Insects

2018 Fruit Production

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Wow… it’s almost February already! As we have progressed past the harshest part of winter (hopefully), it’s time to think more about fruit production and items necessary to promote good plant growth. Grapes, brambles, blueberries, apples, peaches, pears, etc., all need pruned in the next few weeks if you haven’t already finished them.  I’ve added some pictures below to help determine what the finished product might look like. Good pruning for sunlight, air penetration and spray coverage is a key to good fruit production.

    

Grapes before pruning                             Grapes after pruning

 

      

Blackberries before pruning                    Blackberries after pruning

 

  

Blueberry before pruning                             Blueberry after pruning

 

                     

Apple or Pear pruning cuts              Peach or Cherry pruning for open center

 

Tree fruit producers should also be thinking about dormant oil sprays and/or copper applications if fire blight was severe last year in your trees. Oils…only apply when temperatures are above 40°F, never during freezing weather (read the label). Timely applications of any insecticide or fungicide is necessary if you want to get the full benefit of using them, so plan now and have the correct products ready to use as needed.  Also remember, pesticide resistance management is something we all need to guard against. Read the labels of any pesticides being used and rotate to other products as listed on the labels.

Black Rot in Grapes– I have many homeowners who contact me each year, as fall approaches, saying their grapes are turning black and shriveling up just about the time they start to ripen. This is a problem that must be controlled in the spring as the new vines are growing. The period from immediate pre-bloom through 3 to 4 weeks after bloom is the most critical period for controlling black rot. New growth, no larger than seen in the picture below, is the time to start spraying.  Two fungicides, Mancozeb (ex. Bonide Mancozeb 37%) or Mycobutanil (ex. Immunox Fungicide) are products that control black rot. Be sure to read the label for proper application rate, preharvest interval and timing between sprays. If sprays are not made (missed), an improper rate applied or complete coverage is not obtained, you cannot expect to get satisfactory disease control of black rot.

A great resource for home growing fruit producers is OSU Bulletin 780, Controlling Diseases and Insects in the Home Fruit Plantings. Pick one up from your local OSU Extension Office.

2018 is well underway. Are you ready for a productive fruit growing season? Let’s get ready to prune!

 

 

IPM- Crop Rotations

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In Extension, we often talk about integrated pest management, a way to control a pest from various angles. These angles are cultural, mechanical, and biological options for managing pests.  A pest is simply something unwanted in a particular area.  Pests could be plants, insects, or even mammals at times.  The thought process is that there is no one perfect solution to a problem.  Easy come easy go, some would say.  I guess in this case it would be; easy go, easy come back!

A cultural way to break the cycle of many pests is to plan a crop rotation that involves crops from different plant families. Families in the sense of phylogenies or grouping according to similarities.  For instance, the following plants: tomatoes, eggplants, peppers and even potatoes are all in the Solanaceae family.  As you can tell, many of our garden crop favorites share a lot with one another.

One of the biggest mistakes in crop rotations is to rotate between unrelated plants/crops. This is important because pests can share similar crops and over winter in that specific crop residue.  Take for instance the cucumber beetle; this pest will over winter on cucurbit residue and be ready to re-infect that crop, whether it is a cucumber, pumpkin or zucchini.  This bug will also spread bacterial wilt that can cause a loss of an entire crop with a systemic infection.

The cucumber beetle will not damage tomatoes so planting a Solanaceae crop in an area that a Cucurbitaceae was growing would break that pest cycle. Pests can also be fungal.  A fungus called Alternaria tomatophila causes early blight in tomatoes.  The fungus can over winter in certain cultivars of potato and eggplant, both of which are in the Solanaceae family.

A good crop rotation starts with careful planning and can be successful by utilizing crops with complementary planting and harvest dates. A good rotation for May plantings would be to start with sweet corn (Poaceae).  Sweet corn can be harvested around August and into September.  A crop rotation will prevent certain cutworms and corn borers from being problematic in a specific area.  A good follow-up crop in that area would be garlic (Alliaceae) planted in September/October and harvested in July.  Once July comes, planting a legume (Fabaceae) will help remediate the soil and get the soil ready for the following season, hairy vetch for instance.

There are many rotations that work well in a crop rotation system, utilizing soybeans for a food plot can also be done. Just remember to rotate crops that are unrelated and replenish the soil at times.  This can be accomplished through the use of legumes or fertilizers.  A rotation only needs to be more than one crop; two is good, but three is great!  Get your garden plans in place and dig right in.

Save The Date!! “Tick Prevention” at Hocking Valley Community Hospital 4/3/17 at 6pm

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With spring upcoming and people starting to head back outdoors it is time to think about protection from ticks.  Ticks are a major vector of many diseases affecting humans, companion animals and livestock and the prevalence of these diseases has been rapidly increasing over the last decade.  On Monday, April 3rd at 6pm at Hocking Valley Community Hospital I will discuss tick diseases, identification and prevention methods.  The class is free and open to the public.

How to identify which tick is important,  different ticks carry different diseases and all ticks carry more than one disease.

Source: Tickencounter.org

We will discuss lifecycles.

Source: CDC

And go over how to protect yourself, your family, your pets and your livestock.   Ticks are tough to repel, many of the most common products are ineffective.

We will discuss what works and what does not work.

Space is limited to about 20-25 and classes at HVCH generally fill up.  The class is free so bring your friends and your questions.

Contact information:

Class instructor is Tim McDermott, DVM from OSU Extension Agriculture and Natural Resources Office. Call (740) 380-8336 or email ljohnston@hvch.org to RSVP.

Oak Leaf Itch Mite

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A couple weeks ago a story was circulating on social media about oak mites in the Cleveland area. Reports indicated that people were being bitten by the mites and that the bites could cause startling skin reactions. It sparked quite a bit of discussion and concern in social circles, giving me the inspiration to write about the tiny critters.

The oak leaf itch mite (pictured below), Pyemotes herfsi, is a mite that primarily feeds on midge flies. Midge flies create galls (also pictured below) on the margins of oak leaves, where their larvae feed and grow. The mites colonize the galls and feed on the larvae. This feeding pattern makes the oak mite preferential to oak trees, particularly pin oaks and red oaks. The mites are so tiny that they cannot be seen by the naked eye. The interaction between oak mites and humans occurs when a person comes near an infested oak tree. The mites may fall from the tree’s canopy or be blown from the tree by the wind, inadvertently landing on a passerby. Then mites may accidently bite the person. Humans are not a host for these mites. They will not colonize in homes or cars or on pets.

The oak mite’s bite can produce an itchy, swollen, and red rash that may be accompanied by small raised bumps. The bites themselves do not leave lasting damage, but itching the irritating rash could lead to a secondary bacterial infection. Therefore, calamine lotions and hydrocortisone creams are often recommended to reduce inflammation and itching.

The mites are most active in late summer and into the fall. Most people encounter them while raking leaves. Controlling the mite population is difficult and rarely accomplished, because the mites find protection within the leaf galls created by the midge flies. The best way to avoid the mites is to limit time near infested trees, launder clothes, and shower promptly after working near the tree.

There have been reports of the oak leaf itch mites in the Southeastern Ohio region, but there is no need to panic. They mite populations will begin to die off with the first frost. In addition, the midge flies and the mites rarely have a detrimental impact on the overall health of oak trees in the landscape.OakItchMiteUSDA_2016
thb8OakLeafcurlmidge_ColOH_4June09c

Watch Out for Cucumber Beetles

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Striped cucumber beetles start flying around even before many of our plants emerge. This means they are often there just as the cucumber, squash, pumpkin and melon seedlings push through the soil, eating off the stems and first leaves to emerge. Later, adults feed on leaves, vines and fruits that survive. Larvae feed on the roots of the plants, weakening them and making them susceptible to other problems.

One problem these beetles cause is a disease called bacterial wilt, a serious disease of many vine crops. The bacteria overwinters in the bodies of hibernating beetles which introduce the bacteria to the plants during feeding. Infected plants quickly wilt, the leaves dry, and the plants eventually die. Cucumber beetles also spread the squash mosaic virus.

Bacterial wilt and mosaic virus must be prevented since they cannot be controlled once the plant is infected.  Inspect plants frequently for the striped cucumber beetle (the adult is about 0.2 in. long, tan in color with three black stripes down the back). Row covers provide some protection, but must be removed during pollination. Some resistant varieties are available, and there are a few products labeled for control of the beetle.  Always read and follow pesticide label directions when used.

Ticked Off by Ticks?

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 Of all the creepy, crawly, critters I have encountered, ticks are one of the few that really give me the heebie-jeebies. They are sneaky little things that live to feed on the blood of animals. They can transmit diseases including: Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF), lyme disease, anaplasmosis, and ehrlichiosis. I would like to avoid all of those things and I’m sure you do as well. So, how do we do that?

Peak tick season lasts from mid-April to mid-July and ticks thrive in areas like forests and brush. They set up camp and wait to hitch a ride on a passing animal or pant leg. Then they explore their host for a nice place to latch on and feed. If you will be spending time in this habitat, do what you can to keep ticks from crawling into secluded places on your body. Wear long sleeves, tuck shirts into pants, tuck pants into socks, wear light colored clothes so you can spot a hitch hiking tick, and apply insect repellent. To repel ticks use a formulation that contains at least 25% DEET. Even if you do all of these things, you may still have a tick by the end of the day, so perform tick checks frequently. One of the most common places to find a tick is on the scalp or nape of the neck. Pets often pick up ticks too, so check them as well before coming inside.

If you find an attached tick, remove it promptly by grasping the body firmly (using tweezers is best), as close to your skin as possible, and use steady pressure to pull it straight out. If the mouthparts of the tick separate from the body, do not try to dig them out from your skin, this could lead to a secondary bacterial infection. Disinfect the area and apply a topical antibiotic. Preserve the tick in a sealed container of hand sanitizer, rubbing alcohol, or wrapped in an alcohol wipe, in case identification of the species is necessary later. If you experience a fever or flu-like symptoms following a tick bite, seek a doctor for consultation and take the preserved tick with you.

Ohio is home to four species of ticks, three of which are medically important: the American dog tick-vector of RMSF , the blacklegged tick (or deer tick)-vector of lyme disease, and the lone star tick-vector of ehrlichiosis. The brown dog tick is uncommon and not a vector of disease, but it is the only tick that can become established inside homes with dogs.

Don’t let ticks tick you off this summer! For more information about ticks check out Ohio State’s fact sheet on ticks at http://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/HYG-2073 or contact your Extension Office.

17 year periodical Cicadas

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In case you haven’t seen them yet,  

They’re Back!!!!

5-20-2016 023

Photographed by Marcus McCartney at the Washington County Extension office on the old oak tree in the front yard

For more information on the 17 yr. periodical cicadas contact your local extension office.

Also, click the link to read OSU’s factsheet about this natural phenomenon:

http://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/ENT-58

 

 

Save the Date – May 10th, FREE CLASS “Pests and Diseases in the Garden”

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Last class I offered in the Seed to Storage gardening series drew some folks all the way from Washington County.  Feel free to make the drive to the Hocking County Fairgrounds on May 10th at 7pm for a FREE class on “Pests and Diseases in the Garden”

hornwormA Beneficial and a Pest

 

This Tomato Hornworm was snacking on my Juliets.  When those little white egg cases hatch the Braconid Wasps will feed on the Hornworm and then spread throughout my garden doing good things.

Brood V Cicadas 2016

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I am located in Hocking County, but this has application for the entire Buckeye Hills region. In fact the entire Easter portion of the State of Ohio, a little Maryland, Pennsylvania, …….

The 17 year Brood V Cicadas should be emerging here shortly.  Once we get 4 days in a row of mid-sixties soil temps 8″ deep all heck is going to break loose in the cicada world as 1.5 million Cicadas per acre will start emergence.  They were last seen in 1999.

(Cool video from Cleveland.com/Plain Dealer)

The Bugdoc from OSU has a publication on Periodic Cicada Control Tactics.

The Label is the Law

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The word “pesticide” inherently has a negative connotation, after all anything that ends with “cide” refers to the death. However, pesticides are generally used to improve the conditions of an environment. They kill pests. The definition of what is considered a pest can change depending on the situation and the opinion of the parties involved. Herbicides, insecticides, rodenticides, and fungicides are all examples of commonly used pesticides. Anti-bacterial/viral soaps, sprays, and sanitizers can even fall into this category, because they kill bacteria and viruses. Given that the applicators and users follow the directions specific to the product they are using, there is very little resulting risk to humans. These directions include proper storage, application, and treatment or use of the affected environment following application.

When using ANY type of pesticide, the label is the law and there are no exceptions. Whether the substance can be purchased and used by anyone or requires a special license, the protocol is the same. Read the label and follow the instructions. If you have any doubts about using the product correctly, do not use it. In nearly all cases where an issue arises associated with pesticide use it is a result of not following directions. These substances can be credited to improving the quality of human life in many ways over the centuries, but they are to be respected.

In general, when confronted with a situation that prompts the question, “Should I use a pesticide for this?”, I look for an alternative method that could solve the problem first. For example: Sugar ants found their way into my candy drawer. Should I use ant spray to get rid of them? -Maybe, but first let’s clean it out, wipe down the trail from where the ants were lead inside, and see if that stops them before we decide to spray.

Following the directions for pesticide use allows us to solve problems while still being good stewards. Being good stewards is important to maintaining the health and safety of our environment on all scales. So, if using a pesticide is appropriate for your situation, make sure to take the steps needed for proper safety and use.