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Northwest Berry Foundation's

WEEK 21 • MAY 22, 2019

THIS ISSUE
Regional Field Reports
Industry Calendar
Industry News
Insect/Disease Alerts
Crop Management

New resources available from the Oregon Strawberry Commission:

Consumer Brochure and Recipe Booklets. Contact the commission office if you' d
like copies.

OREGON STR AWBERRY COMMISSION UPDATE: NEW

ADMINISTR ATOR & OFFICE LOC ATION (JULY 1ST)
SUBSCRIBE TO THIS
NEWSLETTER Go here for the lastest update from the Oregon Strawberry
Commission, which includes information about the new
administrator, OSU's Strawberry Field Day agenda, and more.

NORTHWEST BERRY
FOUNDATION supports
a sustainable NW berry
industry through research,
education, and reducing
DON'T FORGET TO REGISTER FOR THE INTERATIONAL
food waste. Visit our
BLUEBERRY ORGANISATION SUMMIT IN RICHMOND:
website and follow our JUNE 24 - 26, 2019.
facebook page to learn
more about our latest work.
This will be the first time that this International Summit
is hosted in Canada. There is a jam packed itinerary
THE SM ALL FRUIT UPDATE
including Country Reports, a Farm to Table tour of the
is a weekly update for the
Fraser valley Blueberry Industry, a Gala Dinner, Expert
Northwest berry industry,
Panels and Presentations as well as a Trade Show.
supported entirely by the
region’s growers through Registration is now open and space is limited, so get your
their regional berry tickets now!
commissions.
 REGIONAL FIELD REPORTS 2
WILL A METTE VALLEY, OREGON 5-19-19
A wet morning here in the Valley. It been cool and cloudy with some intermittent showers
all week and it looks likely it’ll continue to be that way for the coming week. Not a great
amount of water accumulation though. This pattern is region-wide and it appears that the
east, the north and the south regions are all closer in development than usual which infers
closer, overlapping harvest timings. We’ll see.
Blueberries: Blues are pretty much through bloom with just some late season and
rabbiteye still with some white showing. Well into fruit expansion now and the weather
is good for fruit sizing. Yellowing and nutritional deficiency symptoms visible especially
in Dukes (as usual) probably worse than most years due to the low evapotranspiration
rate—can’t draw what they need for fruit from the ground so they take it from the leaves.
Overall crop potential remains very good. Pretty darn good conditions for green berry
botrytis development in Dukes as well as green fruit drop in Draper. Keep on those
fungicide and calcium applications.
Blacks and strawberries are well into bloom now and could use some of that great
pollination weather we had for blues. Especially in black raspberries where wet weather
can dramatically affect pollination, there’s cause for concern. Seems to me we’re getting
enough dry windows that the bees should be able to do their job effectively. Haven’t had
any extended wet periods this past week.
Misc: There’s a lot of wild pollinators around this year as well as high SWD numbers and
other insects. Seems that our mild winter (in spite of the cold February) didn’t kill off
many insects. With this cool, mild, moist pattern, both fungal and (some) insect problems
will be favored. In blues, shock virus symptoms are also lingering longer than usual.

WILL A METTE VALLEY, OREGON 5-19-19

Strawberries: Willamette Valley strawberry fields have slugs moving into the damp fields
with the most ripe berries having noticeable feeding. Most fruit are at thimble size to
expanding green fruit stage. I saw a couple of new plantings that went in right before this
cooler, damp weather stretch. The plants are absolutely loving this great growing weather.
The fruit are not enjoying the weather as much after crunching into a relatively ripe
Albion strawberry.

Left: Hood, Right: 2nd year Albion. Willamette Valley, OR. 5-19-19. Photos by Julie Pond.
 REGIONAL FIELD REPORTS 3

Photo by Cinzia Ballantyne.

FR ASER VALLEY, BRITISH COLUMBIA 5-17-19

Go here for the BC Blueberry Commission's weekly IPM Newsletter.
Highlights from the newsletter: "Most fields are now in the early green berry stage, and so the
window for mummyberry management in these fields has closed.
Continue to apply fungicides for other fruit rots at regular intervals, as the recent wet
weather has created an ideal environment for disease development."

FR ASER VALLEY, BRITISH COLUMBIA 5-19-19. From Eric Gerbrandt, Research Director, BCBC/
RIDC/ BCSGA
Blueberries: We had a couple days of wet weather last week, and any growers that were
delaying application of fruit rot fungicides were wise to provide protection prior to these
disease-spreading conditions. Weather may be wet and humid on-again-off-again in the
next 7-10 days, so continued protection is advisable as we work through the last couple of
weeks of bloom. Speaking of which, ‘Duke’ is nearing the end of bloom in many fields and
some of the mid- and late-season varieties are past half-way in the more advanced parts of
the Fraser Valley. We have had a lot of really good pollination weather, and there is some
excellent fruit set in many fields in the region. The bees will deserve their bonuses this
year, payable in pollen, nectar or bitcoin.
Raspberries: Aside from a couple days of very hot weather, we’ve had pretty good
conditions for raspberry lateral extension as we enter into bloom. Some early varieties
may be needing fruit rot preventative sprays now (or soon), and yellow rust is showing
up and requires control. After all, we don’t need another straw added to the camel’s back
in fields severely affected by winter damage. Sub-lethal bud damage is showing up in
weak laterals that didn’t die outright but just couldn’t support full growth through the few
warmer days we’ve had. After the generally disastrous winter damage in the region, this
critical period of time is showing a real mixed bag (across varieties and fields) in terms of
plant compensation.
Strawberries: Enjoyed some of the season’s first ‘Albion’ fruit about five days ago though
commercial harvest may be a ways away still. Growers are getting Junes in the ground in
the last couple of weeks and more will be planted in the two weeks to follow with excellent
conditions for working the soil, preparing beds and getting plants established.
 BLUEBERRY BUD DEVELOPMENT 4

Willamette Valley, Oregon

Photos are from same fields on close to the same day from each year

PATRIOT BLUEJAY DUKE DR APER TOP SHELF LIBERTY AUROR A L AST C ALL

WEEK 20, 5-17-19

WEEK 20, 5-18-18

WEEK 20, 5-19-17

WEEK 20 5-20-16

PATRIOT BLUEJAY DUKE DR APER TOP SHELF LIBERTY AUROR A L AST C ALL
 INDUSTRY C ALENDAR 5
JUNE 12, 2019: OSU STR AWBERRY FIELD DAY
1:00 PM- 4:00 PM at North Willamette Research and
Extension Center, 15210 NE Miley Road, Aurora, Oregon.
For more information contact 503-678-1264 x110. Go
here for the agenda.

JUNE 24 - 26: INTERNATIONAL BLUEBERRY

ORGANISATION SUMMIT “Join us in beautifulRichmond,
bc, canada for the 2019 ibo summit. Through continuous
research and innovation, we are setting standards and
winning fans among consumers and industry alike. From VISIT TH E WE ATH E R C A FE ®
food safety to sustainable practices, ours is an industry Go here for Rufus La Lone's
that is building strength on strength." Go here for more uniquely long-range forecasts
information and registration. for the PNW.®

JULY 17: OSU BLUEBERRY FIELD DAY 1pm - 3pm.

North Willamette Research and Extension Center, 15210
NE Miley Road, Aurora, Oregon. For more information
contact 503-678-1264 x110

AUGUST 7: OSU C ANEBERRY FIELD DAY 1pm - 3pm.

North Willamette Research and Extension Center, 15210
NE Miley Road, Aurora, Oregon. For more information
contact 503-678-1264 x110
D EG R E E DAY I N FO R M ATI O N
SEPTEMBER 4: WASHINGTON RED R ASPBERRY Go here for Dr. Len Coop's
COMMISSION MEETING 1pm - 5pm. 204 Hawley St., Degree Day information.
Lynden, WA.
SEE THE FULL INDUSTRY C ALENDAR ON WWW.
NWBERRYFOUNDATION.ORG/C ALENDAR
 INDUSTRY NEWS 6
CLI M ATE/WATER
First storm hits California, more heavy
rain due following week (5/17, Fresh Fruit
Portal)
Drought declared in 24 more Washington
watersheds (5/21, Capital Press)

FA R M I N G
Farmers losing grip on American food
dollar (5/3, Growing Produce)

BR EED I N G/G EN ETIC S

Meet ‘Liz’ and ‘Rocco’ North Carolina’s
new strawberry choices (5/15, Vegetable
Growers News)

H I G H LI G HTS O RGA N IC
‘It is time to support your local farmer’ – U.S. organic sales break $50 billion mark
Whatcom County berry season shaping (5/20, The Packer)
up to be difficult (5/20, The Bellingham
Herald)
TECH N O LO GY
The global blueberry industry gathering in
British Columbia, Canada (5/16, Fresh Fruit Jet-ready pre-coolers tackle cherry, berry
Portal) needs (5/20, The Packer)
B.C. berry growers get a boost—
government research funding is renewed D O M ESTIC M A R K ETS
(5/15, Country Life)
More Georgia blueberries coming to
California Giant predicts “milestone” markets this year (5/20, Fresh Plaza)
volumes for fresh blueberries (5/21, Fresh
Fruit Portal) They’re forecasting a 45% increase
in their Northwest volume. FR ESH R A SPBER R I ES
Weather sets up gaps in domestic Expansion plans for year-round fresh
blueberry supplies (5/17, Fresh Plaza) raspberry grower (5/17, Fresh Plaza)

PESTICI D ES TR ACE A BI LIT Y

California growers to lose chlorpyriphos Why traceability in food production,
(5/9, Growing Produce) processing is a profit opportunity (5/21,
Fruit Grower News)
I NTER N ATI O N A L M A R K ETS
China retaliates with tariff hikes on frozen R ESE A RCH
fruits and vegetables (5/14, The Packer) Consider Gibberellin use for fruit set on
Trump tariffs threaten Florida blueberry blueberries (5/21, Fruit Grower News)
trade deal with China (5/20, Fresh Plaza) Calcium and strawberries, why so erratic?
Frosts in Poland reduced the harvest of (5/17, Fruit Grower News)
berries (5/17, Fruit News) Need to hit the
translate button.
SWD M A N AG E M ENT
Canada, Mexico lift retaliatory tariffs as
new North American trade pact moves New research looks at sustainable spotted
forward (5/21, Ag Pro) wing Drosophila controls (5/20, Growing
Produce)
 INSECT & DISEASE PEST ALERTS 7
MUMMYBERRY: Plants at risk should have a protective fungicide on the susceptible tissue at this
time to minimize infections.
Factors that increase risk of infections:
• If we have periods when plant tissue is continually wet for the 12 hours or more required for
infection.
• If our temperatures are near the optimal range for infections to take place (50-57°F / 10-14°C).
• Mummyberry primer from MSU
• Secondary infection symptoms are now showing up in regional fields.

ROSE STEM GIRDLER (AGRILUS CUPRESCENS) in Caneberries

The basic facts:
• This is a beetle that inserts its eggs into blackberry and raspberry primocanes in the spring.
• The larva feeds all season on the tissue right under the bark girdling the cane.
• In the fall, it pupates and overwinters inside the cane.
• It emerges as an adult in the spring (probably April & May) and continues the cycle by inserting
eggs into the new primocanes.
Management issues:
• There are two basic strategies: 1) Spray insecticides to kill the adults. The problem with this is
we’ve got bees in the field at the time. 2) Cut out the infected canes and remove from the field. The
problem with this is logistics & cost.
• This pest can also be masked if pruning crews just cut out the infected canes and the grower
isn’t aware of why his/her field is weakening while the pest population builds each year.

ALTERNARIA FRUIT ROT As blueberry

bloom starts to finish, it's time to
consider whether you need to prevent
Alternaria and Anthracnose problems
from showing up in the fruit. Alternaria
can infect the fruit beginning at the
end of bloom and throughout the fruit
development stage, up until harvest.
Infections remain latent until the
fruit ripens. Infected fruits exhibit a
shriveling or caving-in of the side of the
berry and become watery in storage.

Alternaria Fruit Rot. Photo by Caroline Teasdale.

ANTHRACNOSE RIPE ROT If you've had
problems with Anthracnose, prevention
of a reoccurrence begins at petal fall.
Symptoms: First, blighting of shoot tips;
then, a few flowers turn brown or black.
Leaf spots, when they occur, are large or
small and roughly circular. As infected
berries ripen, the flower end may soften
and pucker. Under warm and rainy
conditions, salmon-colored spore masses
form on infected berries. After harvest,
spore masses form rapidly on infected
fruit when in cellophane-covered baskets
or in plastic clamshell packs. Anthracnose Ripe Rot. Photo by Caroline Teasdale.
 INSECT & DISEASE PEST ALERTS 8

Stages of Yellow Rust (from left) spermagonia, aecia, uredinia: (Middle photo by Carolyn Teasdale, others by Tom
Peerbolt)

YELLOW RUST in raspberries

• Yellow rust is now changing spore stages from black overwintering spores (teliospores) to
yellow/orange colored ‘blisters’ (spermagonia) on the top surface of leaves.
• This is followed closely by a very visible, almost day-glow orange/yellow spore stage (aecia).
• The fourth spore stage (uredinia) appears later in the season as yellow ‘dust’ on the bottom
of leaves. This last stage is the one that multiplies quickly & can quickly defoliate canes if left
untreated.
• Evaluate disease incidence and stage to determine whether (& when) fungicide applications are
warranted.

SCORCH VIRUS in blueberries.

Vector (aphid) management (From an April,
2011 B.C. Pest Alert): “Blueberry scorch
virus is transmitted by aphids. An effective
aphid control program should be used by
all growers. Fields should be treated before
bloom with a registered aphicide to control
the over-wintering aphids before they
reproduce and disperse.”

SHOCK VIRUS in southern blueberries.

• Symptoms should be visible in many
fields starting this week. Shock virus, 4/24/18, photo by Jason Myer.
• This disease is vectored by pollinators.
• There is no treatment or cure.
• Infected bushes generally display
symptoms for one year and then return to
productivity.

POWDERY MILDEW in Southern

strawberries. Dry, warm, humid conditions
favor powdery mildew in strawberries.
We’re seeing the disease beginning to get
going in some area fields.
Powdery mildew on both leaves and fruit of the strawberry
cultivar Sweet Sunrise., 2015. Photo by Bernadine C. Strik.
 CROP M A N AGE M ENT, WEEK 21 9

BLUEBERRIES R ASPBERRIES
Blueberry Gall Midge, southern Burn back primocane as needed
blueberries. Tip damage from this midge
(northern areas) Scout for Clay Colored
is due to begin showing up in southern
Weevil feeding and treat as needed.
blueberries. Damage is usually deemed
to not be economic except in specific Scout for virus symptoms & send in
situations like new vigorous fields where samples for testing as needed.
gall midge can occasionally cause too Can apply a phosphite material for
much stunting of new growth. stronger root growth and root rot
Azalea Bark Scale. This scale's telltale prevention.
bright white egg sacs on the lower branches Scout for Yellow Rust and assess treatment
of infested plants are becoming more options
apparent in some southern blueberry
fields. Scout for Twospotted mites and Yellow
mites
Bring in bees around 10% bloom.
Apply fungicides for mold prevention
from 10% bloom until the end of bloom. BLACKBERRIES
Treat for Mummyberry as needed. (See Purple Blotch (blackberries): Check for
Alert above) You can scout for sprouting cane lesions that are easy to see as the
mummyberries on the ground, but weather warms but the foliage has not yet
they can be very difficult to find. Base emerged. It’s a good time to assess disease
your treatment decisions on plant stage, level.
environmental conditions and the past Scout for Rose Stem Girdler 'galls' on
mummyberry history of the field and floricanes
surrounding fields.
Scout for virus symptoms and send in
Scout for Pseudomonas (Bacterial Canker) samples for testing as needed
Water-soaked lesions usually appear in
February in some fields that then develop Can apply a phosphite material for
into reddish brown to black cankers. See stronger root growth and root rot
Northwest Berry Foundation Research prevention
Update on bacterial blight first posted on Scout for Cane and Leaf rust and assess
1/3/13. treatment options
Scout for leafroller larvae feeding.
Scout for Shock virus symptoms in STR AWBERRIES
southern area fields.
Can apply phosphite material to
Winter Moth/ Bruce Span Worm: strengthen root systems and manage root
Scouting for winter moth larvae should ro.
start as soon as the buds start swelling.
We’ve had reports in previous years of Watch for weak growing areas and check
problems beginning this early but it’s for weevil larvae, root rot, and cold
usually in a couple of weeks. More of an damage.
ongoing issue in the northern growing Scout for root weevils and black vine
regions but also an occasional, locally weevils.
severe problem in some Oregon and SW
Washington fields. Apply fungicides for mold prevention
from 10% bloom until the end of bloom.
Scale Insects: A dormant oil or Esteem
(pyriproxyfen) can be used while Scout for Strawberry Crown Moth in
blueberries are dormant. southern fields. Plants weakened by SCM
can be spotted. Infested platns will have a
Scout for weevil notching. weakened crown and will often break off
Scout for root rot issues. with a pull on the top growth.
 10
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