New resources from Purdue Extension help keep Hoosier fruit, vegetable growers informed

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Three updated resources from Purdue Extension will help Indiana fruit and vegetable growers stay on top of the latest crop management strategies and research.

The 2018 Midwest Vegetable Production Guide for Commercial Growers is now available for from Purdue Extension’s The Education Store. The guide is an annual summary of state-specific information on vegetable varieties, fertility, seeding rates, fertilizer rates, weed control, insect control and disease management. The 2018 edition has been updated with new recommendations and resources from land-grant institutions in eight states. New and revised sections include updates on insecticides, herbicides and fungicides; plant-parasitic nematode management; an updated pesticide application record form; modified variety recommendations, including sweet potatoes; and disease, weed and insect management.

To supplement the guide, producers can subscribe to the Vegetable Crops Hotline at https://vegcropshotline.org. The hotline is updated periodically throughout the year with the latest crop management information.

Printed copies of the guide are $15. A free download is also available. To order by phone, call 765-494-6794. For more information, visit Purdue Extension’s The Education Store at https://edustore.purdue.edu.

The Midwest Vegetable Trial Report, a companion to the Midwest Vegetable Production Guide, is also available for free download. The report provides yield and quality data based on field test results under different cropping conditions for multiple varieties of beans, cantaloupe, cucumber, ornamental corn, pepper, potato, pumpkin, squash, sweet corn, tomato and watermelon. The annual report is compiled in cooperation with the Extension services of the University of Illinois, Kansas State University, the University of Kentucky, Michigan State University and Ohio State University.

For more information or to access the report, visit the Purdue Fruit and Vegetable Connection at https://ag.purdue.edu/hla/fruitveg/Pages/mvtr2017.aspx.

Growers can also now access the 2018 edition of the Midwest Fruit Pest Management Field Guide.

The guide is updated each year to provide the most complete information and recommendations for controlling weeds, diseases and pests of all major fruit crops grown in the Midwest. For the past three years, the guide has combined information on tree fruit, small fruit and grape crops to assist producers in preventing crop loss.

Bruce Bordelon, Purdue professor of horticulture and coordinating editor of the guide, worked with Purdue entomology professor Rick Foster and plant pathology professor Janna Beckerman, as well as contributors from universities in 13 states to compile this year’s edition. He said having updated information regarding pesticide labels is critical for fruit growers to use pesticides effectively and legally in their operations, which is why the guide will have the most updated information available.

Bordelon added that an online PDF version of the guide will be updated should other issues arise during the growing season. Also new in this edition is information on how producers can get pesticide applicator training and certification.

To supplement the guide, producers can subscribe to the Facts for Fancy Fruit newsletter at https://fff.hort.purdue.edu/. The newsletter is published regularly throughout the growing season and provides the latest crop management information.

Printed copies of the Midwest Fruit Pest Management Field Guide are $15 and boxes of 10 are available for $135.

Single copies are sold at https://edustore.purdue.edu/item.asp?Item_Number=ID-465 and boxes at https://edustore.purdue.edu/item.asp?Item_Number=ID-465-10BX, or by calling The Education Store at 765-494-6794. The PDF version of the guide can be downloaded for free at https://edustore.purdue.edu/item.asp?Item_Number=ID-465-W.     

Writers: Cheri Frederick, 765-494-2406, cfrederick@purdue.edu

Emma Hopkins, 765-494-8415, emmaellenhopkins@yahoo.com 

Sources: Dan Egel, 812-886-0198, egel@purdue.edu

Bruce Bordelon, 765-494-8212, bordelon@purdue.edu

Liz Maynard, 219-548-3674, emaynard@purdue.edu

Agricultural Communications: (765) 494-8415;
Darrin Pack, Manager/Media Relations and Public Information, dpack@purdue.edu  
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