Progress 09/01/14 to 08/31/18
Outputs
Target Audience:Beginning and women farmers, diversified growers, conventional and organic growers, Extension staff, IPM consultants and scouts, Ag service providers, farm managers and decision makers, newsletter subscribers, workshop and meeting attendees, and industry representatives. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Over the course of the project, the following were conducted and provided training and professional development: Establish mentoring and partnering relationships with individual farms. The EIP Project Team identified and worked with 9 MA farms as mentor farms and 9 as partner farms. The owners and staff of an additional 6 farms received training on the maintenance of on-site weather stations and the use of DSS associated with those stations. Provide accurate diagnostic services. Each year, each Mentor and Partner farm received 5 diagnostic samples (fee supported by the grant) submitted to the UMass Disease Diagnostic Lab. Overall, the UMass Lab processed 193 vegetable and 61 fruit samples; the Cranberry Diagnostic Lab processed approximately 75 samples. Promote and sustain collaborations with other organizations at state, regional, and federal levels to further IPM adoption. The EIP Project team: Hosted a weekly Vegetable Pest Alerts call with 15 Extension Educators and field scouts from around the Northeast (RI, MA, VT, NY, NH, ME). We used information from these calls to write pest alerts reaching over 2,500 readers in the region through the UMass Vegetable Program newsletter, Veg Notes, and many more through dissemination of these alerts through other New England Extension newsletters. Participated in a weekly Berry Pest Alert Call-in with Extension and Industry Colleagues from the Northeastern US and Eastern Canada (PA, NJ, NY, CT, RI, MA, NH, VT, ME, Ontario).This information is used to inform IPM Berry Notes and other regional pest messages going out to fruit growers in the region. Partnered with NRCS, SEMAP, NOFA, and CRAFT (public or non-profit organizations) to promote educational activities and give presentations. Partnered with Massachusetts Fruit Growers' Association, New England Vegetable and Berry Growers' Association, Massachusetts Blueberry Growers Association, and the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers to promote educational activities and give presentations. Coordinated efforts for a regional apple scab project that included Extension Educators and growers in ME, NH, CT, and VT. Contributed efforts as Members of the Steering Committee, Program Chair, Session Moderators to organize and present the New England Vegetable and Fruit Conference, a 3.5 day conference, held every two years and attended by approximately 1500 people (in odd-numbered years only). Participated in a multistate workshop on weather-based uncertainty and apple production discussing concept mapping apple production issues related to weather. Collaborated with Five-College faculty and staff to initiate a coordinated effort (i.e., working group) for educational and grant- writing efforts related to the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The Team collaborated with UME and UNH and Extension in ME and NH to extend the apple scab project to 10 growers in those states. The fruit team collaborated with Skybit, AgRadar, and NEWA to maintain and expand access to weather data and pest management forecasting models for MA and New England growers. The fruit team cooperated with MDAR, 2 regional IPM consultants, and Barnstable County Extension to trap and to track brown marmorated stink bug in MA. The fruit team collaborated with USDA scientists on plum curculio project. The fruit team collaborated with CT Extension on project to collect plant tissue damaged by fire blight and test for resistance to antibiotics. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Support educational efforts across commodities. We make biweekly farm visits with fruit and vegetable Extension specialists meeting together with the farmer to provide IPM training. Ensure that appropriate pest management information is extended to target audiences. We write recommendations for both organic and conventional growers in our newsletters. We regularly host events and give recommendations based on audience attending.Results (especially related to invasive pests such as SWD and BMSB) were shared with iPiPE (Integrated Pest Information Platform for Extension and Education) and MDAR (Mass. Dept. of Agric. Res.) and were published in UMass Extension publications. Hold regular meetings with the stakeholder advisory committee to ensure the program is on the right track. Stakeholder advisory committee meetings were held in the spring of each year of the project. Newsletters Berry Notes:.S. Schloemann, ed. Published monthly year-round with seasonal crop checklists, research articles, timely topics and event announcements. Subscription list is approximately 500 with unlimited online access to archived issues (http://ag.umass.edu/fruit/). IPM Berry Blast: S. Schloemann, ed. Published as needed (weekly or more frequently) during major pest management periods for all small fruit. Contains timely pest identification, life cycle, IPM scouting notes and management recommendations for organic and conventional growers. Distributed electronically to approximately 500 subscribers (http://ag.umass.edu/fruit/ipm-berry-blast). Cranberry Station Newsletter: 5-6 issues/year. Sandler, H.A., M. Sylvia, A. Averill, eds. http://www.umass.edu/cranberry/pubs/newsletter.html. Approximately 325 subscribers, primarily in MA but also national and international. http://ag.umass.edu/cranberry/newsletters. Healthy Fruit: Healthy Fruit, J. Clements, ed. Published weekly April-October and periodically in off season. Contains crop phenology, pest development and alerts and articles for a broad spectrum of fruit growers in Massachusetts and New England. Distributed electronically to a subscription list of 100 growers (https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/healthy-fruit-archive). https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/publications/healthy-fruit. Fruit Notes: Fruit Notes, W. Autio, Ed. Published quarterly (occasionally with refereed research articles) on IPM related topics in fruit production. Distributed electronically to 330 subscribers. https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/publications/fruit-notes. Vegetable Notes: K. Campbell-Nelson, S. Scheufele, & L. McKeag, eds. Published weekly May-September and monthly in winter, with timely pest alerts and articles to a broad spectrum of vegetable farmers state and region-wide. Email subscription list exceeded 2500. https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable/newsletters. New England Grape Notes. S. Schloemann, ed. 6-10 issues published yearly from April-November with horticultural and pest management information for grape growers in New England. Approximately 300 subscribers. https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/grape-notes. UMass Extension Cranberry, Fruit, and Vegetable FACT SHEETS Cranberry: https://ag.umass.edu/cranberry/fact-sheets Fruit: https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/fact-sheets Vegetable: https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable/vegetables/fact-sheets Tweeting by UMass Extension https://twitter.com/jmcextman?ref_src=twsrc^tfw Websites & pest alerts To provide a portal to IPM information on diverse commodities, our IPM website https://ag.umass.edu/integrated-pest- management was updated to serve as a gateway to IPM information on vegetable (https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable), fruit (https://ag.umass.edu/fruit) and other commodity websites. Invasive Pest IPM: Fruit/Spotted Wing Drosophila and Brown marmorated stink bug network and alert system: Data from the statewide reporting network is gathered into a centralized web page which disseminate alerts and management updates to multiple channels automatically (email, cell phone, web page posting, facebook, etc.). Cranberry IPM Message: Weekly IPM pest alerts were issued from May to August as a phone message and at http://ag.umass.edu/cranberry/ipm-message Webpages located at: https://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/brown-marmorated-stink-bug https://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/spotted-wing-drosophila Sample Alerts: https://www.facebook.com/umassipmteam • Hosted grower meetings to exchange and extend information gathered through individual and farm level interactions. Examples include the following: Averill, A. Scale, false blossom, and bluntnosed leafhopper. Management Update meeting, January 18, 2018, Plymouth, MA. Clements, J. et al. "Massachusetts Fruit IPM Report." 79th Annual New England, New York and Canadian Fruit Pest Management Workshop/Working Group. October 24-25, 2017, Burlington,VT. http://www.northeastipm.org/neipm/assets/File/TFWG-Massachusetts-Clements.pdf Clements, J., D. Cooley, and E. Garofalo. "2017 UMass RIMpro Advisory Service." 79th Annual New England, New York and Canadian Fruit Pest Management Workshop/Working Group. October 24-25, 2017, Burlington, VT. http://www.northeastipm.org/neipm/assets/File/TFWG-Clements-2017-UMass-RIMpro-Advisory-Service.pdf Clements, J. and E. Garofalo. "iPiPE Northeast Apple Crop Pest Program." 79th Annual New England, New York and Canadian Fruit Pest Management Workshop/Working Group. October 24-25, 2017, Burlington, VT. http://www.northeastipm.org/neipm/assets/File/TFWG-Clements-iPiPE-Northeast-Apple-Crop-Pest-Program.pdf Clements, J., D. Cooley, and E. Garofalo. "2017 UMass RIMpro Advisory Service." Great Lakes Fruit Workers. November 1-2, 2017, Port Huron, MI. Clements, J. and E. Garofalo. "iPiPE Northeast Apple Crop Pest Program." Great Lakes Fruit Workers. November 1-2, 2017, Port Huron, MI. Ghantous, K.M. and M. Sylvia. Resistance management in cranberries. UMass Pesticide Safety Training, April 25, 2018, Wareham, MA. Sandler, H. Maximing weed control. Management Update meeting, January 18, 2018, Plymouth, MA. Schloemann, S. Organic IPM for Strawberries, Maine Organic Farmers & Growers Assoc. Farmer to Farmer Conference, Point Lookout, Northport, Maine, Sylvia, M. Weevil, cranberry fruitworm, and bee update. Management Update meeting, January 18, 2018, Plymouth, MA. Sylvia, M. Insect update, fruit rot management, and promoting bee health. UMass Pesticide Safety Training, April 25, 2018, Wareham, MA. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Under the 1-year no-cost extension, our efforts targeted the completion of remaining field studies, conducting post-season interviews, and conducting relevant outreach to conclude the project. We collaborated with, scouted, and supported more than 12 farms with direct IPM services and support. These farms represented more than 400 acres. Nearly 650 IPM recommendations were made supporting at least 8 different IPM goals, which were identified and prioritized by the grower. After harvest, interviews were conducted with each grower or grower team to evaluate the success of each IPM strategy that was implemented to manage a crop/pest problem during the season. These were compared to farm-specific goals set by the grower the previous Spring. Unfortunately, data from several farms were lost due to a technological error. However, for the remaining farms (and according to the the recollection of both the evaluators and the growers), a high percentage of IPM recommendations were implemented (~ 85 %) and were successful. "Mentor" growers with significant fruit crops were: Outlook Farm in Westhampton, Park Hill Orchard in Easthampton, Natural Roots Farm in Conway, Cold Spring Orchard in Belchertown, and Indian Head Farm in Berlin. At Natural Roots Farm, cultural control efforts were improved to help manage weeds and diseases in black cap raspberry. At Outlook Farm, frequent scouting for pest damage and timely insecticide treatment helped manage dogwood borer in young apple plantings. At Park Hill Orchard, numbers of sprays for apple maggot were reduced thanks to frequent checking of traps. At grower sites that had apples, harvest pest damage surveys and Fall apple scab counts (PAD counts) were performed to help growers measure their successes with apple scab IPM and plan for the next season. EIP Project Team members cooperated with Dr. Tracy Leskey (USDA, Kearneysville, WV) and a "Partner" grower (Nourse Farm) to test the efficacy and best placement of attracticidal spheres for management of spotted-wing Drosophila (SWD) in raspberries. This was part of a multi-year multi-state project. Weekly samples of fruit were collected in late Summer and early Fall and numbers of resulting adults were counted 3 weeks later. The treatments were as follows in 3 adjacent 1/3 acre plots: attracticidal spheres high in the canopy every 3 meters, spheres low in the canopy every 3 meters, and no spheres. Initial conclusions (for the entire project) were that SWD appear to prefer fruit that is low on the plant and near the center of the canopy. In small plots (in other states) spheres reduced SWD infestation. The EIP Project Team cooperated with Dr. Leskey's lab at the beginning of this project to perform experiments with attracicidal spheres for apple maggot fly management and a trap-tree and beneficial nematode approach to managing plum curculio in apples. EIP Project Team members continued to coordinate a state-wide trapping network for brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) until harvest was done. The trap captures continued to be low. Results were shared with iPiPE (Integrated Pest Information Platform for Extension and Education) and MDAR (Mass. Dept. of Agric. Res.) and were published in UMass Extension publications. Spotted-wing Drosophila trapping had ended by Sept., but growers with Fall raspberries were continuing cultural controls and spray programs through harvest EIP Project Team members continued to maintain a 47 weather station network through the Fall. These were transmitting data to NEWA (Network for Environment and Weather Applications; Cornell University; newa.cornell.edu). 23 of these were airport stations. 24 were either RainWise or Onset stations. The majority of these were purchased by UMass. Efforts were made to verify the data regularly, to repair malfunctioning components, and to train the growers to maintain the equipment and to use the pest forecasting models available on the NEWA website). Several of the growers were also linked to AgRadar (Univ. of Maine Extension; Glen Koehler) to increase their access to decision support systems (DSS). The EIP Project Team worked with 4 MA growers, 1 CT grower and 1 VT grower to help increase DSS adoption and understanding. Additionally, these sites were used to validate in real time, output and disease management of 4 different DSS commonly used in New England. Of these six sites, on 3 in MA, inoculum potential was evaluated for the following season. Of the 4 DSS used, 7 growers in MA adopted one, RIMpro, up from last year's 4 growers. Model validation continues to be an important part of DSS adoption by growers as it pertains to apple scab as certain DSS fail to accurately represent information garnered. This work was also supported by a collaboration with iPiPE undergraduate interns who aided in logistics and data collection. Without this collaboration, the additional sites could not have been maintained.
Publications
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Progress 09/01/16 to 08/31/17
Outputs
Target Audience:Beginning and women farmers, diversified growers, conventional and organic growers, Extension staff, IPM consultants and scouts, Ag service providers, farm managers and decision-makers, newsletter subscribers, workshop and meeting attendees, industry representatives Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Establish mentoring and partnering relationships with individual farms. During May 2016-April 2017, the EIP Project Team identified and worked with 9 MA farms as mentor farms and 9 as partner farms. The owners and staff of an additional 6 farms received training on the maintenance of on-site weather stations and the use of DSS associated with those stations. Provide accurate diagnostic services. Each Mentor and Partner farm received 5 diagnostic samples (fee supported by the grant) submitted to the UMass Disease Diagnostic Lab. The Diagnostic lab reported processing 58 vegetable and 6 small fruit samples directly related to Mentor/Partner farm relationships. Overall, the UMass Lab processed 158 vegetable and 49 fruit samples; the Cranberry Diagnostic Lab processed approximately 50 samples. Promote and sustain collaborations with other organizations at state, regional, and federal levels to further IPM adoption. The EIP Project team: Hosted a weekly Vegetable Pest Alerts call with 15 Extension Educators and field scouts from around the Northeast (RI, MA, VT, NY, NH, ME). We used information from these calls to write pest alerts reaching over 2,500 readers in the region through the UMass Vegetable Program newsletter, Veg Notes, and many more through dissemination of these alerts through other New England Extension newsletters. Participated in a weekly Berry Pest Alert Call-in with Extension and Industry Colleagues from the Northeastern US and Eastern Canada (PA, NJ, NY, CT, RI, MA, NH, VT, ME, Ontario).This information is used to inform IPM Berry Notes and other regional pest messages going out to fruit growers in the region. Partnered with NRCS, SEMAP, NOFA, and CRAFT (public or non-profit organizations) to promote educational activities and give presentations. Partnered with Massachusetts Fruit Growers' Association, New England Vegetable and Berry Growers' Association, Massachusetts Blueberry Growers Association, and the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers to promote educational activities and give presentations. Coordinated efforts for a regional apple scab project that included Extension Educators and growers in ME, NH, CT, and VT. Contributed efforts as Members of the Steering Committee, Program Chair, Session Moderators to organize and present the New England Vegetable and Fruit Conference, a 3.5 day conference, held every two years and attended by approximately 1500 people. Participated in a multistate workshop on weather-based uncertainty and apple production discussing concept mapping apple production issues related to weather. Collaborated with Five-College faculty and staff to initiate a coordinated effort (i.e., working group) for educational and grant-writing efforts related to the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The Team collaborated with UME and UNH and Extension in ME and NH to extend the apple scab project to 10 growers in those states. The fruit team collaborated with Skybit, AgRadar, and NEWA to maintain and expand access to weather data and pest management forecasting models for MA and New England growers. The fruit team cooperated with MDAR, 2 regional IPM consultants, and Barnstable County Extension to trap and to track brown marmorated stink bug in MA. The fruit team collaborated with USDA scientists on plum curculio project. The fruit team collaborated with CT Extension on project to collect plant tissue damaged by fire blight and test for resistance to antibiotics. •Professional Development Training UMass Extension Retreat, Amherst, October 2016 (all team members) Management Training, Fred Pryor Seminars, Taunton, MA November 2016 (Sandler) Webinar training: Hyperspectral imaging, May 2016; Laws and drone use, June; Proposal preparation (AFRI) June; Herbicide resistance, February and April 2017 (Sandler) Negotiation seminar, Women in Science, March 2017 (Sandler) License Certification. Remote Pilot in Command, Federal Aviation Admin, April 2017 (Sandler) IFTA Summer Tour, Western NY, July 2016 (Clements) New England, NY, Canadian Fruit IPM Workshop, Burlington, VT, October 2016 (Clements, Garofalo) Great Lakes Fruit Workers, Ontario, Canada, November 2016 (Clements) NC-140 Regional Rootstock Research Project, State College, PA in November, 2016 (Autio, Clements) IFTA Annual Meeting in Wenatchee, WA, February 2017 (Clements) Establish participatory and demonstration research for crop/pest complexes important to MA growers. See items mentioned above. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Support educational efforts across commodities. We make biweekly farm visits with fruit and vegetable Extension specialists meeting together with the farmer to provide IPM training. Ensure that appropriate pest management information is extended to target audiences. We write recommendations for both organic and conventional growers in our newsletters. We regularly host events and give recommendations based on audience attending. Hold regular meetings with the stakeholder advisory committee to ensure the program is on the right track. Eleven farmers, seven Extension fruit and vegetable program educators, two private IPM field scouts, and one agricultural service provider attended our annual advisory meeting on March 2, 2017. Newsletters Berry Notes: Vol 28-29, 2016-2017. S. Schloemann, ed. Published monthly year-round with seasonal crop checklists, research articles, timely topics and event announcements. Subscription list is approximately 500 with unlimited online access to archived issues (http://ag.umass.edu/fruit/). IPM Berry Blast: Volume 5-6, 2016-2017. S. Schloemann, ed. Published as needed (weekly or more frequently) during major pest management periods for all small fruit. Contains timely pest identification, life cycle, IPM scouting notes and management recommendations for organic and conventional growers. Distributed electronically to approximately 500 subscribers (http://ag.umass.edu/fruit/ipm-berry-blast). Cranberry Station Newsletter: 2016-2017, 5-6 issues/year. Sandler, H.A., M. Sylvia, A. Averill, eds. http://www.umass.edu/cranberry/pubs/newsletter.html. Approximately 325 subscribers, primarily in MA but also national and international. http://ag.umass.edu/cranberry/newsletters. Healthy Fruit: Healthy Fruit, Vol. 24-25, 2016-2017. J. Clements, ed. Published weekly April-October and periodically in off season. Contains crop phenology, pest development and alerts and articles for a broad spectrum of fruit growers in Massachusetts and New England. Distributed electronically to a subscription list of 100 growers (https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/healthy-fruit-archive). https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/publications/healthy-fruit. Fruit Notes: Fruit Notes, Vol. 81-82, 2016-2017. W. Autio, Ed. Published quarterly (occasionally with refereed research articles) on IPM related topics in fruit production. Distributed electronically to 330 subscribers. https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/publications/fruit-notes. Vegetable Notes: Volume 28-29, 2016-2017. K. Campbell-Nelson, S. Scheufele, & L. McKeag, eds. Published weekly May-September and monthly in winter, with timely pest alerts and articles to a broad spectrum of vegetable farmers state and region-wide. Email subscription list exceeded 2500. https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable/newsletters. New England Grape Notes. Vol. 11-12, 2016-2017. S. Schloemann, ed. 6-10 issues published yearly from April-November with horticultural and pest management information for grape growers in New England. Approximately 300 subscribers. https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/grape-notes. UMass Extension Cranberry, Fruit, and Vegetable FACT SHEETS Cranberry: https://ag.umass.edu/cranberry/fact-sheets Fruit: https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/fact-sheets Vegetable: https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable/vegetables/fact-sheets Tweeting by UMass Extension https://twitter.com/jmcextman?ref_src=twsrc^tfw Websites & pest alerts To provide a portal to IPM information on diverse commodities, our IPM website https://ag.umass.edu/integrated-pest-management was updated to serve as a gateway to IPM information on vegetable (https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable), fruit (https://ag.umass.edu/fruit) and other commodity websites. Invasive Pest IPM: Fruit/Spotted Wing Drosophila and Brown marmorated stink bug network and alert system: Data from the statewide reporting network is gathered into a centralized web page which disseminate alerts and management updates to multiple channels automatically (email, cell phone, web page posting, facebook, etc.). Cranberry IPM Message: Weekly IPM pest alerts were issued from May to August as a phone message and at http://ag.umass.edu/cranberry/ipm-message Webpages located at: https://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/brown-marmorated-stink-bug https://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/spotted-wing-drosophila Sample Alerts: https://www.facebook.com/umassipmteam • Hosted grower meetings to exchange and extend information gathered through individual and farm level interactions. Number of attendees in parentheses. May 2016 Fruit Twilight Meetings - May 17, 18, 19, 2016 (140). 'Primary Apple Scab - Getting Ready for the Season", "Spotted Wing Drosophila 2016 Management Update", 'What's Happening Now - an Update on the 2016 Growing Season from Apple Scab to Sawfly" IPM Field Walk, Wards Berry Farm, Sharon, MA (10) June Sprayer technology workshop, Carver, MA (13) July Cultivated Blueberry Growers, Shelburne, MA (40) Massachusetts Fruit Growers' Association Annual Summer Meeting, Belchertown, MA (100) IPM Field Walk, Alprilla Farm, Essex, MA (18) August American Agricultural Economists Association, East Wareham (31) IPM Field Walk, Red Fire Farm, Montague, MA (16) September Twilight Meeting: Applied Research Showcase, South Deerfield, MA (30) December Cranberry Summit meeting, E. Wareham, MA (36) January 2017 Cranberry Research and Extension Update, Wareham, MA (241) MA Fruit Growers' Annual Meeting, Belchertown, MA (85) March IPM Advisory Group Annual Meeting, North Grafton, MA (21) April Pesticide Safety and IPM training, Wareham, MA (82) Fruit Twilight Meetings - April 12, 20, 25 (138)"Early Season Pest and Disease Management Outlook", Orchard Weed Control - focus on non-herbicide options", Primary Apple Scab - Getting Ready for the 2017 Season" • Presenting and/or attending local, regional, and national conferences: May 2016 Bentley College, Ecology/IPM field tour, East Wareham (24) July Crops and Chemicals Meeting, Raleigh, NC (35) August Weather Forecasting and Monitoring for Diversified Vegetable Growers, Voorheesville, NY (55) (good overall view of the Mentor/Partner Farm Program from Veg perspective) October Wheaton College field tour, Ecology Class, East Wareham, MA (18) UMass Stockbridge School of Agriculture. Small fruit culture lecture, Amherst, MA (19) New England, NY, and Canadian Fruit IPM Workshop, Burlington, VT (34) November Advanced Biocontrol School, Specialty Crop biocontrol, Lancaster, PA (51) IPM Toolbox Webinar sponsored by NE-IPM Center, Corn Gluten Meal for weed control (on-line) Interview with "Living on Earth" regarding cranberry pest management and production for UMass Boston public radio January 2017 Cranberry Weed Management Update, Northeastern Weed Science Society meeting, Philadelphia, PA (37) Alternative Strategies for Controlling Cabbage Aphids, Hadley, MA (65) Growing Mustard as a Biofumigant, Fairlee, VT (80) February Resistance management update, Weed Science Society of American meeting, Tuscon, AZ (47) Weed Management Master Gardeners' Training, Barnstable, MA (13) 10th Annual Agriculture and Food Conference of the Southeast Massachusetts Agricultural Partnership, Dighton, MA (30) March Vegetable Farmers in New England Adapt to Climate Change, Institute of Regional Governance and Social Change, Kupang, Timor, Indonesia (35) Integrated Pest Management in Cucurbits, SEMAP Conference, Dighton, MA (25) April Ecohydrology (UMass Amherst) class and field tour, East Wareham, MA (9) Use of High Glucosinolate Mustard as an Organic Biofumigant in Vegetable Crops, E-Extension Webinar (494) What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?During our 1-year no-cost extension, we will take all steps needed to conclude our efforts related to this EIP program project. We will conduct end-of-season interviews to assess the activities of Mentor Farmers in achieving their established (pre-season) goals. We will collect and analyze data from our 2017 on-farm field trials and summarize any remaining findings, activities and results in our final report (anticipated submission, Summer 2018).
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Coordination. The EIPM Advisory Panel convened on March 2, 2017 to discuss goals, outcomes and impacts of the project, and to plan projects for the 2017 growing season. There were 11 farmers, seven Extension fruit and vegetable program educators, two private IPM field scouts, and one agricultural service provider for a total of 21 attendees. Growers reaffirmed the value of collaborations with Extension and were looking forward to future on-farm, one-on-one regular support provided by UMass staff. In addition, the Project Team met in person and/or via conference calls quarterly to assess progress on the IT project, make plans and preparations for the field season and workshops, and to discuss relevant budget issues. Work intensively with individual growers to implement IPM practices. In the 2016 season, the EIP Project Team worked with 9 diversified fruit and vegetable farms to identify pests and problems and set Integrated Pest Management (IPM) goals. Growers identified a total of 88 pests or problems they wanted to address using IPM, each associated with a specific crop. Throughout the growing season, we visited participating farms on a bi?weekly basis and worked with growers to implement various IPM practices; there were a total of 90 farm visits (a map of the farms can be found at: (https://drive.google.com/open?id=1KDOaQkAIRHWZ1TcUzwVGv2ARxGU&usp=sharing). A total of 275 specific management practices were recommended to address these 88 IPM issues. During the fall and winter, we interviewed growers to evaluate the extent to which recommended practices were adopted and how successful they were in helping farmers achieve their goals. Work with multiple farms on IPM field trials to address specific pest management concerns. The EIP Project Team conducted on-farm trials on growing mustard as a biofumigant, control of Cabbage Root Maggot (CRM) in organic, direct-seeded brassica, evaluated biocontrol options for cabbage aphids and varietal resistance of cucumbers to downy mildew. We broadened the options to improve weed control in cranberry by developing novel uses of registered herbicides and screened new herbicides for their potential use in cranberry. The EIP Project Team worked with 5 MA growers to help them increase their adoption of apple scab management alternatives. These included assessing scab inoculum in the Fall, performing leaf-chopping and urea applications between leaf fall and the green tip bud stage in the Spring, delaying early spring scab sprays when possible, using decision support systems (AgRadar and NEWA), and improving their resistance management. The EIP project scientists and growers monitored, using pheromone traps and forecasting networks, for the following pests during the period from May 1, 2016 through April 30, 2017: codling moth, oriental fruit moth, oblique-banded leaf roller, and dogwood borer (pheromone traps in apples); greater peach tree borer, lesser peach tree borer; apple maggot (sticky traps in apple), winter moth (GDD model forecast in blueberry, cranberry, and apple), European corn borer, fall army, corn earworm, and western bean cutworm (sweet corn), squash vine borer and cucurbit downy mildew (cucurbits), late blight (tomato and potato). The team also scouted crops for pests based on grower preferences including the following: plum curculio (apple), pear psylla (pear), apple scab (apple), fire blight (apple), sooty blotch and flyspeck (apple), San Jose scale (apple), tarnished plant bug (apples and small fruit), two species of sawfly (apples), Spotted wing Drosophila (small fruit and cherries), various stinkbugs to include Brown Marmorated Stick Bug, and pest mites (tree fruit), and many more in vegetable crops. There were 7 primary apple scab infection periods according to NEWA (http://newa.cornell.edu) at the UMass Orchard (Belchertown, MA) with 100% ascospore maturity occurring on May 23, 2016. Research at UMass suggests that ascospore maturity was delayed beyond 23-May, and there was one additional primary infection event in early June. Scab was quite manageable by most, however, an exception or two was noted. In addition to the apple scab model being available on 48 NEWA sites in Massachusetts, there were 4 RIMpro (http://www.rimpro.eu/) sites using either NEWA weather data or Meteoblue, plus 9 experimental RIMpro sites using HRDPS. There were also 6 AgRadar (http://agradar.info) locations available. All DSS's (Decision Support Systems) provide valuable IPM decision support through the use of apple scab, fire blight and insect models, among others. For a 3rd year, reports of dead vines across the MA cranberry-growing region were common and Putnam scale (Diaspidiotus ancylus) was the culprit. Seventeen companies or individual growers brought in samples from 49 sites in May-June to determine if they had scale and to consult with us about the best timing for management. Eight companies/growers had multiple sites that were affected. Thirteen samples were NOT infested, and did not require treatment. Vines from thirty sites (26 of these were new) were infested and many growers brought in second samples to target peak crawler emergence. One Dearness scale (Rhizaspidiotus dearnessi) site continued from last year. A field trial with three low-impact options targeting crawler and white cap developmental stages showed some promise. Education for cranberry growers about the problem included presentations at January and April meetings. Develop traditional and web-based tools to deliver information. In the current year, we focused on support, stability, and improvements. As well as basic support and refinement, we have added several enhancements such as a dynamic 'to-do' list system for scouts to use to keep track of follow-up tasks from farm visits, and added the ability to attach diagnostic reports and other documents to scouting reports & emails. We are currently developing new functionality that will allow growers to log in and access their own historical scouting reports. Conduct periodic surveys and interviews to document changes in pest management efforts . At the Annual Advisory Meeting on March 2, 2017, stakeholders identified the following topics as the highest priorities for research: Phytophthora, bacterial disease management, organic weed management, and cabbage aphid management. For more details, please see the summary (http://scholarworks.umass.edu/cranberry_research_repts/20). Projects included Decision Support Systems (DSS) evaluation trials to determine primary apple scab model accuracy. During Fall 2016 and Winter 2017, we interviewed growers to evaluate the extent to which recommended practices were adopted and how successful they were in helping farmers achieve their goals. 76% of the practices were adopted by growers as recommended; an additional 11% were adopted with some modification and for those practices that were adopted, 87% were rated by growers as either "moderately" or "largely" successful (65% were largely successful, 22% were moderately successful). As a result of working with our team and implementing recommend IPM management practices, growers reported on whether 3 specific goals were attained for the 88 separate crop?problem combinations. Growers responded according to a 4?point scale (1 = not at all, 2 = minimally, 3 = moderately, 4 = largely): 55% resulted in changes in pesticide use consistent with IPM practices; 63% resulted in reductions in crop loss; and 65% resulted in improvements in crop quality.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Morrison, W., D. Lee, B. Short, W. Reissig, D. Combs, K. Leahy, A. Tuttle, D. Cooley, and T. Leskey. 2016. Inclusion of Specialist and Generalist Stimuli in Attract-and-Kill Programs: Their Relative Efficacy in Apple Maggot Fly (Diptera: Tephritidae) Pest Management. Env. Entomol. 45(4):974-982.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Scheufele, S.B. and G. Higgins, 2017. Evaluation of an OMRI-Approved Spinosad Insecticide for Control of Cabbage Root Maggot in Direct-Seeded Root Crops, 2016. Arthropod Management Tests, Volume 42, Issue 1, 1 January 2017, https://doi.org/10.1093/amt/tsx037.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Awaiting Publication
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Ghantous, K.M. and H.A. Sandler, 2017. Evaluations of pre- and postemergence herbicides for dodder management in cranberry. Acta Hort. (in press).
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Submitted
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Scheufele, S.B. and K. Campbell-Nelson, and A. Zolondick, 2017. Insecticides for control of cabbage root maggot in organic systems, 2015. Arthropod Management Tests. (Submitted).
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Submitted
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Scheufele, S.B. and K. Campbell-Nelson, and A. Zolondick, 2017. Insecticides for control of cabbage root maggot in direct-seeded root crops, 2015. Arthropod Management Tests. (submitted).
|
Progress 09/01/15 to 08/31/16
Outputs
Target Audience:Beginning and women farmers, diversified growers, conventional and organic growers, Extension staff, IPM consultants and scouts, Ag service providers, farm managers and decision-makers, newsletter subscribers, workshop and meeting attendees, industry representatives Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Establish mentoring and partnering relationships with individual farms. In 2015, the EIP Project Team identified and began working with 8 MA farms as mentor farms and 9 as partner farms. Provide accurate diagnostic services. Each Mentor and Partner farm received 2 diagnostic samples (fee supported by the grant) submitted to the UMass Disease Diagnostic Lab. The Diagnostic lab reported processing 35 vegetable and 48 small fruit samples. The Cranberry Diagnostic Lab processed approximately 40 samples. Hosted grower meetings to exchange and extend information gathered through individual and farm level interactions. Number of attendees in parentheses. May 2015 Bogside Workshop, Carver, MA (16) June Bogside Workshop, E. Wareham, MA (22) July Field walk, Matunuk Vegetable Farm, Matunuk, RI (12) Field walks on growers' farms in Waltham, MA (8) and Amherst, MA (12) MA Fruit Growers Association, IPM/BMSB, Phillipston, MA (107) August 4 Field walks on growers' farms in Amherst, MA (46) Field Walk, South Royalton, VT (12) Weed identification workshop, E. Wareham, MA (22) Weed identification workshop, Jonesboro, ME (11) October Twilight meeting on Nutrient Management, Soil and Crop Fertility, N. Easton, MA (40) December Cranberry Summit meeting, E. Wareham, MA (39) January 2016 Cranberry Research and Extension Update, Wareham, MA (220) Weed IPM, American Cranberry Growers Association, Bordentown, NJ (42) March IPM Advisory Group Annual Meeting, North Grafton, MA (28) Weather-based Uncertainty and Apple Production Workshop, Amherst, MA(26) April Pesticide Safety and IPM training, Wareham, MA (65) Fruit IPM Twilight Meeting: Apple scab, winter moth, Belchertown, MA (45) Fruit IPM Twilight Meeting: Apple scab, winter moth, Wrentham (55) Presenting and/or attending local, regional, and national conferences: August 2015 Brassica IPM meeting at the NOFA Summer Conference, Amherst, MA (25) Decision Support Systems Evaluation in MA, Ventura, CA (23) October MA Fruit IPM Report, New England/New York/ Canada Fruit Pest Management Conference, Burlington, VT (50) Decision Support Systems for Apple Scab: Models, Outputs, and Implementation, Burlington, VT (50) Advanced IPM for apples: Managing apple scab, fire blights, plum curculio, summer disease and apple maggot, Holyoke Community College, Belchertown, MA (16) November Vegetable Program Annual Report for NOFA, Rutland, MA (30) Vegetable Program Annual Report for SEMAP, Easton, MA, (60) 2 Resistance Management Webinars, NE-SARE Professional Development Grant Program (9) December Vegetable Program Annual Report for CRAFT, Hillsdale, NY (25) 2 Resistance Management Webinars, NE-SARE Professional Development Grant Program (9) New England Vegetable and Fruit Conference, Manchester, NH (~1700) January 2016 Cranberry Weed Management Update, Northeastern Weed Science Society meeting, Philadelphia, PA (45) Presentation at NEVBGA on Growing Mustard as a Biofumigant, Hadley, MA (60) Disease update, NOFA, Worcester, MA (35) February Disease update, Carovail, Northampton, MA (40) Disease update, SEMAP, Dighton, MA (25) March Tactics for apple scab management, Hyde Park, NY (70) Establish participatory and demonstration research for crop/pest complexes important to MA growers. See items mentioned under "IPM field trials" above. Promote and sustain collaborations with other organizations at state, regional, and federal levels to further IPM adoption. The EIP Project team: Hosted a weekly Vegetable Pest Alerts call with 15 Extension Educators and field scouts from around the Northeast (RI, MA, VT, NY, NH, ME). We used information from these calls to write pest alerts for over 2,000 readers in the region. Hosted weekly Tree Fruit Pest Alert Calls with growers, Extension Educators, and other industry leaders to [approx. 8 callers per week; used information to write Healthy Fruit and other pest messages] Participated in a weekly Berry Pest Alert Call-in with Extension and Industry Colleagues from the Northeastern US and Eastern Canada (PA, NJ, NY, CT, RI, MA, NH, VT, ME, Ontario).This information is used to inform IPM Berry Notes and other regional pest messages going out to fruit growers in the region. Partnered with NRCS, SEMAP, NOFA, and CRAFT (public or non-profit organizations) to promote educational activities and give presentations. Partnered with Massachusetts Fruit Growers' Association, New England Vegetable and Berry Growers' Association, Massachusetts Blueberry Growers Association, and the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers to promote educational activities and give presentations. Participated in a regional research project on management of plum curculio in apples, with Massachusetts Fruit Growers' Association, New England Vegetable and Berry Growers' Association, directed by T. Leskey, USAD/ ARS, Kearneysville, WV. Coordinated efforts for a regional apple scab project that included Extension Educators and growers in ME, NH, CT, and VT. Hosted and participated in four Resistance Management Webinars offered through the NE-SARE Professional Development Grant Program. Contributed efforts as Members of the Steering Committee to organize the New England Vegetable and Fruit Conference, a 3.5 day conference, held every two years and attended by approximately 1500 growers. Participated in a multistate workshop on weather-based uncertainty and apple production discussing concept mapping apple production issues related to weather. The Team collaborated with UME and UNH and Extension in ME and NH to extend the apple scab project to 10 growers in those states. Tree fruit team collaborated with Skybit, AgRadar, and NEWA to maintain and expand access to weather data and pest management forecasting models for MA and New England growers (> 100 growers). Fruit team cooperated with MDAR, 2 regional IPM consultants, the Arnold Arboretum, and Barnstable County Extension to trap and to track brown marmorated stink bug in MA. Tree fruit team collaborated with USDA scientists on plum curculio project. Tree fruit team collaborated with CT Extension on project to collect plant tissue damaged by fire blight and test for resistance to antibiotics. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Support educational efforts across commodities. We make biweekly farm visits with fruit and vegetable Extension specialists meeting together with the farmer to provide IPM training in collaboration. Ensure that appropriate pest management information is extended to target audiences. We write recommendations for both organic and conventional growers in our newsletters. We regularly host events and give recommendations based on audience attending. Hold regular meetings with the stakeholder advisory committee to ensure the program is on the right track. Sixteen farmers, seven Extension fruit and vegetable program educators, two private IPM field scouts, and three agricultural service providers (NRCS, one non-profit farm and MA Farm Bureau) attended our annual advisory meeting on March 1, 2016. Newsletters Berry Notes: Vol 27-28, 2015-2016. S. Schloemann, ed. Published monthly year-round with seasonal crop checklists, research articles, timely topics and event announcements. Subscription list is approximately 500 with unlimited online access to archived issues (http://ag.umass.edu/fruit/). IPM Berry Blast: Volume 4-5, 2015-2016. S. Schloemann, ed. Published as needed (weekly or more frequently) during major pest management periods for all small fruit. Contains timely pest identification, life cycle, IPM scouting notes and management recommendations for organic and conventional growers. Distributed electronically to approximately 500 subscribers (http://ag.umass.edu/fruit/ipm-berry-blast). Cranberry Station Newsletter: In 2015-2016, 5-6 issues/ year. Sandler, H.A., M. Sylvia, A. Averill, eds. http://www.umass.edu/cranberry/pubs/newsletter.html. Approximately 325 subscribers, primarily in MA but also national and international. http://ag.umass.edu/cranberry/newsletters. Healthy Fruit: Healthy Fruit, Vol. 23-24, 2015-2016. J. Clements, ed. Published weekly April-October and periodically in off season. Contains crop phenology, pest development and alerts and articles for a broad spectrum of fruit growers in Massachusetts and New England. Distributed electronically to a subscription list of 100 growers (https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/healthy-fruit-archive). https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/publications/healthy-fruit. Fruit Notes: Fruit Notes, Vol. 80-81, 2015-2016. W. Autio, Ed. Published quarterly, with refereed research articles on IPM related topics in fruit production. Distributed electronically to 330 subscribers. https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/publications/fruit-notes. Vegetable Notes: Volume 27-28, 2015-2016. K. Campbell-Nelson, S. Scheufele, & L. McKeag, eds. Published weekly May-September and monthly in winter, with timely pest alerts and articles to a broad spectrum of vegetable farmers state and region-wide. Email subscription list exceeded 2200. https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable/newsletters. New England Grape Notes. Vol. 10-11, 2015-2016. S. Schloemann, ed. 6-10 issues published yearly from April-November with horticultural and pest management information for grape growers in New England. Approximately 300 subscribers. https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/grape-notes. UMass Extension Cranberry, Tree Fruit, Small Fruit and Vegetable FACT SHEETS Cranberry: http://ag.umass.edu/cranberry/fact-sheets Fruit: https://ag.umass.edu/fruit/fact-sheets Vegetable: https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable/vegetables/fact-sheets Smartphone app series tackles fruit diseases and pests developed in concert with Clemson University. Clements and Saalau-Rojas. MyIPM-NED. Free on iPhones and androids. Tweeting by UMass Extension https://twitter.com/jmcextman?ref_src=twsrc^tfw Websites & pest alerts To provide a portal to IPM information on diverse commodities, our IPM website https://ag.umass.edu/integrated-pest-management was updated to serve as a gateway to IPM information on vegetable (https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable), fruit (https://ag.umass.edu/fruit) and other commodity websites. Invasive Pest IPM: Fruit/Spotted Wing Drosophila and Brown marmorated stink bug network and alert system: Data from the statewide reporting network is gathered into a centralized web page which disseminate alerts and management updates to multiple channels automatically (email, cell phone, web page posting, facebook, etc.). Cranberry IPM Message: Weekly IPM pest alerts were issued from May to August as a phone message and at http://ag.umass.edu/cranberry/newsletters. Webpages located at: https://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/brown-marmorated-stink-bug https://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/spotted-wing-drosophila What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We will continue our outreach in publication efforts, workshops, and one-on-one mentoring. We will conduct end-of-season interviews to assess the activities of Mentor Farmers in achieving their established (pre-season) goals. We will work with IT consultant to implement and improve the software package that is being developed. We will meet with our Stakeholder Advisory Group in the winter to adjust activities as needed, based on their input. We will meet with our regional collaborators to make plans for the 2017 season. We will collect and analyze data from our on-farm field trials.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Work intensively with individual growers to implement IPM practices. The EIP Project Team worked with 8 diversified fruit and vegetable farms to identify pests and problems and set Integrated Pest Management (IPM) goals. Growers identified a total of 99 pests or problems they wanted to address using IPM, each associated with a specific crop. Throughout the growing season, we visited participating farms on a bi?weekly basis and worked with growers to implement various IPM practices. A total of 313 specific management practices were recommended to address these 99 IPM issues. During the fall and winter, we interviewed growers to evaluate the extent to which recommended practices were adopted and how successful they were in helping farmers achieve their goals. Work with multiple farms on IPM field trials to address specific pest management concerns. The EIP Project Team conducted on-farm trials on growing mustard as a biofumigant to manage Phytophthora capsici in peppers and plant parasitic nematodes in strawberry and 4 research farm trials on Brassica IPM for cabbage root maggot. The EIP Project Team worked with 9 MA growers to help them increase their adoption of apple scab management alternatives. These included assessing scab inoculum in the Fall, performing leaf-chopping and urea applications between leaf fall and the green tip bud stage in the Spring, delaying early spring scab sprays when possible, using decision support systems (AgRadar and NEWA), and improving their resistance management. The team coordinated this work at 15 additional sites in neighboring states. The EIP project scientists and growers monitored for the following pests during the period from July 1, 2015 to April 30, 2016: codling moth, oriental fruit moth, oblique-banded leaf roller, and dogwood borer (pheromone traps in apples); greater peach tree borer, lesser peach tree borer; apple maggot (sticky traps in apple). The team also monitored for pest or pest damage incidence for the following: plum curculio (apple), pear psylla (pear), apple scab (apple), fire blight (apple), sooty blotch and flyspeck (apple), San Jose scale (apple), tarnished plant bug (apples and small fruit), two species of sawfly (apples), and various stinkbugs and pest mites (apple). The EIP project worked with 2 MA and 1 VT growers on a field experiment testing beneficial nematodes and the trap tree approach for managing plum curculio in apples (directed by T. Leskey, USDA/ ARS, Kearneysville, WV). For a second year, reports of dead vines across the MA cranberry-growing region were common. Over a four-month period, starting in April, we visited 22 bog sites and assessed presence of two damaging species of armored scale. New diagnoses of scale were made at 11 sites: ten were Putnam scale (Diaspidiotus ancylus) and one was Dearness scale (Rhizaspidiotus dearnessi). Sites were monitored to determine when the susceptible crawler stage appeared for best timing of treatment. A screening trial of five biological or low-impact options showed that none was effective, in comparison to conventional organophosphates. Winter moth continues to be a pest of concern on cranberry. Three sites were visited in the fall that had suffered near total loss of crop due to undiagnosed winter moth infestations in the spring. Crop insurance claims were supported. Continued education for cranberry growers about the problem included presentations at January and April meetings. We continued work to identify herbicides that showed efficacy against poverty grass (Andropogon virginicus and Schizachyrium scoparium) and dodder (Cuscuta spp.). Several herbicides looked promising from an efficacy perspective but at present we cannot proceed towards registration due to environmental profile concerns, additional environmental fate work, and re-registration issues. Establish mentoring and partnering relationships with individual farms. In 2015, the EIP Project Team identified and began working with 8 MA farms as mentor farms and 9 as partner farms. Provide accurate diagnostic services. Each Mentor and Partner farm received 2 diagnostic samples (fee supported by the grant) submitted to the UMass Disease Diagnostic Lab. The Diagnostic lab reported processing 35 vegetable and 48 small fruit samples. The Cranberry Diagnostic Lab processed approximately 40 samples. Develop traditional and web-based tools to deliver information. We continue to make good progress. We began the year with working versions of a Grower Intake Form, which collects the basic information for partner farms and defines IPM goals and actions,and a Basic Scouting Form that scouts can use on farm visits. Each scouting form includes a section for recommendations, as well as image or video uploads, and basic data such as scout name, weather conditions, crop stage, etc. All forms can be easily exported to PDF to allow for printing or emailing to growers. During this reporting year, in addition to many revisions and improvements to the existing forms, we added an end-of-season Reporting Form where Extension personnel can collect data and measure the impact of their work in terms of changes in grower knowledge, changes in behavior, and the impact of both on the farm. These data can then be exported as a (comma separated value; csv) data file for further analysis. This last addition completes the basic functionality of the application. In the current year, we are focusing on support, stability, and improvements. Improvements will likely include a system of notes/reminders/to-do items for scouts, some usability enhancements to the existing forms, better sorting and filtering of the impacts data to ease reporting, additional reporting of summary statistics (number of growers, number of plans, scouting visits per grower, etc). If time permits, we will work with growers to help them log in and access their own scouting reports and IPM plans. Conduct periodic surveys and interviews to document changes in pest management efforts . At the Annual Advisory Meeting on March 1, 2016, stakeholders identified the following topics as the highest priorities for research: Bird damage in sweet corn, organic late blight management, cabbage aphids in Brussels sprouts, spotted wing drosophila management, and soil fertility for plant health. On-farm and research trials are planned for the 2016-2017 growing seasons to address cabbage aphids in Brussels sprouts and soil fertility and plant health. At the beginning of the 2015 growing season, members of our team worked with 8 farms to identify pests and problems and set Integrated Pest Management (IPM) goals. Growers identified a total of 99 pests or problems they wanted to address using IPM, each associated with a specific crop. Throughout the growing season, we visited participating farms on a bi?monthly basis and worked with growers to implement various IPM practices. A total of 313 specific management practices were recommended to address these 99 pests and problems. During Fall 2015 and Winter 2016, we interviewed growers to evaluate the extent to which recommended practices were adopted and how successful they were in helping farmers achieve their goals. 83% of the practices were adopted by growers as recommended; an additional 10% were adopted with some modification and for those practices that were adopted, 96% were rated by growers as either "moderately" or "largely" successful (79% ? largely successful, 17% moderately successful) As a result of working with our team and implementing recommend IPM management practices, growers reported on whether 3 specific goals were attained for the 99 separate crop?problem combinations. Growers responded according to a 4?point scale (1 = not at all, 2 = minimally, 3 = moderately, 4 = largely): 74% resulted in changes in pesticide use consistent with IPM practices; 86% resulted in reductions in crop loss; and 81% resulted in improvements in crop quality.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Morrison, W., D. Lee, B. Short, W. Reissig, D. Combs, K. Leahy, A. Tuttle, D. Cooley, and T. Leskey. 2015. Inclusion of Specialist and Generalist Stimuli in Attract-and-Kill Programs: Their Relative Efficacy in Apple Maggot Fly (Diptera: Tephritidae) Pest Management. Env. Entomol. (accepted)
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Submitted
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Scheufele, S.B. and K. Campbell-Nelson, and A. Zolondick, 2017. Insecticides for control of cabbage root maggot in organic systems, 2015. Arthropod Management Tests. (Submitted).
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Submitted
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Scheufele, S.B. and K. Campbell-Nelson, and A. Zolondick, 2017. Insecticides for control of cabbage root maggot in direct-seeded root crops, 2015. Arthropod Management Tests. (submitted).
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Scheufele, S.B., L. McKeag, K. Campbell-Nelson, and R. Hazzard, 2016. Insecticides for Control of Cabbage Root Maggot in Spring Cabbage, 2014. Arthropod Management Tests Volume 40 (1): E44. doi: 10.1093/amt/tsv100.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Scheufele, S.B., L. McKeag, K. Campbell-Nelson, R. Hazzard, 2016. Efficacy of Thiamethoxam Seed Treatments to Control Cabbage Root Maggot in Broccoli, 2014. Arthropod Management Tests. Volume 40 (1): E43 doi: 10.1093/amt/tsv099
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Scheufele, S.B., K. Campbell-Nelson, and R. Hazzard. 2015. Evaluation of biological fungicides to control Alternaria leaf spot of Brassicas, 2014. Plant Disease Management Reports. Volume 9: V004.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Scheufele, S.B., K. Campbell-Nelson, and R. Hazzard. 2015. Evaluation of copper fungicides to control basil downy mildew, 2014. Plant Disease Management Reports. Volume 9: V001
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Cooley, D. R. and J. Clements. Preliminary evaluation of four decision support systems for management of apple scab in the northeastern U.S. 2015. Phytopathology 105 (Suppl. 1):S1.6.
|
Progress 09/01/14 to 08/31/15
Outputs
Target Audience:Beginning and women farmers, Diversified growers, Conventional and Organic growers, Extension staff, IPM consultants and scouts, Ag service providers, Farm managers and decision-makers, Newsletter subscribers, Workshop and meeting attendees, Industry representatives Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Host grower meetings to exchange and extend information gathered through individual and farm level interactions. Between September 2014 and June 2015, Extension personnel hosted the following grower meetings: Twilight Meeting on Food Safety, IPM and the Commonwealth Quality Program, 45 people in attendance, 34 farmers and 11 Ag Service providers; IPM Advisory Group Annual Meeting, March 2015, North Grafton, MA, 28 people in attendance (8 UMass fruit and veg program staff, 4 ag service providers, and 16 farmers) and a workshop on Greenhouse Biocontrols. UMass Fruit Team hosted the annual winter meeting of the Massachusetts Fruit Growers Association, January 2015, Belchertown, MA. Dr. Dave Rosenberger was the guest speaker; gave a presentation on fire blight in apples, approx. 125 attending. Tracking Apple Scab Maturation to Improve Scab Management"; Clarkdale Fruit Farm, Deerfield, MA, May 19. 2015, approx. 30 attending. Grower talks at fruit tree growers twilight meetings, 3 meetings each month, April and May 2015, average attending 30 The following were hosted by cranberry extension in East Wareham, MA and vicinity: Summit meeting December 2014, 46 attendees; Research and Extension Update, January and February (make-up meeting), 176 and 31 attendees, respectively; Pesticide Safety and IPM training, April 2014, 76 attendees; Dodder management discussion group, March 2015, 13 attendees; Scale, disease, and weed workshop, May 2015, 16 attendees; Cranberry fruit rot and fruitworm management, June 2015, 22 attendees. Establish participatory and demonstration research for crop/pest complexes important to MA growers. See items mentioned under "IPM field trials" above. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Support educational efforts across commodities. We make biweekly farm visits with fruit and vegetable Extension specialists meeting together with the farmer to provide IPM training in collaboration. Ensure that appropriate pest management information is extended to target audiences. We write recommendations for both organic and conventional growers in our newsletters. We regularly host events and give recommendations based on audience attending. Hold regular meetings with the stakeholder advisory committee to ensure the program is on the right track. March 4th, 2015 Brigham Hill Community Farm. 28 people in attendance. (8 UMass fruit and veg program staff, 4 ag service providers, and 16 farmers). See "Surveys and Interviews" above. Newsletters Berry Notes: 2014-2015, Volume 26-27. S. G. Schloemann, ed. https://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/publications/berrynotes. Circulation approx 450 annually. Seasonally relevant information on production, marketing, research, and IPM including pest alerts, scouting results, and reminders for timely management activities. IPM Berry Blast, 2014-2015. S. G. Schloemann, ed. Six to twelve issues annually. Circulation approx.. 450 annually. A periodic e-message that highlights specific, timely pest issues. Cranberry Station Newsletter: In 2014-2015, 5 issues/ year. Sandler, H.A., M. Sylvia, A. Averill, eds. http://www.umass.edu/cranberry/pubs/newsletter.html. Reached 327 recipients in 2014-15, primarily in MA but also national and international. Weekly IPM pest alerts were issued from May to August as a phone message and at http://www.umass.edu/cranberry/cropinfo/ipmmessage.html. Healthy Fruit: 2014-2105. J. Clements, ed. Newsletter published weekly to 100 paid subscribers, March to October and as needed for alerts year-round, 23 issues/year. Includes pest alerts, meeting announcements, fact sheets and updates to the New England Tree Fruit Management Guide. https://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/publications/healthy-fruit. Fruit Notes: Autio, W. and W. Cowgill, editors. 2014-2015. Published quarterly at the Stockbridge School of Agriculture, UMass.http://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/publications/fruit-notes. Vegetable Notes, Volume 26-27, 2014-2015. R.V. Hazzard, K. Campbell-Nelson, S. Scheufele, & L. McKeag, eds. Published weekly May-September and monthly in winter, with timely pest alerts and articles to a broad spectrum of vegetable farmers state and region-wide. Email subscription list reached 2000 in 2014. http://extension.umass.edu/vegetable/. New England Grape Notes. Vol. 9-10, 2014-2015. S. Schloemann, ed. 6-10 issues published yearly from April-November with horticultural and pest management information for grape growers in New England. Approximately 300 subscribers. http://newenglandwinegrapes.org/. UMass Extension Cranberry, Tree Fruit, Small Fruit and Vegetable FACT SHEETS Cranberry: http://www.umass.edu/cranberry/pubs/factsheets.html Fruit: http://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/fact-sheets Vegetable: http://extension.umass.edu/vegetable/soil-crop-pest-management Websites & pest alerts To provide a portal to IPM information on diverse commodities, our IPM website (http://extension.umass.edu/ipm) was updated to serve as a gateway to IPM information on vegetable (http://extension.umass.edu/vegetable/), fruit (http://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/ ) and other commodity websites. Invasive Pest IPM: Fruit/Spotted Wing Drosophila and Brown marmorated stink bug network and alert system: Data from the statewide reporting network is gathered into a centralized web page which disseminate alerts and management updates to multiple channels automatically (email, cell phone, web page posting, facebook, etc.). Webpages located at: https://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/brown-marmorated-stink-bug https://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/spotted-wing-drosophila Sample Alerts: http://extension.umass.edu/fruitadvisor/alerts/2014-brown-marmorated-stink-bug-bmsb-fall-update https://www.facebook.com/umassipmteam See also workshops/professional development and training noted above. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We will continue our outreach effortsin publications, workshops, and one-on-one mentoring. We will conduct end-of-season interviews to assess the activities of Mentor Farmers in achieving their established (pre-season) goals. We will engage with our IT consultant to ground-truth the software package that is being developed. We will meet with our Stakeholder Advisory Group in the winter to adjust activities as needed, based on their input. We will make presentations and network with vegetable and fruit growers at the New England Vegetable and Fruit Conference in December, 2015 in Manchester, NH. We will meet with our regional collaborators to make plans for the 2016 season.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Work intensively with individual growers to implement IPM practices. The fruit and vegetable programs have identified 9 fruit and vegetable farms in MA to facilitate implementation of IPM practices. Work with multiple farms on IPM field trials to address specific pest management concerns. We have several on-farm IPM field trials this year: "Growing mustard as a biofumigant covercrop": This project is being conducted on 2 farms in MA. One farmer is growing mustard for control of lesion and root knot nematode in strawberry production, and the other farmer is working on control of Phytophthora capsici and Sclerotinia white mold. The second project is "Silicon nutrition for powdery mildew management in cucurbits" taking place on one farm where we are sidedressing wollastonite for silicon and rating powdery mildew. Tree fruit team worked with 12 apple growers and their staff in Fall 2014 to assess potential overwintering apple scab ascospore dose; implemented sanitation measures between Fall and Spring; delayed 1st fungicide sprays in Spring where possible; used disease forecasting models; implemented reduced-risk fungicide programs and resistance management practices. The tree fruit team worked with 2 MA growers and 1 VT grower and their staff on a USDA led trial that tested a trap tree approach and a beneficial nematode approach to manage plum curculio in apples. The Small Fruit team has set out spotted wing drosophila traps across the Commonwealth to monitor for first appearance. On-farm trials include the evaluation of split applications of dichlobenil to improve dodder control on cranberry farms. Promote and sustain collaborations with other organizations at state, regional, and federal levels to further IPM adoption. Another funded proposal by NEIPM "New England Fruit and Vegetable Pest Scouting Network" (PI K. Campbell-Nelson) has expanded our reach from the EIP project to Rhode Island and Vermont where Extension Educators and summer staff provide the same level on on-farm IPM training to beginning farmers as Massachusetts personnel. We have trained over 100 beginning farmers in IPM scouting and monitoring methods through seasonal IPM Field Walks. We will continue this program with 1 field walk in both VT and RI and 2 in MA. Tree fruit team collaborated with UME and UNH and Extension in ME and NH to extend the apple scab project to 10 growers in those states. Tree fruit team collaborated with Skybit, AgRadar, and NEWA to maintain and expand access to weather data and pest management forecasting models for MA and New England growers (> 100 growers). Fruit team cooperated with MDAR, 2 regional IPM consultants, the Arnold Arboretum, and Barnstable County Extension to trap and to track brown marmorated stink bug in MA. Tree fruit team collaborated with USDA scientists on plum curculio project. Tree fruit team collaborated with CT Extension on project to collect plant tissue damaged by fire blight and test for resistance to antibiotics. Establish mentoring and partnering relationships with individual farms. The IPM team has identified and begun working with 9 farms in MA to as mentor farms and 3 as partner farms. Provide accurate diagnostic services. Each mentor and Partner farm receives 2 diagnostic samples submitted to the UMass Disease Diagnostic Lab. The Diagnostic lab reports processing 36 vegetable and 23 small fruit samples. Tree fruit team diagnosed 11 plant samples damaged by diseases and 15 samples damaged by insects. Develop traditional and web-based tools to deliver information. We have made good progress toward this goal to date. We have staging server running at http://invasives.zigbop.io/ where new functionality is demonstrated, experimented with, and refined before being deployed to a production server at http://ipm-scouting.com/. Currently we have working versions of a grower intake form that collects the basic information for partner farms and defines IPM goals, including specific actions to be undertaken by both the grower and extension personnel. These forms are viewable, searchable, and editable on a web dashboard. We also have completed a basic scouting form that scouts can use on farm visits. Each scouting form includes a section for recommendations, as well as image or video uploads, and basic data such as the scout name, weather conditions, crop stage, etc. Each scouting form is related to a particular farm, and can be related to one or more of the goals outlined in the farms IPM plans. All forms can be easily exported to PDF to allow for printing or emailing to growers. Next steps include add a button to automate the task of emailing forms to growers and other contacts, adding screens for viewing, sorting, and exporting data and reports. We hope to finish most of that functionality in a basic form by the end of year 1, and make iterative improvements based on feedback from growers, scouts, and extension personnel over the next two years. Some of the likely improvements for year 2 include adding a 'reminders' system so extension personnel can specify follow-up activities from scouting forms and adding some 'alert' functionality to alert growers to pest conditions in their area when necessary. We continue to provide weekly articles and pest alerts via Vegetable Notes May-September and monthly during the off-season. Fruit team continued to develop webpage, email, and text message information delivery for spotted wing Drosophila and brown marmorated stink bug detection and management. Conduct periodic surveys and interviews to document changes in pest management efforts .A survey was conducted at our Advisory meeting on March 4, 2015 to assess grower priorities for the year, and we will conduct end of season interviews with mentor farmers to measure changes in IPM practices in Fall 2015. Priorities identified by Advisory Meeting farmer attendees were: Boots on the Ground, more Extension staff visits, Field Walks for Scouting training and Twilight meetings, Basil Downy Mildew, bird damage in sweet corn, organic late blight management, and cabbage aphids research, and professional development training for Ag Service Providers in making videos for online education.
Publications
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