effective. The first application was made the day after infected plant tissue was put in plots. Dates: 8/30, 9/3, 9/10, 9/17. Sonata was ineffective based on AUDPC (area under disease progress curve). Oxidate significantly reduced disease severity by 42% at the 2nd evaluation date but not on any other date; ineffective based on AUDPC. AUDPC was calculated for the period 9/12/07 - 9/23/07. Actual assessment dates aren't noted in report. Basically it says that fixed copper is your best bet.
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The total report is posted at:http://ospud.org/materials_for_late_blight_management (there is an underscore between the words in the web address but it is not showing up above in the address)
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Sweet corn
Good news is that we are not catching Corn Ear Worm (CEW). Last year and so far this year the CEW have been late in arriving. Maybe they do not like the cool, wet weather.
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Something to remember is that European corn borer (ECB) will be less in later plantings of sweet corn. This morning, I walked a number of plantings of sweet corn. One planting was 5-7 days ahead of the next and I found 28% ECB infestation in it and 2% infestation in the next planting even though they were right next to each other. Go out and scout your fields. It is worth the time and energy if you can save a spray. Your earliest corn will have the most damage and successive plantings will have progressively less damage. You have to scout your corn to make sure.The time to scout your corn is in late whorl. Look right into the center of the whorl. If a plant is infested with ECB, you will see small holes, frass (saw dust) and windows in the leaf, This means you have ECB larvae(s) riding the tassel. You don't need to spend a lot of time scouting. Scout your field making between 5 to 10 random stops in the field. Look at five plants every time you stop. Keep a running count of how many plants you see feeding damage. With ten stops, you will be looking at 50 plants. If you find over 8 infested plants, you are over threshold (15% at tassel) and the field should be treated.
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If you are uncertain, look at more plants. Remember looking for something is different from scouting. With scouting, you are randomly evaluating the field for a true level of the pest. When you look for something, you will find it, but you will not have a true picture of what is in the field. You may have found a hot spot or whatever. It is important that you do a systematic and random scouting of a field in order to evaluate if it is economically necessary to treat the field.
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Timing of control is important
Now the timing is the thing. If you spray a field before open tassel, you are wasting our money. The absolute best time to spray a field is when the flag leaf pulls away from the tassel and the individual tassels are separating but still vertical. When you see around 30-40% of the field in early tassel, that is the best time to spray. Come in 4-5 days later when the rest of the field is in tassel and you should get very good control. Also spray first thing in the morning. You will catch the larvae out on the tassels before they drop down to the ear. If you wait too long, the larvae will be gone. As the day warms up, the larvae seek cooler locations and will move into the stem or drop down to the ear.
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For conventional growers Spintor works very well against ECB larvae. For organic operations, Entrust works great.
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Vine crops
Another good thing to report is according to Chris Smart at the Geneva Research station, we have not seen downy mildew in the state. Downy Mildew is being found in Michigan, Ohio and moving our way. We are charting the progression of the disease. Growers should wait to apply systemic fungicides until we find it here in NY. Once you see downy mildew in the field, it is too late and uncontrollable.
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We are seeing more and more angular leaf spot on vine crops. This is a bacteria and spreads easily with splashing of rain. Spots appear white, about a quarter of an inch in diameter and usually with a black ring around the white spot. As the spot ages, the center falls out and you have a ragged appearance to the leaf. Copper is the best control.
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Everyone is worried about late blight but I think phytophthora is also going to be a big problem in a couple weeks. If you have flooded spots in the field, when it dries out a little, disk a ring around the flood area. This will help in stopping the spread of phytophthora in the field.
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Tomato/Potato Late Blight Control Guidelines
Syngenta submitted supplemental labeling to NYS DEC to approve just the Revus part of Revus Tops label for tomatoes and potatoes. A label has been approved and Revus can now be used on tomatoes and potatoes in NY. Revus should be tank mixed with a protectant (Bravo or mancozeb) at a rate of 5.5 - 8.0 fl. ozs/per acre. Also according to the label, "The addition of a spreading/penetrating type adjuvant such as a non-ionic surfactant or crop oil concentrate or blend is recommended when applying by ground or air." Do not apply more than 32 fl. oz. of product/A/season (0.52 lbs. a.i./A/season). Do not apply within 1 day of harvest (1 day PHI) for tomatoes and 14 days for potatoes and other vegetables listed on the label. It is also important that you maintain good agitation in your tank and once you start spraying to finish the tank as the material can settle out. Flush your lines when you finish. This would be an excellent choice of materials to rotate with Previcur Flex plus a protectant.
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For non-organic growers, if you find late blight in your tomatoes, Meg McGrath at Cornell recommends when you first see symptoms you apply Curzate + Previcur Flex + Bravo. Curzate is the only product with "kickback" activity and thus has impact on infections that are up to 2 days old (the cooler it is the longer this kickback is; but once up to 80+ F there is little kickback). Previcur Flex is the only product with some systemic activity and thus provides the best control of stem lesions and also protects new growth.
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If you have not found late blight, stay with a fungicide program with products specifically for late blight in this field and other fields near by. These products have translaminar activity and thus provide better coverage than contact, protectant fungicides. A 5- to 7- day spray interval is recommended when weather conditions are wet and cool. It can be extended to 10 days under hot, dry conditions. Alternate among fungicides in different chemical groups (as indicated by FRAC Code) to manage resistance. The late blight pathogen has demonstrated ability to develop resistance; Ridomil fungicides are no longer recommended because of resistance. Include in each application a protectant fungicide like maneb, mancozeb or chlorothalonil, or triphenyltin hydroxide for potatoes. This is important for resistance management and ensuring effective control, and is specified on the label and thus is a requirement. A spray program with just protectant fungicides applied regularly starting before late blight begins to develop can provide adequate control, but this is challenging to achieve when plants are actively growing and conditions are very favorable for disease development, as has been occurring this spring.
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Curzate (FRAC Group 27 fungicide) at 3.2-5 oz/A (3.2 oz for potatoes) or Tanos (also contains cymoxanil, active ingredient in Curzate) at 8 oz is a good choice for the first application because these fungicides have some kickback activity, thus they can suppress some established lesions. The maximum kickback is about 2 days when it is cool, declining with increasing temperatures to about zero above 80 F. Cymoxanil has little residual activity, therefore, 5 days later apply another fungicide.
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Previcur Flex (Group 28) has some systemic activity, which is an important attribute even though it is not as systemic as Ridomil. It was the only fungicide rated good for symptoms on stems and also for protecting new growth in a bulletin from the University of Maine; it is not known how effective many of the other products are on new growth that develops after the application. It was not rated as highly as other late blight fungicides for leaf symptoms (good vs excellent). It is considered a good choice for an application made right before rain. It is rainfast in 30 minutes. It is labeled for use at 0.7-1.5 pt (1.2 pt max for potatoes). According to the manufacturer Previcur Flex provides best control when applied in blocks of 2 applications alternated with 2 applications of other fungicides.
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Other fungicides to consider including in the fungicide program are Gavel (Group 22) at 1.5-2 lb, Forum (Group 40) at 6 fl oz, and Ranman (Group 21) at 1.4-2.75 fl oz. Gavel is the only late blight fungicide formulated with a protectant.
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Group 11 fungicides (Headline, Quadris, etc) and Group 33 (phosphorous acid) fungicides are not considered as effective for late blight as the other products.
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Good fungicide coverage is critical. Pathogen spores can be moved on equipment and workers, therefore spray and work in affected fields last and clean equipment between fields. As soon as harvest is complete disk down field.
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Tomatoes - Organic
I have received a number of calls and emails from organic growers concerned about how to control late blight. Basically, the only option you have is fixed copper. Copper acts as a protectant on the plant. The more copper on the new growth and the rest of the plant, the better the chance you have of avoiding late blight. With the wet weather, it is difficult for everyone to get out to the field and make copper applications. If it continues to be wet, the best bet is a five day application schedule. More than that will leave new growth on the plants unprotected. Also, copper washes off and weathers becoming not as effective. So, it is important to get good coverage of the whole plant and continue covering the plant with copper. Talking with growers, some are saying they are getting good results tank mixing Sonata and or Oxidate with the copper. Even if the weather dries up, it is important to continue with protective sprays as there is lots and lots of late blight out there.
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Once late blight comes into an organic planting, the best option is pulling/destroying badly infected plants.
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Cornell Vegetable Recommends
The online version of the 2009 Integrated Crop and Pest Management Guidelines for Vegetables is now available at http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/recommends/
--
John Mishanec
Area Vegetable IPM Educator
Cornell Cooperative Extension
90 State Street
6th Floor, Suite 600
Albany, New York 12207
Phone 518-434-0016
Fax 518-426-3316
E-mail jjm27@cornell.edu

Vegetable Pest Status Report August 6, 2009

Vegetable Pest Status Report August 6, 2009
By John Mishanec, IPM Vegetable Program
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General Conditions
This is the first dry week we have had all summer. This has allowed fields to dry out and growers to get in and do things that were not possible with the wet soils. More and more disease problems are showing up. It is important that you stay on top of things to avoid serious crop loss. Go out and scout your fields as often as you can. If you have already found problems, maintain your spray schedule.
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I have been having problems with this newsletter delivery. With the large number of people receiving the newsletter, I switched to a list serve. This summer, many growers have told me they are not getting the newsletter and I think it is getting cut out by firewalls or spam collectors. I will try to fix the problem but some of you may be getting two copies.
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Potatoes
Late blight came into the region on tomatoes. It appears to be a tomato strain. (http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Potato_LateBlt.htm)
This means it is more aggressive on tomatoes than potatoes. Growers with LB on their tomatoes, with a good protective fungicide program on their potatoes were not showing late blight. Organic growers were not seeing the aggressive knock down of plants in their potatoes they were seeing in the tomatoes. As time passes, late blight has crept into the potatoes and could seriously endanger the crop.
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Late blight on tomatoes is pretty apparent on both the plant and the fruit. When a spore lands on a leaf, it makes a large spot with lots of spores on the underside of the spot. Those millions of spores then either spread to more leaves or land on the tomato fruit. That is why it spreads and kills the plants so quickly.
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With potatoes, the tubers are under the ground. For a tuber to become infected, a spore needs to wash down cracks in the ground and attach itself to a tuber. Obviously, it is more difficult for a spore to come into contact with a tuber than an exposed tomato fruit. If you have late blight in your potato field, assess how wide spread and aggressive it is. With lots of spots on the plants, you will have lots of spores and more chance to infect tubers.
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As the late blight gets worse in the potatoes, growers should assess if it might not be a good idea to kill the plants before late blight gets really bad in their fields. Most growers are digging some early potatoes now. With all the rain we have had, potatoes have generally sized up very well by now. Go out and assess the rest of your potatoes to see if you can get away with killing the tops on everything now. If you feel you have a yield you can live with, mow or kill off the tops of your potatoes to avoid more spores and more late blight infestation.
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Late blight will not survive on dead tissue, therefore, if you kill or eliminate the tops, than when you dig the tubers, this will lessen the chance of tuber infection. If you are organic, either mow off the tops or allow them to be completely dead. You should wait at least two weeks with the tops completely dead for skin set before digging tubers.
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Once you have dug your tubers, do not wash them before putting them into storage. With the cool, moist conditions of storage, any potato with late blight will turn to mush and bring all the other tubers around it down too. Store your tubers in as small batches as possible to lessen the chance of tuber infection spreading to the bigger storage population. Increase ventilation to help keep the humidity down in your storage area.
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If you can, grade your potatoes well before selling them. Look for dark spots on the tuber. When you wash potatoes try to make sure they are dry before bagging. Wait a few days after bagging to make sure you do not have any break down.
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According to Vern Grubinger,UVM, organic growers can use Storox (Oxidate) or chlorine (must dilute to 4ppm before discharge) at labeled rates in wash water; another more effective option for suppressing late blight tuber rot appears to be Phostrol but it is labeled for russet-skinned varieties only.
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Lastly, if you have more than one variety of potato, assess which varieties show the disease more. From my unscientific observations, Keuka Gold and Katadin show less disease than other varieties. Red Norland shows the most. Email me, jjm27@cornell with your observations. It is good information to share.
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Sweet corn
This past week, we starting catching both european corn borer (ECB) and small numbers of corn ear worm (CEW). This means that your corn is now at risk from both these pests. Based on the CEW trap catches, a 5 day schedule should be adiquet for any corn with silk. CEW is a very dangerous pest as it lays its eggs directly on the silk and once the eggs hatch, the larvae will follow the silk directly into the tip of the ear. You only have a small widow to get the larvae. Low populations like we have now allow you to space out your sprays. Once inside the tip, they are impossible to control. For organic growers, Entrust will work very well with low populations of CEW. Once the populations jump, even conventional growers using harder products will have a difficult time with CEW.
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ECB are also dangerous at this time as now there are ears out when they are flying. The ECB moth will lay its eggs directly on the ear or very close to the ear.Maintain this schedule until the silk turns completely brown. This schedule will also take care of the ECB.
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Trap catch numbers
Trap Location (ECB – NY, CEW)
Albany Co. North 3,1
Albany Co. South 4,2
Saratoga West 0,0
Saratoga East 0,2
Schoharie north 1,0
Schoharie South 1,3
Washington Co. North 11,1
Washington Co. South 1,0
Kingston 80,0
Orange Co. South 4,4
Orange Co. North 6,7
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Tomatoes
We are seeing more damage to tomatoes other than late blight. Not surprisingly, with all the rain, we are seeing a lot of bacterial spot (http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Tomato_Bacterial.htm ) on fruit. You will see small, black spots (an eighth of an inch or smaller) and also spots with a white halo (birds eye). Heavy rains spread and splash the bacteria to the fruit. Organic growers can use opper with spreader (soap). For conventional growers, copper with mancozeb tank mixed will give good disease control.
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Early blight is also getting more serious at this time of year. (http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Potato_EarlyBlt.htm )Early blight takes advantage of stress in the plant (fruit sizing up) and can defoliate the plant fairly quickly if nothing is done. Copper, Sonata and Serenade Max for organic growers are products labeled for early blight. We are seeing more and more early blight with conventional growers as resistance to the Quadris group of fungicides has shown up. Bravo at higher rates after fruit set also works well at preventing the spread of early blight. Increase your water to insure good coverage of the fruit and penetration into the canopy.
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Another disease that is showing up is septoria leaf spot (http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Tomato_Septoria.htm). The lower, older leaves of the tomato plant will have lots of small, 1/8' spots. The difference between septoria and bacterial spot is you will not see spots on the fruit. This is especially a problem for organic growers as besides copper, there is little to slow the disease down.
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Tomato prices
There has been lots of talk about what the impact late blight is having on the tomato crop. Certainly, organic growers are being hit the hardest. Tomatoes are a cash crop and make for a large percentage of grower income. For conventional growers, from what I have seen, the loss is considerably smaller. I would estimate anywhere from 10 to 20 percent for growers using systemic fungicides to fight the disease.
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There is also lots of talk about how much tomatoes are selling for. In the Capital District, most growers I have spoken to say they are selling a box of tomatoes for $30-35 and $10-15 higher for heirloom varieties. I have heard reports of $50 plus per box. Growers farther south are reporting $35-40 per box. In New York City, the NJ crop is coming in and boxes are going for $10-15 and double for heirloom varieties.
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Vine crops
According to Chris Smart at the Geneva Cornell Research Station, Downy mildew has been confirmed on cucumber in Orleans and Ontario counties, western NY. This is a really serious problem for cucumbers. This particular strain does not affect pumpkins. Normally, once we find downy mildew in western NY, it is about a week before it comes to eastern NY. While I would like to say you are able to control the disease once you see it in a field, that has not been the case. The good news is if you have systemic fungicides on the cucumber crop before the disease arrives, you can get good results. According to Chris, Mary Hausbeck at Michigan State does lots of cucumber downy fungicide trials and has been recommending the following products: Previcure Flex, Ranman and Tanos. Alternate products and mix each with a protectant like Bravo and/or copper. For more information on downy mildew, I have attached an article from Meg McGrath.
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Powdery mildew (PM) on pumpkins is usually a problem starting this time of year but everything about pumpkins is late this year.(http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Cucurbits_PM.htm )I have not seen LB but you should go out and scout your fields. Look for small white tuffs of fluffy spores beginning on the underside of the leaves.
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PM Control Recommendations from Meg McGrath, Cornell, are as follows: In 2009, fungicide resistance continues to be a concern. The recommended program for managing powdery mildew and fungicide resistance is:1. Grow resistant varieties. Select squash and pumpkin varieties with resistance from both parents when possible. Cantaloupe varieties should have resistance to races 1 and 2. See the 'Resistant Variety' section at http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/.2. Scout regularly and initiate fungicide applications at disease onset or before. Powdery mildew typically starts to develop early in fruit production, therefore when first fruit appear is a good time to start applications. The action threshold is 1 leaf with symptoms out of 50 older leaves examined.3. Alternate among at-risk fungicides in different FRAC Groups. Procure and Pristine are recommended at highest label rates (8 and 18.5 oz/A). Quintec remains only labeled for use on melons. Additional crops are anticipated to be labeled in 2009. Quintec and Procure have narrow spectrum activity. Therefore it is important to monitor crops for other diseases.
4. Tank mix fungicides at-risk for resistance with protectant (contact) fungicides (e.g sulfur, chlorothalonil, and oils). Melons are sensitive to sulfur; there are tolerant varieties.5. Maintain a regular (7-day) application schedule. When maintaining this schedule through the season for at-risk fungicides is not economical, use protectant fungicides alone late in the season rather than compromising application timing early in the season to save money. The powdery mildew pathogen does not require leaf wetness for infection as other fungal foliar pathogens do, therefore fungicides are needed under dry conditions.6. Rate control achieved based on powdery mildew severity on lower surfaces of leaves. Report poor control despite following these guidelines to a local extension specialist.
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Phytophthora blight
Everyone is worried about late blight but I think phytophthora is also going to be a big problem too. If you have flooded spots in the field, when it dries out a little, disk a ring around the flood area. This will help in stopping the spread of phytophthora in the field. Go out and scout your pumpkins.(http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Cucurbit_Phytoph2.htm)
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Vegetable MD online
The very best source for pictures and information about vegetable diseases is the Vegetable MD online site at Cornell. It has everything you will need to figure out what disease if affecting your particular crop. Check it out at -(http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/Home.htm )
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Cornell Vegetable Guidelines
The online version of the 2009 Integrated Crop and Pest Management Guidelines for Vegetables is now available at http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/recommends/
--
John Mishanec
Area Vegetable IPM Educator
Cornell Cooperative Extension
90 State Street6th Floor, Suite 600
Albany, New York 12207
Phone 518-434-0016
Fax 518-426-3316
E-mail jjm27@cornell.edu