November 1999 Regional Fruit Newsletter

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

    11/12 
    Farm Income Tax Update
    NW Mich Hort Res Station 

    11/22- 12/20
    Pesticide Certification
    Workshop for Hispanic 
    Farm Workers
    NW Mich Hort Res Station

    12/7-9 
    Mich. State Hort Soc.
    Annual Meeting
    Grand Center, Grand Rapids

    12/14 
    Pesticide Recertification
    Review & Test
    Ellsworth Community Hall
    9-12 Review; 1 p.m. Test (MDA)

    12/16 
    Pesticide Recertification
    Review & Test
    Twin Lakes, Traverse City
    9-12 Review; 1 p.m. Test (MDA)

    2000 

    1/11-12 
    MSU Great Lakes
    Strawberry School
    Kellogg Biological Station 

    1/25-26 
    NW Mich Orchard Show
    Grand Traverse Resort

    2/7-9 
    MSU Tree Fruit IPM School
    Kellogg Biological Station
     

    FARM INCOME TAX SESSION
    By Jim Bardenhagen, Leelanau County Extension Director

    The Annual Farm Income Tax Update will be held on November 12th, at 1:00 p.m. at the NW MI Hort Research Station.

    Glenn Kole will be on hand to update everyone on the income tax changes for 1999, and to discuss tax strategies for 1999.

    Glenn will have loads of material to handout that will update last year’s figures and information.

    If your farm uses a CPA or other tax preparer, please invite them to join us so they are aware of all the items that can effect agricultural tax returns.
     
     

    PESTICIDE CERTIFICATION WORKSHOPS FOR HISPANIC FARM WORKERS
    By Jim Bardenhagen, Leelanau Co. Extension Director

    A Pesticide Certification Workshop in Spanish will begin on November 22nd, with the remainder of the sessions on December 1st, 15th, and 20th from 6:30 – 9:30 p.m. at the NW MI Horticultural Research Station. Marguerite Cotto, from the Northern MI College, will teach the course. 

    The workshop will cover the Pesticide Applicator Core Training Manual. These workshops will enhance the participants’ knowledge of pesticide application and will prepare participants to take the Pesticide Private or Commercial exam. Participants will receive a pesticide certification manual in Spanish, as well as, videotapes of material to study from.

    Hispanic workers who already have their certification will be able to receive recertification credits for attending the first three sessions! Participants will received six (6) recertification credits.

    The workshop will cost $15.00 per person to cover materials and refreshments. To register, please call the Leelanau MSU Extension office at (231) 256-9888.

    PESTICIDE CERTIFICATION REVIEW AND TEST
    By Gary Thornton, District Fruit IPM Agent

    This review and test is offered for those who were unable to certify/recertify by credit. The review will take place in the morning and the testing, which will be monitored by MDA, will be done after lunch.

    Ellsworth Townhall Dec. 14th
    9:00-12:00 Review - Lunch on your own
    1:00 p.m. Test

    Twin Lakes Camp Dec. 16th
    9:00-12:00 Review - Lunch $7.00
    1:00 p.m. Test

    Be sure to pre-register so MDA knows how many are taking the test. Ellsworth Town Hall, call Sharon, Antrim Co. MSUE, at (231)533-8818. Twin Lakes Camp, call Jackie, NWMHRS, at (231)946-1510.

    For those taking the test, a check made payable to "State of Michigan" for $10 for private applicators and $50 for commercial applicators should be brought to the exam site. In preparation for the exam, you can purchase the Core Training Manual, Extension Bulletin E-2195 for $5.00. Manuals can be purchased at your county Extension office. 
     
     

    SWEET CHERRY PILOT CROP INSURANCE
    Jim Bardenhagen
    Leelanau Co. Extension Director

    There is a good possibility that a Sweet Cherry Pilot Crop Insurance will be offered in Leelanau and Grand Traverse Counties for the year 2000. It still needs legislative authority from congress before it will be available.

    This Sweet Cherry Pilot Crop Insurance is a revenue based crop insurance program where you guarantee a level of revenue/acre. If weather or prices cause a sweet cherry farming operation to receive income below a specified level, then the insurance makes payments to reach the specified level insured for. This crop insurance has the potential to be a real help to the Michigan Sweet Cherry Industry. While we have some information on the sweet cherry pilot crop insurance provisions, the pricing information is not available yet.

    The current sign up period for this Sweet Cherry Pilot Crop Insurance is November 20, 1999. The USDA will likely extend this sign up period since the legislative authority is coming so late.

    As soon as the legislative authority is given and we receive some pricing information, we will schedule an educational session on the Sweet Cherry Pilot Crop Insurance program. Legislative authority is expected to come in one week or so since it’s tied to the Budget Appropriations Bill that congress wants to pass before adjournment

    REDUCED TELFARM/MICROTEL FEES CONTINUE THROUGH 2000
    By Jim Bardenhagen, Leelanau Co. Extension Director 
    and Glenn Kole, Kalkaska Co. Extension Director

    MSU Extension is continuing to offer new cooperators ½ off for the Telfarm/Microtel Farm Accounting Computer Software System through year 2000.

    New cooperators will only pay one half the cost for the complete Microtel Program, which includes the accounting, payroll and checkwriter programs (including set up & enrollment).

    A new cooperator will receive:

      • A personal on-farm visit to set up the programs.
      • Telfarm staff available by phone to answer questions.
      • A local check-in meeting in late fall to assist producers with tax consequence considerations and end-of-the-year planning.
      • Annual business analysis reports for your farm.
      • Microtel workshops to review updates and improvements to the program.
    It is becoming more important than ever to maintain accurate farm records for farm management and to provide financial information to lending institutions, especially when crop returns are marginal. Knowing where an operation is financially is important in the day-to-day decisions that farm operators have to make.

    For more details on the Telfarm/Microtel programs, contact the Leelanau MSU Extension office at (231)256-9888, your District Farm Management Agent, Glenn Kole at (231)258-3320 or the Telfarm Office at (517)355-4700.
     

    Plum Pox Confirmed in Pennsylvania

    Recently, the Plum Pox virus (sharka) has been confirmed in a peach orchard in Pennsylvania. Until now, this virus has been successfully kept out of North America by strict quarantine regulations. Although this virus is not a threat to commercial cherry producers, it is a major threat to those of you who have peaches, plums and apricots.

    This is the official announcement from Richard Dunkle, Deputy Administrator, APHIS: 

    "On October 13, 1999 scientists from PPQ, ARS, and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA), determined that there was now sufficient information to conclude that the virus recently detected on peaches in Pennsylvania was in fact plum pox virus (PPV). The identification was based on the use of a number of techniques, including several different ELISA tests and IC-PCR. The strain of the virus present in Pennsylvania has been identified as the D strain. This strain is present in Western Europe and is described as being less aggressive than some other strains (including a reduced ability to be transmitted by aphid vectors) and known to not be seed transmitted.

    PPV is a serious disease infecting stone fruit species including peaches, apricots, almonds, and plums. Cherries are not believed to be susceptible to most strains of PPV. Fruit from infected trees may be blemished (typically with ringspot symptoms) or deformed and frequently drops prematurely from the tree. The disease is spread over short distances via nonpersistent aphid transmission and over larger distances through the movement of infected budwood or nursery stock. Normal movement of people and equipment from infested orchards is not thought to play a role in the spread of the disease.

    The property at which the infestation was discovered is a 13.5 acre peach orchard located near York Springs (Adams County). First evidence of the disease was on fruit with typical ringspot symptoms. When the orchard was subsequently inspected, ringspot symptoms were also found on the leaves of some trees. APHIS has issued an emergency action notification to the orchard owner, preventing any movement of plant material from the infested property. Inspectors from the PDA and APHIS are currently conducting delimiting surveys at groves and residential properties in the area surrounding the infested orchard. Only one additional orchard with trees showing typical PPV symptoms has so far been identified. Tests to confirm the presence of PPV at this property are currently underway. In addition, APHIS inspectors are reviewing the records of the infested orchard to determine the sources of any nursery stock planted in the last several years and to determine if budwood from the orchard has been moved to any other location.

    It is likely that the identification of PPV will result in the need to conduct more extensive surveys in areas where PPV may be present, and to develop a program to certify susceptible nursery stock as being free from PPV. APHIS is currently exploring the possibility of hosting a workshop that would include participation of scientists and regulatory officials from Europe who have experience in conducting PPV control and eradication programs. This would provide an opportunity for Federal and State scientists and officials to apply existing expertise to the current situation in Pennsylvania. With leaves in the infested area already turning, it is unlikely that survey operations can continue for more than another week or so. It is anticipated that by the Spring of 2000 plans for more extensive detection surveys will be in place."
     
     

    SMALL HIVE BEETLE (AETHINA TUMIDA) NOW IN MICHIGAN!
    Zachary Huang
    Entomology, MSU

    The small hive beetle, Aethina tumida Murray, is a new pest attacking honey bees and hives in US. Its native range is sub-Saharan Africa; where it is considered minor in its effects, attacking weakened colonies and combs in storage and treatment is seldom necessary. In the following I will discuss briefly its morphology, distribution, biology and control.

    1. Classification and morphology: This critter is a member of the beetle family Nitidulidae, which are mostly scavengers (such as sap beetles, strawberry beetles). Adult beetles are about 5-7 mm long, dark brown to nearly black, with clubbed antennae. Move fast and play dead when touched. Larvae are white grubs that can be easily confused with waxmoth larvae, but they move differently (waxmoth larvae tend to undulate while beetle larvae do not). Pictures of both are available at: http://www.cyberbee.net/new-pest.shtml.

    2. Distribution: SHB is first reported in May 1998 in Florida. It had been in South Carolina for at least a few years before its official discovery. It probably came with bees from a ship from South Africa. Right now it is established in Florida, South and North Carolina, Georgia and Ohio. It has been reported in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan but probably not established yet in these States. In Michigan, the beetles seem to be mostly confined to a honeyhouse in SW Michigan. No larvae or adults were found in the 10 apiaries when I checked with a beekeeper during September. Updated distribution map is available at http://ceris.purdue.edu/napis/pests/shb/imap/shball.html.

    3. Biology. Adult beetles find honey bee colonies (probably by smell), invade, and lay eggs inside. Both larvae and adults feed on brood, pollen, wax, honey, and damage brood and honeycomb. Larvae would leave slime and bad odor behind so bees would simply abandon the comb or the entire colony. Mature larvae are attracted to light and enter soil to pupate. The duration from egg to adult is about 38-81 days in Africa and probably similar in Florida. Adults can fly up to 15 miles to find a colony. They can live for about 6 months. It has been shown that they can complete development (egg to adult) on rotten fruits such as cantaloupe and strawberry. Larvae must enter the soil to pupate. Adults emerge and fly to a colony of bees where it takes up residence.

    4. Control. The most critical thing is early detection. Check your colonies carefully when you are working with them; pay special attention to top inner cover and bottom board for beetles. Collect them and send them to me (517)353-8136 or Mike Hansen (616)428-2575 for identification. Once positively identified, you can purchase CheckMite+ (also called Bayer Bee Strips, active ingredient is coumophos) from Mann Lake Ltd, (1-800-233-6663). Michigan has obtained a section 18 (emergency registration) for the use of this pesticide, thanks for the effort by MDA. To use the CheckMite+ strips, prepare a piece of corrugated cardboard (4x4") and remove the cover of one side to expose the corrugation. Cut a strip in two and staple them to the exposed side of the cardboard and place it near the center of the broom board with the strips down. SHB are attracted to the cardboard as a hiding place and are then killed by contact with the coumophos strip. Treat for 3 - 45 days. It is not recommended to treat more than 4 times per year to prevent resistance from building up. This method probably works only when beetles just recently invaded the colony and have not started laying yet. Larvae would remain in the frames, and not have a chance to reach the cardboard trap, and would not be killed. 

    Soil treatment would complement the above method since larvae will be killed when trying to enter soil to pupate. GardStar (contains 40% permethrin) can be used for SHB and is available from Blossomland Supply (616)473-3917 or other stores selling cattle pesticides. Use 5 ml of GardStar per liter (0.05% active ingredient) and spray the area underneath the hive and at least 1 ft in the periphery of each direction. If you bring bees from the states where the beetles have established, you should treat the soil before placing the colonies. It is not clear how long the pesticide would stay active in the soil before re-applying is needed. 

    Right now most damages seem to be in the honeyhouses. We can no longer let honey supers stay for a month before extracting if we have beetles. Extract promptly (within one week), keep the honey house clean, and fumigate the extracted supers before storage or putting them back to the colonies.

    5. Outlook for Michigan: It is difficult to say how soon (or ever) if the beetles will be established in the state. Once established it will require constant treatment for its control and increase the cost of honey production and pollination. It is clear that the beetle will be able to winter here, mostly inside beehives, based on the fact that it did so in Minnesota. They will not survive the winter in unheated honey houses or outside a beehive. At this stage we can eradicate it easily (before it's widespread) if beekeepers bringing bees from other states take special precautions and always treat the soil before placing hives. Due to colder weather, it should be slower to be spread out here than in Florida. In addition, we do not have as many decaying fruits and vegetables as in Florida to provide alternative breeding grounds for them.

    The bottom line is: we have one more pest to deal with and they might be here to stay, and we need everybody to pay special attention to this new pest and hope they do not get established right away.
     
     

    Northwest Michigan Groundwater Stewardship Program Cost Share Practices Available for 2000

    for Antrim, Leelanau, Emmet, Benzie, Charlevoix, Kalkaska and Grand Traverse Counties

    Practices Available:

    Well Closure- up to $500 Offset Hydrants - up to $630 
    Dripless Spray Nozzle Tips - up to $75
    Pesticide Application Controller or Groundmonitor - up to $1500 Anti-backflow Device - up to $250
    IPM Scouting: Fruit or Vegetable crops - up to $15/acre 
    Pesticide Storage Impervious Surface- up to $500
    Seasonal Pesticide Storage Shed - up to $500 Pesticide Container Pressure Rinser -up to $6.25
    Spill Kits - up to $56 Cover Crops - up to $5/acre 
    Nurse Tank - up to $1000
    Permanent Mix/Load Pad - up to $1500 
    Management Intensive Grazing- up to $15/acre 
    Pre-Sidedress Nitrate Testing - up to $1.50/acre 
    Leaf Tissue Analysis - Free assistance 
    Emergency Planning Tube- FREE

    Northwest Michigan Groundwater Stewardship Program Cost-share Application Form

    Grower Name: _________________________________ 
    Name of Farm/Business ____________________________

    Address: ____________________________________ 
    City _________________________ State_____ Zip __________

    Phone: Daytime _____________________________ 
    Evening _______________________ Best time to call ___________

    County/counties: _______________________________________

    Date of Farm*A*Syst (month, year and technician): __________________________Or, do you need to have one done?________

    Type of Farm (circle one): Row Crop Livestock Fruit Other (specify) ________________________ 

    Number of acres farmed ___________ 
    If livestock how many animals? ____________

    (the above questions will not affect your application, they help us know the type of operations we're servicing)

    What are the depths of your fill site(s) well(s) and/or house well(s)? _________________________________

    What type of soil(s) do you have at the farmstead? ____________________ 
    In the fields/orchards? _______________

    Practice(s) Desired (check those that apply):

    _____Well Closures

    _____Offset Hydrant (moving fill pipe away from well head): 

    Describe your current fill site(s)_______________________________________________________

    _____Pesticide Storage Impervious Surface (retro fit)

    _____Seasonal Pesticide Storage: Describe your current storage conditions ______________________________

    _____IPM Scouting (only if you've never been professionally scouted in the past)

    _____Pesticide Application Controller OR ______Groundmonitor 

    _____Spill Kits

    _____Portable (intended to attach to your tractor or sprayer) 

    _____Regular (to be located at or very near your fill site and pesticide storage area)

    _____Permanent Mix/Load Pad

    _____Pesticide Nurse Tank

    _____Cover Crops (only if you've never adopted this practice before)

    _____Anti-backflow Device for fertigation and chemigation systems

    _____Management Grazing How many acres?___________
    Are you willing to move the water system daily?_________

    _____Pre-Sidedress Nitrate Testing How many acres?______________

    _____Michigan Emergency Planning Tube 

    _____Pesticide Container Rinser

    _____Sprayer Nozzle Dripless Tips with Calibration 
    ______Weed Sprayer ______Airblast Sprayer ______both

    In order to qualify for cost share funding, you must have completed a Farm*A*Syst. If you have not yet completed one, give Ginger Bardenhagen a call at 883-9962 and set up an appointment. The assessment is FREE, CONFIDENTIAL and all materials stay on the farm. The only information we take with us is your name, address, phone # and the date you completed a Farm*A*Syst. You can earn up to 6 Recertification credits by doing a Farm*A*Syst and an additional credit by completing the Emergency Plan and installing the Emergency Tube. If it has been more than three years since you've done a Farm*A*Syst, you are eligible to update your last one and receive 6 more recertification credits.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Signature / Date

    Would you or a family member be interested in joining the Groundwater Stewardship Team? We meet 4 times a year and are always looking for more innovative grower input and new ideas for cost share and direction for the program. 

    ________ Yes, add me to your mailing list and let me know when the meetings are.

    ******************************************************************************************

    Send or FAX (231)941-0837 completed application as soon as possible to:
    Grand Traverse Conservation District 1222 Veterans Drive, Traverse City, MI 49684
    For more information call Ginger Bardenhagen on the groundwater mobile 883-9962 
    or (231) 941-4191 at the office. 

    DEADLINES:
    *Applications are competitive this year so get yours in early!*

    Applications are due by January 1, 2000 to insure funding. If all funds are not allocated after January 1, there will be a second round of applications accepted through March 10, 2000. After March 10, applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis as funds become available, but will remain competitive. 

    Send your application to: 

    Grand Traverse Conservation District Office, 1222 Veterans Drive, Traverse City, MI 49684. 

    Limited numbers of each practice will be cost-shared. Applications are competitive per practice and are decided on a case by case basis. Practices may not be installed until you are notified of approval by the Cost Share Committee.

    All practices must be initiated within 90 days of receipt of approval. All practices must be completed by September 1, 2000, or cost-share funds will be forfeited. The District will mail the cost-share check to the grower within 10 days of receipt of proof that the practice is completed as agreed upon.

    The Groundwater Stewardship Program is funded through a grant from the Michigan Department of Agriculture. Funds come from a surcharge on pesticides and nitrate fertilizers. The grant is intended to help producers reduce the potential risk of groundwater contamination through farmstead assessments (Farm*A*Syst), the closing of abandoned wells and financially assisting in good groundwater stewardship equipment and practices.

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Please send any comments or suggestions regarding this site to: 
Bill Klein, kleinw@pilot.msu.edu

Last Revised: 11-4-99