Month: April 2021

Farming for Healthy Soils Program

Emily Zobel on

ANNAPOLIS, MD (April 26, 2021) – The Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) is now accepting applications for farmers interested in enrolling their fields in the Farming for Healthy Soils program. Participating farmers will receive free technical assistance and financial incentives to help install the following soil health practices:

  • Conservation tillage;
  • Multi-species cover crops;
  • Extended season cover crops;
  • Prescribed grazing; and
  • Precision nutrient management.

Cost-share funding of $10 to $55 per acre is available to help farmers adopt these key practices. Free technical assistance will be provided by local soil conservation districts or University of Maryland Extension, and will include field evaluations to measure changes in soil health. Financial assistance will also be offered for soils data sampling.

Maryland’s Farming for Healthy Soils program is funded by a three-year, $1 million grant awarded by the Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund. In its second year, the grant promotes the use of on-farm soil health practices that increase carbon sequestration, improve soil productivity, and protect water quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

The Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund is a partnership between the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Innovative Nutrient and Sediment Reduction Grants Program and the Small Watershed Grants Program. Additional support is provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Altria Group Restoring America’s Resources partnership.

Farmers who want to enroll study fields in this program should contact MDA’s Healthy Soils Program Coordinator Kevin Antoszewski at kevin.antoszewski@maryland.gov. For more information about Maryland’s Farming for Healthy Soils program, please visit MDA’s website.

Asparagus Beetle IPM

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There are two beetle pests that feed on asparagus, the common or striped asparagus beetle (Crioceris asparagi) and the spotted asparagus beetle (Crioceris duodecimpunctata). Feeding on the spears results in scarring, browning, and hooked tips render the crop unmarketable. While both beetles can damage the emerging spears, the common asparagus beetle larvae and adults will also feed on the ferns, which can reduce the plant’s ability to build resources for a strong crop the following spring.

 

Fig 1. Adult Asparagus Beetle Photo by Clemson University – USDA Cooperative Extension Slide Series, Bugwood.org
Fig 2. Adult spotted asparagus beetle.
Photo by Whitney Cranshaw, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org

Adults: Adult beetles are about ⅓ inch in length. The adult common asparagus beetle is blue-blackish with six cream-colored square-shaped spots on its back (Fig 1). Adult spotted asparagus beetles are reddish-orange with twelve black spots on their back (Fig 2). Both the beetles overwinter as adults.

Fig 3. Asparagus Beetle Eggs. Photo by Ward Upham, Kansas State University, Bugwood.org

Eggs: Eggs take about a week to hatch. They are small, cylindrical, and dark-colored. The asparagus beetle lays eggs on the spear at a 90-degree angle in rows of 3 to 8 eggs (Fig 3.), while the spotted asparagus beetle oviposits eggs singularly on the fern.

 

Common Asparagus Beetle Larvae.
Fig 4. Common Asparagus Beetle Larvae. Photo by Clemson University – USDA Cooperative Extension Slide Series , Bugwood.org

Larvae: The larvae of both species are light gray with visible heads and legs. The common asparagus beetle larvae have blackheads (Fig 4.), while the spotted asparagus beetle larvae have an orange head. Larval feeding lasts for 10-14 days. Asparagus beetle larvae feed on the spear, while spotted asparagus beetles will burrow into the berry. Mature larvae crawl to the ground and burrow within the soil to pupate.

Scouting: Scouting should start at the end of April – early May or just after asparagus plants emerge and continue for the rest of the growing season. Check 10 plants in 5-10 different locations in a field, best on a warm, sunny afternoon when beetles will be most active. Treatment may be justified if 10% of spears are infested with beetles or 1-2% have eggs. 

Cultural Controls & Prevention:

  • During harvest, harvest all spears every day to reduce the number of stems where eggs will survive for long enough to hatch.
  • Allow plants in one area to develop ferns so as to act as a trap crop. These plants can then be sprayed selectively.
  • Maintain a clean environment in asparagus fields in the fall to force adults to overwinter in field edges where natural predators reside. 
  • Destruction of crop residues will eliminate overwintering sites for asparagus beetles.  
  • The most important natural enemy of the common asparagus beetle is a tiny parasitic wasp (Tetrastichus asparagi) that attacks the egg stage. These parasitoids lay their own eggs inside the beetle eggs. The immature wasps grow inside the beetle larvae, killing them when they pupate. Studies have found >50% of eggs were killed by parasitoid feeding, and half of the surviving larvae were parasitized. Providing a nearby nectar source such as umbelliferous flowers may enhance wasp populations.

Chemical Control 

  • Organic options on spears include Surround WP as a repellent, EC5.0, or products containing capsaicin (check for certification status).
  • If possible, spot spray along edges of planting where overwintering adults colonize the field and/or band insecticide over the row to help spare natural enemies. Use selective insecticides on ferns.
  • Daily harvest of asparagus makes chemical treatment difficult. 1 dh products are available and can be used immediately after picking to allow harvest the following day (see the Mid-Atlantic Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations for current recommendations)

 

E. Zobel

Still Time to Find and Remove Spotted Lanternfly Egg Masses

Emily Zobel on

Doris Behnke, Senior Agriculture Agent Associate | dbehnke@umd.edu
University of Maryland Extension, Cecil County

The spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) is a invasive planthopper which is native to China, India, and Vietnam. It was detected in Pennsylvania in 2014, and has since been found to have confirmed populations in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey,  and Virginia.  It has a broad host range including fruit, ornamental and woody plants.

Nymphs will begin hatching out in May so now is the time to remove the egg masses that the adult spotted lantern fly (SLF) laid last year. To do this you will need some hand sanitizer, a plastic bag, and a firm card for scraping.

  1. Squirt the hand sanitizer into the plastic bag.
  2. Arrange the opened bag just below the SLF egg mass.
  3. Apply a firm amount of pressure on the edge of the card and scrape the card down and across the egg mass.
  4. Catch the eggs in the bag, then squish the hand sanitizer and eggs around in the bag.
  5. Seal the bag and then dispose. Help stop the spread of SLF

For more information please visited the MDA website: https://mda.maryland.gov/plants-pests/Pages/spotted-lantern-fly.aspx 

USDA Invests More Than 169.9 Million in Specialty Crops Grants

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing $169.9 million for the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) to fund innovative projects designed to support the expanding specialty crop food sector and explore new market opportunities for U.S. food and agricultural products. The purpose of the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) is to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops. Specialty crops are defined as “fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture, and nursery crops (including floriculture).”
The total includes:
  • $72.9 million available as part of the annual Farm Bill funding for the program; and
  • An additional $97 million available as emergency funding for applications under this solicitation. Congress provided this funding in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, due to COVID-19 impacts to the food system.

Grant project funding awarded as part of pandemic assistance can also go to organizations to assist farmworkers (e.g., for PPE and vaccination costs), projects to fund farmers, food businesses, and other relevant entities to respond to risks and supply chain disruption.

For more information about grant eligibility, visit the SCBGP website.

Maryland Department of Ag SCBGP website

The SCBGP funds are allocated to U.S. states and territories based on a formula that considers both specialty crop acreage and production value. Interested applicants should apply directly through their state departments of agriculture.  Applications must be submitted electronically by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on June 11, 2021. 

Source: https://www.ams.usda.gov/press-release/usda-invests-more-330-million-specialty-crops-grants-incentives-purchase-fruits-and

Emily Zobel, 

Allium (Onion) Leafminer

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Allium leafminer (ALM), Phytomyza gymnostoma (Diptera: Agromyzidae), is an invasive leaf-mining fly from Poland that was first detected in Pennsylvania in 2015. They overwinter as pupae in plant tissue or surrounding soil. Adults emerge mid-March throughout April (250°Degree Days with a minimum temperature threshold of 3.5°C.). The adults are small (~ 3 mm) long grey or black flies with a distinctive yellow or orange area on the top and front of head and legs have distinctive yellow “knees” (Fig.1, Fig 2). The larvae are white maggots, headless, and around ~ 8 mm long at their final instar.  The pupa are dark brown, ~3.5 mm long.

Adult allium leafminer
Figure 1. Adult allium leafminers. Photo by Lawrence Barringer, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Bugwood.org
Figure 1. Allium leafminer on scallion leaf.
Figure 2. Allium leafminer on scallion leaf. Photo: Brandon Lingbeek, Penn State

 Adults will mate lay eggs inside the leaves of Allium species, creating a row of several small round white dots (made by the female’s ovipositor) on the top half of the leaf blades (Fig.3). Larvae mine leaves and move towards and into bulbs and leaf sheathes. Damage from Allium leafminer can also cause the plant to exhibit curly, wavy or distorted leaves. Both the leaf punctures and mines serve as entry routes for bacterial and fungal pathogens. The larvae may move into the soil to pupate. These pupae undergo a diapause period which lasts throughout the summer, and will emerge as adults in the autumn (September / October). 

Allium leafminer
Figure 3. Oviposition and feeding damage by Allium leafminer. Photo by Lawrence Barringer, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Bugwood.org

 While spring crops are usually not as hard hit as fall crops, this pest has been steadily increasing its geographical range each year and its damage potential. Fields that had pressure last year should be scouted for feeding damage this year.  Yellow sticky cards or yellow plastic bowls containing soapy water can be used for monitoring this pest. You can reduce infestation rates by rotating fields, growing leeks as far as possible from chives, and delaying the planting of spring allium crops. Growing allium crops on reflective mulch has reduced the severity of allium leafminer damage in research trials in New York. Placing row covers over allium crops during the period flies and keeping plants covered during the 3-4 weeks of emergence will exclude the pest. Larvae and pupa tend to be found in the outermost layers of leaves from leek and scallion, so the hand removal of these layer will often create a blemish-free product.

Several systemic and contact insecticides are approved for this pest, but EPA registrations vary among Allium crops. When using chemical control, check labels to ensure the crop is listed and for rates and days-to-harvest intervals. Always read and follow the label. The label is the Law.  

 For chemical recommendations, see the 2020-2021 Mid-Atlantic Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendation Guide: https://extension.umd.edu/mdvegetables/2020-2021-mid-atlantic-commercial-vegetable-production/commodity-recommendations 

 Azadirachtin (Aza-Direct or other formulations) or spinosad (Entrust or other formulations) are options for organic chemical control.