Compiled by Vern Grubinger, University of Vermont Extension
(802) 656-7534, vernon.grubinger@uvm.edu
https://www.uvm.edu/extension/horticulture/commercial
REPORTS FROM THE FIELD
(Waterbury) On our cut flower farm tarnished plant bug and white fly populations have been very high. Dahlias are very late due to heat and rain. Buds are finally starting to open. Zinnias are producing in good numbers. We have browns spot on some plants, but they are able to grow out of it. Ours are on black landscape fabric to help limit disease.
(Westminster) In some ways, it’s been a good growing season, at least in southern Vermont. Except for a few too-hot days and a few too many rainy days, it’s been okay overall. One problem is some crops maturing too early – the sweet corn season, for instance, may end earlier than would be helpful. A bigger problem is with some storage crops maturing early. A few of our standard cabbage varieties weren’t available and of the different ones we tried, some did well. But we are harvesting them already when we usually wait until October. Let’s hope they keep well in storage.
Winter squash is ready ahead of time, too, which is good because we won’t have to worry about frost. With luck, it will also hold up well in storage, unlike last year when it all rotted. And soon we’ll start harvesting parsnips. By getting a fair amount of our winter crops in early, we’ll be able to send most of our H2A workers home earlier than usual.
One benefit to us, although not to our northern fellow farmers, is that we’re selling way more carrots than usual, making it hard to keep up with our regular accounts. Lettuce and kale are steady. After several weeks of poor lettuce, the crop is looking better with the cooler weather.
(Starksboro) Late blight on tunnel tomatoes, whomp whomp. Waiting to see if we get our first frost Monday night.
(Westminster West) Feels like fall with this morning’s temperature of 42. Non-stop harvesting and patching a crew together however I can. Considering we were hit by hail a month ago, things aren’t too bad. Two-thirds of winter squash is in the barn or tunnel for curing. Seed garlic all cured and selling well. Sweet onions did well, tomatoes are petering out.
Potatoes are about finished; we started digging a few weeks ago. Tried a couple new varieties, Magic Molly and Pinto Gold. Both have strong tops. I tried a new CPB regimen this year that was a great success! Hardly any CPB in the field at this point and no leafhoppers. Sprayed 3 times, first with Beauveria bassiana, trade name BioCeres WP, combined with Azera and Kinetic. Next two applications I added Entrust. After the last spray the field was 99% clean. Now my problem is the few weeds that the Treffler and Einbock weeder missed, and selling the crop.
UPDATES FROM UVM EXTENSION AG ENGINEERING
Andy Chamberlin, UVM Extension
Our latest blog post "A Guide to Preparing High Tunnels for Extreme Weather" is now available at https://go.uvm.edu/extremetunnels. High tunnels and greenhouses provide protection for crops, extend the growing season, and improve yield and quality. However, climate change brings both a higher frequency and increased intensity of extreme weather events. It is important to think about how high tunnel structures can best be built and modified to endure the extremes. The blog post summarizes specific practices to consider and as well as experiences shared by the VVBGA growers, including individual grower comments.
HIGH TUNNEL NEWSLETTER – ISSUE 3
The latest Northern New England Hugh Tunnel Newsletter is available. In this issue:
Spider mite and cucumber beetle management strategies, summer diseases, costs/benefits of exclusion netting, tissue testing, and report from Quebec tour. Use this link or click Resources on the High Tunnel Production Toolkit webpage at https://www.uvm.edu/~htunnel/