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Be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom to see this week’s Question of the Week, and check back on Thursday for the answer.
Coastal Region
Zack Snipes
- It is hot and humid in the Lowcountry and I think summer is here. We are in a very busy phase in the fields as we are finishing up harvesting and preparing for the fall/winter seasons.
- Tomatoes are just about done as are all of our cucurbits.
- Our hot peppers are just getting into gear as are okra and eggplant.
- Growers are busy taking up plastic and laying white plastic for the fall.
- Grasses are taking off and can be hard to manage between the afternoon rain events and wet field conditions.
Midlands
Phillip Carnley
- Cucumbers are having a rough go in Calhoun County with unprecedented amounts of rainfall coupled with pythium and some occurrences of gummy stem. CDM is also present. One grower reported 5 inches of rain in 30 minutes. With gummy stem blight, stay away from tebuconazole as the pathogen has been found to be resistant.
- Peas and butterbeans are being harvested with excellent yields. Deer seem to be the worst issue thus far in butterbeans, and in peas, we are seeing a lot more curculio activity. With the curculio, spray timing and consistency/interval is critical. If your infestation is severe, it is recommended that you spray on a 3 to 5 day rotation with a pyrethroid.
- Watermelons are being harvested in the midlands with yields and size being pretty good. Weed pressure has been remarkably bad this year.
- Squash are starting to taper off and with many growers stopping production until the fall. Anthracnose has been a major issue as is mosaic virus.
- Tomatoes have yielded well this year for most growers in my area. Size was a little smaller in some cases due the heavy crop set. The biggest issues I have seen thus far have been spider mites and Southern stem blight (Althea rolfsii).
Rob Last
- Watermelon crops are beginning to wind down. Yields and quality have been excellent despite significant levels of fusarium and gummy stem blight being apparent. Gummy stem blight control has been most effective where alternatives to tebuconazole have been used.
- Pickling cucumbers are coming to harvest with good yields and quality. Downy mildew lesions are beginning to appear. Remember to rotate fungicides for downy mildew management and limit Orondis applications to one-third of the total number of applications. Pythium is present in most fields, given the weather conditions.
- Tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant are coming to market.
- Blackberries are yielding well.
- Keep scouting for pests and diseases regularly, given our hot and humid conditions.
Pee Dee
Bruce McLean
- Hot, humid, and spotty rain… tomorrow repeat. That’s the weather pattern we are seeing around the Pee Dee. Seems like everyone is getting good rainfall but some localized areas are just getting inundated with rain. The Aynor area of Horry County can attest to that.
- Watermelons and cantaloupe are showing some Pythium on young melons that were down in the row middles, where water had stood during these downpours. Disease and insect pressure is moderate to high in most locations due to weather conditions.
- Blackberries are pretty much wrapped up for the season, except for a couple of growers that have primocane blackberries. They will have another short season going into the fall.
- Blueberries are starting to wind down. Powderblue and Onslow varieties are still bearing well. Tifblue is wrapping up. All earlier varieties are pretty well finished.
- Peaches are getting past peak harvest, but still have some good quality fruit coming out of the orchards.
- Muscadines are sizing well. And the crop looks pretty good for the most part. It looks like some vineyards that are on slightly heavier/darker soil may not have quite the crop as the vineyards on lighter, sandier soil. This is likely due to the last freeze event we had this year. Lighter, sandier soils do radiate heat better than darker, heavier soils during spring freeze events. With that freeze event, the low temperature was so close to freezing that even one to two degree bump from the soil was likely the difference.
- Cucurbit crops are harvesting well and with good volumes. Pickling cukes have pretty much finished up. Fall cukes and squash will soon be going in the ground. Pumpkins are growing well. Be sure to be managing for downy mildew and powdery mildew right now. Weather patterns are very conducive for both.
- Tomatoes and peppers are harvesting pretty well with good quality. Although, tomato harvest has slowed down a bit since our recent round of high temps.
- Okra and sweetpotatoes are finally getting some good growth. This shows the absolute necessity of heat and moisture for tropical crops.
- Peas and beans are harvesting well. Cowpea Curculio pressure is extremely high on peas. They can be found on other bean crops as well. Intensive management with insecticides is necessary now. Bean anthracnose is starting to take off on butterbeans/limas. Even with strong fungicide spray programs, anthracnose is trying to push through. The best fungicides for this are Group 7 and 11 fungicides.
- Weeds are starting to jump too… due to the weather. Definitely keep those weeds beat down with herbicides and cultivation, if possible.
Question of the Week
Why is this row of tomato plants dead, but the next row is perfectly healthy?
Answer in the comments below and check back on Thursday to see the answer.
The South Carolina Grower 