Beet armyworm found in south Jersey

Beet armyworm adults were caught in a pheromone trap in Salem County, June 4.  This species is a generalist feeder attacking several vegetable crops tending towards broadleaf crops such tomatoes and peppers.

Beet armyworm like fall armyworm and cabbage looper are migratory insects that normally appear mid to late summer.  Abnormally warm spring temperatures have allowed the migratory insects to move northward earlier than usual.   Refer to the Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations for 2012 for recommended materials for control on specific crops.

Joseph Ingerson-Mahar

Farm Food Safety: Compliance Documentation – Packinghouse Activities

Part 7 of Preparing Your Farm Food Safety Plan

-Meredith Melendez and Wes Kline

The USDA Good Agricultural Practices Third Party Audit requires that certain activities on the farm be documented. These logs should accurately reflect what you have done on the farm to ensure food safety. If you do not write your activities down, the auditor will assume that the activity never happened. This documentation may be new for many growers, so making it as easy as possible for you to comply will ensure that the documenting happens in a manner that is acceptable to an auditor.

Remember you may not need a third party audit; it depends on who is purchasing your produce. However, everyone should have a food safety plan.

What packinghouse logs will you need to have as a part of your farm food safety plan?

New reports of Late blight in PA & Eastern Shore of Virginia - Vegetable Alert!

Dr. Beth Gugino, Vegetable Pathologist at Penn State reports Late blight has been confirmed in a commercial tomato field in Blair County and on both tomatoes and potatoes in a commerical field in Franklin County. Additional unconfirmed reports have come from potato fields in central PA.

Dr. Steve Rideout, vegetable pathologist at VA Tech reports Late blight has been found on potato on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

All commercial tomato and potato growers should scout on a daily basis and be on a preventative program and consider including a Late blight specific fungicide in their weekly fungicide program. Please see 2012 Commercial Vegetable Recommendations for more details.

Organic tomato and potato growers, as well as homeowners, should also be scouting on a daily basis and consider a preventative copper-based fungicide program.
Remember, all foliage must be remain protected!
Weather the past fews days has been highly favorable for Late blight development throughout much of NJ and the immediate region.
- Andy Wyenandt

@#*%$! Flaming Weeds

The war on weeds is never ending. While on a farm visit this week, a grower commented that he was getting variable results with his vapor phase propane weed flamer. Possible reasons why are discussed: Sustaining Farming on the Urban Fringe - News.
-Jack Rabin

Weed control implement with vapor phase propane burners