The Easiest Thing
Unsettling Times for Holistic Aspirants 27 June 2019
I’ve been doing this for a very long time. And I hope to be doing this for a long time to come. By “this” I mean farming or working with farmers. I’ve known many trials and tribulations over the years, some self-inflicted, others simply fate the whims of nature testing my resolve and ability to focus and remain patient. I’ve seen massive spring frosts, mid-winter heat waves, biblical hail storms, and equally devastating droughts and monsoon years. But the areas where my patience and dedication to a holistic path are tested the greatest are with the myriad insect and disease issues facing fruit growers – today and over the years. And with climate change these challenges are not just increasing in numbers, but in frequency and intensity, or so it seems. It is times like these that test our holistic mettle and resolve, especially when the easiest thing to do is not always the best thing philosophically or practically.
My first spraying task was way back in 1985 where I was instructed to apply some very noxious pesticides for peach tree borers. Over the years I’ve applied and recommended the application of many synthetic pesticides for the control of common (and some uncommon) tree fruit insect and disease pests. Why? Because this is the direction taught by our land-grant educational systems, given by extension agents, and promoted by so-called agronomic professionals. That said, when used appropriately, do they ever work well! Spray enough captan and you’ll never see scab. Spray enough insecticides and you’ll never see any insect pests – or much of anything else for that matter. The easiest thing in the world to do is prescribe or apply synthetic pesticides for whatever’s ailing you. Easy and effective, yes, but not the way of a sustainable future.
As I explore and consider daily the holistic universe of fruit growing, I keep discovering that our base expectation that all we need to do is just quit using synthetics and everything will be okay is false. It’s not that simple, nothing ever is. One person may have a problem with scab, another with Marsonnina leaf blotch. Or, a grower battles codling moth, apple maggot, or potato leafhopper. Or something I’ve never run across[1]. Farming – holistic or conventional – is not a one-size fits all business. And for this reason alone I don’t issue seasonal spray programs or recipes. Each situation is unique and each remedy is equally unique. The easiest thing in the world would be to flip open the Cornell Spray Guidelines, go to the page on apple scab, select a material, and issue a “spray this” recommendation. But that’s not how a holistic approach works. We need to be patient and understand that this journey, the evolution of our agricultural future will take time. We need to change our expectations of not just the outcomes but the timelines – we need to respect the space-time continuum of holistic farming. And we need to think holistically, considering all the different aspects and players.
We’ve done a lot of damage over the years with synthetics, but they still work and are cheap. But in order to remove the karmic veils, repair the damage, and realize the objective we all seek, we must be patient. In a broader sense, there will be suffering before there is peace, especially as climate change keeps moving the chess pieces around the board, sometimes wrecking the board all together. It used to be that you knew what was coming at you each year. These days each year is different, and we’re all getting used to saying “there is no normal.” So we must remain conservatively optimistic, patient, vigilant, and dedicated to the path. Because the easiest thing in the world would be to throw our hands in the air, rip open that bag of captan, and sleep well at night. But that’s not the best thing for us, the trees, the community, the planet, or the food we grow for our friends and neighbors. We’ve done immense damage over the years, and now, a bit like Humpty Dumpty, we have to figure out how to put it all back together. We’re in a triage situation and there will be times where the journey isn’t pretty, but in the end, when we’re eventually successful, it will have been oh so worth it.
With summer officially here, we’re now moving from our spring state of mind to the summer when we can think about spreading out spray schedules and focusing on preparing for harvest. But before we get to far with that thought, we have to realize that with summer there are a whole host of insect and disease issues we can’t lose sight of. So before we get too far down the road, let’s review the things we need to be aware of before they become problems.
Apple Scab – with primary scab season officially over in the state (for all intents and purposes), secondary scab can become an issue if you have any primary infections in your orchard. Hopefully, this isn’t generally the case, but I do know of a few orchards with some scab and so the remainder of the summer will require coverage to contain its spread and any fruit infections. Honestly, I am not too surprised. Its been very rainy all spring and difficult to get into fields to recover at appropriate frequencies. As well, organic fungicides under heavy pressure are only moderately effective. That said, it appears that the tide is shifting and if you have clean orchards, scab shouldn’t be only a minor concern.
Powdery Mildew – a typical summer disease with hotter and more humid conditions. I have seen PM strikes popping up already, and since PM doesn’t have a primary and secondary season like scab, you’ll need to pay attention to this pathogen for the remainder of the summer. If weather patterns continue, and we have frequent rain and warm temperatures, look for PM to be around if proper fungicides are not applied. For organic growers, sulfur is the best PM control around.
Fireblight – not something we’ve seen much this year, given the cool temperatures, despite the wetter conditions. That said, the shift to summer can bring the occasional frequent storm with high winds and hail. In these cases, if severe enough, fireblight can become problematic. So while there are no open blossoms, its important to be on the lookout for damage (some storms can be isolated in their impact) and take the proper steps should damage occur. Cueva + Double Nickle work well and can pick up other pathogens, as well.
Summer Disease and Fruit Rots – Yes, of course we all remember last year. It was a rot extravaganza in many orchards and with the heat and ample moisture this year I suspect we’re in for a bit of a ride this year as well. Marsonnina leaf blotch was the winner last year. But like any year we can expect to see fly speck, sooty blotch, white rot, black rot, glomerella fruit rot, and more in our newly sub-tropical growing conditions. Be prepared. Last year, everything looked good in many places until mid-July, and then….well, we all know what happened. Applications of sulfur for PM and Cueva/DN for fireblight (post-trauma) are moderately effective here.
Internal Fruit Feeders – oriental fruit moth and codling moth have a least one and probably two more generations this year. The first generations are always “weaker,” though not insubstantial, and later generations can usually cause damage as harvest begins and sprayers sit idle. We have not seen much activity with IFFs this year, but the time to be vigilant is just beginning. Organic insecticides are few and far between. So IFF control is best gained early in the season and using mating disruption, granulosis, and well-timed DiPel applications can keep things to a dull roar.
Aphids – we did see quite a bit of rosy apple aphid (RAA) damage this year with cooler wetter conditions. But those colonies have all but burnt out and now we’re looking at green apple aphid (GAA) and woolly apple aphid (WAA) being the primary aphids pests for the summer. GAA are not a particularly difficult pest to kill. And proper insecticide selection can assist in maintaining predatory insects and keeping populations low. WAA on the other hand is something that is very difficult to control once it is established. Many of the most effective insecticides have long since been banned or severely restricted, so we’re left with biological controls and a few insecticides. WAA can cause extensive damage to the trees and fruit if left unchecked. I’d look mostly to biological control here and hope that things don’t get out of control. Other than that, there are very few options available to organic growers.
Potato Leafhopper – One of my “favorite pests,” PLH can cause rapid and extensive damage with little warning and especially to young trees. PLH rides in on early summer storms where it is deposited from regions further south. From there it can have several generations a year, moving from apple to alfalfa and other crops in order to complete its life cycle. And just once you think you’ve got it licked then there another generation or another storm and there you are dealing with it all over again. PLH season is just beginning, don’t let your guard down. Hands-down I think that using Thymegard mixed with a rotation of Pyganic or Entrust works best.
Japanese Beetles – another of my favorite pests (I like the really noxious ones), Japanese beetles begin to make their appearance towards the end of June or early July. I used to say that July 4 was their expected exit date (from the ground), but now that seems to be happening earlier and earlier every year. We have yet to see any JBs, but they’ll be out soon. They love grapes, Honeycrisp, and anything of true value. They are easy to kill for the most part, but can be pervasive through their above-ground season and until mating and egg laying is all over. Hands-down I think that using Thymegard mixed with a rotation of Pyganic or Entrust works best. When they are feeding heaviest, mix Pyganic and Entrust together for best control.
Apple Maggot – believe or not apple maggot is making an early emergence this year in the eastern part of the state. I’m not too surprised given that its been so wet. So where we might not put out any traps until early July, I’ve already got traps out and are beginning monitoring. It could be a long season with this critter, so be prepared. Pyganic or Entrust work well, the use of Surround in conjunction can increase effectiveness of each spray and reduce the overuse of either insecticide.
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug – we’re just getting traps out and have yet to catch anything. I’m usually not worried about BMSB until mid-July, but with everything else being early this year, we’re getting on sooner rather than later. There is an early overwintering generation that comes out in spring, but its usually so weak from the winter that activity and damage is inconsequential. Hope the Samurai wasp is out in force, because this is a beast even under conventional conditions.
Spotted Wing Drosophila – we’ve had traps out for a while and along with Cornell’s own trap line, we’re not seeing any activity requiring treatment just yet. That is sure to change as this year should by all measures be an active year. And while we haven’t seen any activity yet this year, but by the time this is published, I suspect we’ll be in the thick of it. Hands-down I think that using Thymegard mixed with a rotation of Pyganic or Entrust works best. When they are at their peak, mix Pyganic and Entrust together for best control.
** remember: there are no recommendations being made in this or any other newsletter. Please contact me directly for site-specific consulting or pest management advice.
*** watch your label, don’t overuse any sprays and always use pheromone traps to monitor specific insect population levels to assign biofixes (where appropriate) or target sprays for most effectiveness. In some cases, like apple maggot, you can use trapping as a management strategy to ‘trap out’ the pest.
I’ve been doing this for a very long time. And I hope to be doing this for a long time to come. By “this” I mean farming or working with farmers. I’ve known many trials and tribulations over the years, some self-inflicted, others simply fate the whims of nature testing my resolve and ability to focus and remain patient. I’ve seen massive spring frosts, mid-winter heat waves, biblical hail storms, and equally devastating droughts and monsoon years. But the areas where my patience and dedication to a holistic path are tested the greatest are with the myriad insect and disease issues facing fruit growers – today and over the years. And with climate change these challenges are not just increasing in numbers, but in frequency and intensity, or so it seems. It is times like these that test our holistic mettle and resolve, especially when the easiest thing to do is not always the best thing philosophically or practically.