Drosophila suzukii arrives to Minas Gerais State, a main STRAWBERRY producton region in Brazil - Drosophila suzukii desembarca en Minas Gerais, una de las principales regiones productoras de FRUTILLA (FRESA) de Brasil

Serrated ovipositor (courtesy Andreazza et al., 2016)

Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura) was first collected in Minas Gerais State, Brazil, in Mar 2016, in the municipality of Ervália, from an organic strawberry field. In Brazil, this pest was first recorded in the southernmost region, in Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina states. Drosophila suzukii’s arrival to Minas Gerais State, about 1,500 km north from its first record, should alarm the growers, the research community, and the authorites, because this region is the main strawberry production region in Brazil and is now susceptible to large increases in production losses caused by this invasive species. The lack of alternative efective management tools for D. suzukii, besides traditonal chemical sprays, makes this pest an important area of study. Future research should focus on finding strategies that match with diferent local growing systems and edaphoclimatc conditons.

Source: Felipe Andreazza, Khalid Haddi, Eugenio E. Oliveira and João Alfredo M. Ferreira. Florida Entomologist · December 2016

Biological control of thrips in protected STRAWBERRY production - Control biológico de trips en la producción de FRUTILLA (FRESA) bajo cubierta

Predatory mite Neosiulus cucumeris feeding on a thrip (http://www.biologicalservices.com.au)

The thrips Frankliniella occidentalis is a prioritary problematic in protected production of strawberry. A cross border program involved partners in the north of France and in Belgian Flanders and was conducted between 2012 and 2014. The aim was to develop integrated biological control. The study of the thrips population dynamics and of the damaging effect found that the pest population was able to develop early and strongly, particularly for repeat flowering varieties. Then, alternative control strategies were evaluated, strategies that are based on mass trapping, prophylactic measures and release of the predatory mites Neoseiulus cucumeris and Amblyseius swirskii. The results found that integrated biological control is an efficient and sustainable method, with possible increases in yields and a strongly decreased use of pesticides.
Source: Quennesson, S.; Dumortier, F.; Marez, T. de; Dahinger, V.; Petit, K.; Oste, S. 5th Conférence Internationale sur les Méthodes Alternatives de Protection des Plantes, 11-13 mars, 2015, Nouceau Sièle, Lille, France (http://www.cabdirect.org/abstracts/20153416985.html).

Guía para reconocimiento de plagas, organismos benéficos y enfermedades del cultivo de FRUTILLA (FRESA) - Guidelines of pests, beneficial organisms and diseases of the STRAWBERRY crop

El cultivo de frutilla es una de las principales actividades de pequeños productores de Jujuy. El mismo se caracteriza por alto costo de inversión, por ser altamente demandante de mano de obra, y por estar sujeto al ataque de plagas y enfermedades durante todo el ciclo productivo. En este contexto, el objetivo de esta guía es brindar a los pequeños productores una herramienta que les facilite la identificación, la prevención y el control de las plagas y enfermedades más frecuentes.

Con esta información se busca orientar al productor para que tome una decisión más acertada en cuanto a su accionar y para que vaya tomando conciencia de que es posible una producción sustentable, cuidando el ambiente, su salud, la de su familia y la de los consumidores.

Otro fin de esta guía es la materializar los temas abordados durante las capacitaciones y recorridas de campo en el marco del proyecto “Fortalecimiento ydesarrollo del sector frutillero en la provincia deJujuy mediante adopción de tecnologíaapropiada”, financiado por PRODERI y en el cual participan más de 70 pequeños productores de la provincia de Jujuy.

Como punto de partida, iniciamos esta guía remarcando que una condición fundamental en el cultivo de frutilla es utilizar plantas sanas y de tamaño adecuado.

DESCARGAR GRATIS de: http://inta.gob.ar/documentos/guia-practica-de-campo-para-el-reconocimiento-de-plagas-frecuentes-organismos-beneficos-y-enfermedades-habituales-del-cultivo-de-frutilla-en-el-noroeste-argentino/ 

FRESA. Incentivo para estudiar las plagas y enfermedades en suelos sin fumigar en California

More than $1 million in state and federal research grants are approved for the California Strawberry Commission to improve soil health. The CSC says the future sustainability for California strawberry farmers involves continued research to find non-chemical alternatives to fumigants. 

 

More than $1 million in state and federal research grants will go to the California Strawberry Commission (CSC) to improve soil health.

The research dollars will advance science on sustaining healthy soils to control plant diseases, and reduce the need for soil fumigation. The research will focus on experimental soil-borne disease management systems using biologically active soil treatments.

According to the CSC, California strawberry farmers are leaders in research to reduce pesticide use. Over the last six years, the commission has invested heavily in fumigant alternatives research, including soilless systems, steam, mustard seed meal, and anaerobic soil disinfestation.

“These recent grant awards will allow us to continue working with the top researchers in the world to find sustainable solutions to managing plant disease and pests in the soil without fumigation,” according to  Dan Legard, the CSC’s vice-president of research and grower education.
“We look forward to more robust research aimed at new ways to create healthy soil environments for strawberries.”

The CSC says future sustainability for California strawberry farmers involves continued research to find non-chemical alternatives to fumigants.
The CSC says strawberry farmers have been recognized globally for phasing out methyl bromide to help protect the Earth's ozone layer. The loss of methyl bromide has left farmers with only one remaining tool to clean the soil - chloropicrin.
Chloropicrin does not control all soil-borne diseases, the commission says. Instances of the macrophomina and fusarium diseases have increased in recent years.

The grants will help strawberry farmers find other soil cleaning alternatives.
The million-dollar in research grants come from two primary sources:
-  $298,472 from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation to evaluate soil-borne disease management systems which use biologically active soil treatments in combination with reduced rates of fumigants.

The research aims to significantly reduce the amount of fumigants needed to treat soil diseases before planting, and improve the efficacy of biological approaches.

Rick Tomlinson, president of the California Strawberry Commission, says, “We are honored to be recognized for our pioneering research to reduce fumigant use with these significant grants to move our research to the next level,”

California produces more than 85 percent of all U.S.-grown strawberries.
The CSC is a state government agency which represents all California strawberry shippers, processors and farmers. With an emphasis on food safety education, commission activities focus on production and nutrition research, trade relations, public policy, marketing, and communications.

Source: www.calstrawberry.com

Found in:  http://westernfarmpress.com/