LATEST POSTS
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Weekly Field Update – 6/16/25
Regular rain continued throughout the state last week. Summer officially begins later this week. We’re well into harvest now for most warm-season crops, and disease is a major concern. See details below. Keep an eye on the Upcoming Events tab periodically so you don’t miss any of our winter/spring meetings. Also, check out the latest…
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June Grower Spotlight – J. Mac Produce
Where is Phillip visiting this week? In this month’s grower spotlight, Phillip is visiting J. Mac Produce in Gable, SC. Owner and operator Johnny McNair grows peas, butter beans, sweet corn and okra. He is most famous for his butter bean production and grows the varieties ‘Jackson Wonder’, ‘Thorogreen’, and sometimes ‘Bridgeton’. His operation is…
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Sudden Wilt or Pythium Root Rot On Mature Cantaloupe
From Clemson Plant Pathologist Tony Keinath After a very dry April, the heavy rains in May triggered a case of Pythium root rot in one cantaloupe field in South Carolina in the past 2 weeks. Another name for Pythium root rot on mature cucurbits is “sudden wilt” to distinguish it from the more common damping-off…
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Weekly Field Update – 6/9/25
We saw some more rain and storms across the state last week. Watermelons and tomatoes are really coming in and a few strawberry growers are still hanging on. Disease has made a significant increase recently and piercing/sucking insects are on the rise. See details below. Keep an eye on the Upcoming Events tab periodically so…
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Question of the Week – Stem Gall
What is going on with this blackberry shoot? This is the gall of a blackberry gall midge. A client recently brought in a blackberry stem, which was swollen and distorted, appearing to be a gall on the stem. Notice how the gall has an overlarge blackberry-type appearance. The shoot tip and blossoms are beginning to…
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Spots on Harvested Potato Tubers Might Be Enlarged Lenticels
From Clemson Plant Pathologist Tony Keinath and Clemson Postharvest Physiologist Karin Albornoz In the past 2 weeks, two agents reported enlarged lenticels on potato tubers harvested from wet soil. This disorder (or abiotic plant problem problem) is most noticeable on red-skinned potatoes when the surface is wet. Enlarged lenticels are not a disease problem, but…
The South Carolina Grower 