Fruits & Nuts
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Ash Sial, Department of Entomology, University of Georgia;Renee Holland, UGA Extension, Bacon County I have recently received reports of slug infestations in Georgia blueberries. A number of slug species including Limax spp., Arion spp., and Deroceras spp. are known to infest blueberries. Slugs are soft-bodied mollusks without a shell. They can be 0.25-10 inches long.…
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Written By: Jonathan Oliver, Fruit Pathologist Organic food sales topped $50 billion in the United States in 2018. Statistics from the Organic Trade Association tell part of the story of this growing market: Fruits, vegetables and other specialty crops combined to make up 36.3% of total organic sales up 5.6% from the previous year. Naturally,…
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Written by: Emily Cabrera, UGA IPM Communications CoordinatorExpert Source: Ash Sial, Blueberry Entomologist & UGA IPM Coordinator The University of Georgia has just been awarded a $5.4 million grant by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture through the Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) to develop long-term sustainable methods for controlling…
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Authors: Emran Ali, Tammy Stackhouse, Sumyya Waliullah, Jean Williams-Woodward, Johnathan Oliver Published in Plant Disease International Journal Is one of the world’s smallest pathogens harming your citrus plants? Citrus production within the state of Georgia (USA) is rapidly increasing each year. There are citrus plantings in backyards, production, and plant nurseries within at least 32…
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Written By: Ash Sial, Blueberry Entomologist; James Jacobs, Pierce County CEC; and Zack Williams, Bacon County ANR agent Over the past few years whiteflies have emerged as a major threat to several crops in Georgia and other states in the southeastern United States. In blueberries, whitefly populations typically increase after the end of harvest and…
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Written By: Emily Cabrera, UGA IPM Communications CoordinatorExpert Source: Andrew Sawyer, Southeast Georgia Area Pecan Agent This winter researchers will begin a series of trials to help identify better management practices for pecan growers in Georgia. New pecan trees will be planted at the University of Georgia Vidalia Onion and Vegetable Research Center in Toombs…
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Written by: Ashfaq Sial, Associate Professor, Department of Entomology, University of Georgia Spotted wing drosophila (SWD) control programs should consist of three major components: 1) monitoring and identification, 2) preventative pest management tactics (including exclusion, sanitation, frequent harvest intervals, pruning, mulching, and resistant varieties), and 3) curative pest management tactics such as the judicious use…
Posted in: Blueberry, Chemical control, Cultural control, Exclusion, Insect pests, Monitoring, Organic, Prevention -
Written by: Ash Sial, Associate Professor, Department of Entomology, University of Georgia Over the past few days, I have received several calls from Extension Agents about prevalence of soft fruit, vertical fruit split, small berry size and some reports of worms in the fruit. Although it is difficult to determine the exact reasons, the unusual…
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By Kendall Johnson and Phil Brannen Peaches are one of the most economically important fruit crops for the state of Georgia. Growers provide a large variety of high-quality fresh-market peaches for not only the Southeast, but for much of the U.S. Recently, growers have reported an increase in a disease called phony peach, and this…