The Grower Newpaper

20
KAREN DAVIDSON Home wasn’t built in a day. Neither was Ontario’s Simcoe Research Station, home for research testing of more than100 fruit and vegetable crops. Situated not far from the moderat- ing effects of Lake Erie and inheriting the province’s most fer- tile sandy and sandy-loam soils, it’s a hub of research for the University of Guelph and of extension for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The provincial govern- ment bought the original farm to study alternatives to tobacco. Today, it’s a 200-acre station, still researching options, that will host an open house for its 50th anniversary on July 14. Predictably, municipal, provincial and federal leaders will trumpet its successes under stately maples that were planted decades ago. As with all anniversaries, there’s a tendency to look at the past as perfect. But who will be talking in the future tense about what’s possible? “The Simcoe Research Station has done well to address the challenges of today’s rapidly changing horticulture industry from both a research and an extension perspective,” says Harold Schooley, chair, research for the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association. “Updating nutrient recommen- dations to meet legislation, addressing water conservation and quality issues, reducing pesticide usage with integrated pest management, developing production practices and storage regimes for new fruit cultivars and testing new cultivars of many crops are just a few of the many accomplishments emanating from Simcoe,” says Schooley. Production systems research is carried out for a wide variety of tree fruits, vegetables, berries and specialty crops. Supporting these crops are extension staff with expertise in pathology, integrated pest management, food safety, postharvest physiology, sprayer technology, water management and new crop development. Among the commodities test- ed, Schooley lists the following: cucumbers, asparagus, cole crops, potatoes, tomatoes, sweet corn, peppers, carrots, onions, beets, sweet potatoes, Asian vegetables, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, black currants, apples, apple rootstocks, peaches, hazelnuts and heart nuts. Some of the more recent ventures include crops outside the traditional ratio of 70 per cent vegetables, 30 per cent fruits. Lavender, for instance, promises to attract agri-tourism while providing essential oils for medicinal and culinary uses. Biomass trials of both perennial and annual grasses are underway to determine if these new energy crops are viable. Hazelnut trees are planted to test hardiness and disease resistance to potentially replace imports for a locally based confectionary factory. These ‘outside-the-sandbox’ crops are part of the purview of Erie Innovation and Commercialization, an initiative led by John Kelly who has been headquartered at the station for two years. While deeply involved in agriculture throughout his career, Kelly has gained new appreciation for Simcoe by working out of the station. “What surprised me most is that crops grown here in Norfolk County are not grown anywhere else in the province,” says Kelly. “It’s a classic insular community where everyone knows each other here, but they don’t necessarily know the opportunities outside the county borders.” Asian vegetables are an example of a need in the Greater Toronto Area that could be met by growers around Simcoe. Continued on page 3 INSIDE $5K kudos to innovators Page 5 How to import – and save - on crop protection Page 10 Mid-season spray tips Page 11 www.thegrower.org JULY 2011 CELEBRATING 131 YEARS AS CANADA’S PREMIER HORTICULTURAL PUBLICATION VOLUME 61 NUMBER 07 P.M. 40012319 There’s a lot of buzz at Ontario’s Simcoe Research Station this month with the celebration of its 50th anniversary. Bees got a headstart on the party by pollinating asparagus cultivars. Here, asparagus grower Murray Porteous (L) and University of Guelph researcher Dave Wolyn inspect the crossbreeding trials where plastic bags prevent pollen from other asparagus plants contaminating controlled crosses. In the back- ground are apple orchards, more evidence of the diversity of the station’s research. Photos by Denis Cahill. In.no.va.tion Simcoe Research Station: past perfect or future tense? FruitVegTechXchange.com For more info and to print your $ 5 OFF admin coupon visit... P: 226.381.0282

description

Volume 61 Number 07

Transcript of The Grower Newpaper

Page 1: The Grower Newpaper

KAREN DAVIDSON

Home wasn’t built in a day.Neither was Ontario’s SimcoeResearch Station, home forresearch testing of more than100fruit and vegetable crops.Situated not far from the moderat-ing effects of Lake Erie andinheriting the province’s most fer-tile sandy and sandy-loam soils,it’s a hub of research for theUniversity of Guelph and ofextension for the Ontario Ministryof Agriculture, Food and RuralAffairs. The provincial govern-ment bought the original farm tostudy alternatives to tobacco.Today, it’s a 200-acre station, stillresearching options, that will hostan open house for its 50thanniversary on July 14.

Predictably, municipal, provincial and federal leaders willtrumpet its successes under stately maples that were planteddecades ago. As with all anniversaries, there’s a tendencyto look at the past as perfect. Butwho will be talking in the futuretense about what’s possible?

“The Simcoe Research Stationhas done well to address the challenges of today’s rapidlychanging horticulture industryfrom both a research and anextension perspective,” saysHarold Schooley, chair, researchfor the Ontario Fruit andVegetable Growers’ Association.

“Updating nutrient recommen-dations to meet legislation,addressing water conservationand quality issues, reducing

pesticide usage with integratedpest management, developingproduction practices and storageregimes for new fruit cultivarsand testing new cultivars of manycrops are just a few of the manyaccomplishments emanating fromSimcoe,” says Schooley.

Production systems research iscarried out for a wide variety oftree fruits, vegetables, berries andspecialty crops. Supporting thesecrops are extension staff withexpertise in pathology, integratedpest management, food safety,postharvest physiology, sprayertechnology, water managementand new crop development.

Among the commodities test-ed, Schooley lists the following:cucumbers, asparagus, cole crops,potatoes, tomatoes, sweet corn,peppers, carrots, onions, beets,sweet potatoes, Asian vegetables,strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, black currants,apples, apple rootstocks, peaches,hazelnuts and heart nuts.

Some of the more recent ventures include crops outside thetraditional ratio of 70 per centvegetables, 30 per cent fruits.Lavender, for instance, promisesto attract agri-tourism while providing essential oils for medicinal and culinary uses.

Biomass trials of both perennialand annual grasses are underwayto determine if these new energycrops are viable. Hazelnut treesare planted to test hardiness anddisease resistance to potentiallyreplace imports for a locallybased confectionary factory.

These ‘outside-the-sandbox’crops are part of the purview ofErie Innovation andCommercialization, an initiativeled by John Kelly who has beenheadquartered at the station fortwo years. While deeply involvedin agriculture throughout hiscareer, Kelly has gained newappreciation for Simcoe by

working out of the station. “What surprised me most is

that crops grown here in NorfolkCounty are not grown anywhereelse in the province,” says Kelly.“It’s a classic insular communitywhere everyone knows each otherhere, but they don’t necessarilyknow the opportunities outsidethe county borders.”

Asian vegetables are an example of a need in the GreaterToronto Area that could be metby growers around Simcoe.

Continued on page 3

INSIDE$5K kudos to innovators Page 5

How to import – and save - on crop protection Page 10

Mid-season spray tips Page 11

www.thegrower.org

JULY 2011 CELEBRATING 131 YEARS AS CANADA’S PREMIER HORTICULTURAL PUBLICATION VOLUME 61 NUMBER 07

P.M. 40012319

There’s a lot of buzz at Ontario’s Simcoe Research Station this month with the celebration of its 50th anniversary. Bees got a headstart on theparty by pollinating asparagus cultivars. Here, asparagus grower Murray Porteous (L) and University of Guelph researcher Dave Wolyninspect the crossbreeding trials where plastic bags prevent pollen from other asparagus plants contaminating controlled crosses. In the back-ground are apple orchards, more evidence of the diversity of the station’s research. Photos by Denis Cahill.

In.no.va.tion

Simcoe Research Station: past perfect or future tense?

FruitVegTechXchange.comFor more info and to print your $5 OFF admin coupon visit...

P: 226.381.0282

Page 2: The Grower Newpaper

Niagara Falls is new hub for two conventions

The Canadian GreenhouseConference (CGC) slated forOctober 5 and 6, 2011 is movingto Niagara Falls, Ontario at the

newly-designed Scotiabank Convention Centre. Started inGuelph in 1979 as a way forcommercial greenhouse flowerand vegetable stakeholders to network, share knowledge andconduct business, the CGC hashosted annual conferences inToronto for the last ten years.

“We’re excited about themove to Niagara Falls,” saysSandy Carlton, chair of the CGCTrade Fair Committee. “We’verevitalized the conference andwill be showcasing greater oppor-tunities for networking, educationand entertainment. The NiagaraRegion is home to a large per-centage of our stakeholders andsupporters. We anticipate thismove to be a positive one, andlook forward to future expan-sion.”

Since its inception, the CGChas grown to more than 150exhibitors and regularly attractsabout 1800 attendees. The speak-ers program will be internationalin scope, attracting industry lead-ers and academics from NorthAmerica and Europe.

Industry is already demonstrat-ing strong support for the

revamped CGC. Plant ProductsCo. Ltd., a leader in specialtyhorticultural markets and relatedfields has seized the opportunityto be the Signature Sponsor for2011.

The CGC features a pre-con-ference bus tour that will high-light visits to both greenhousevegetable and flower operationsin Niagara Region.

Also moving to the new con-vention centre is the Ontario Fruitand Vegetable Convention(OFVC). Mark your 2012 calen-dar for February 22 and 23. “Wehad really outgrown Brock University, so we’re looking forward to our best trade showever with larger space,” saysGlenna Cairnie, OFVC.

Government of Manitoba aids flooded farmers

Manitoba agriculture ministerStan Struthers has announced acompensation package of $44million for farmers affected byflood damage. Specifically,farmers south of the Hoop andHoller Bend near Portage laPrairie and those surroundingLake Manitoba will be compen-sated. Officials expected thatmonies in the special compensa-tion programs would be availableby first of July.

U.S. Food SafetyModernization Actannounces two newrules

On July 3, 2011, two newrules under the U.S. Food SafetyModernization Act (FSMA)affecting exporters will come intoeffect.

Prior Notice of ImportedFood Shipments: This rulerequires anyone importing foodinto the U.S. to inform the FDAif any country has refused entryto the same product, includingfood for animals.

Administrative Detention ofFood: The FDA will have thepower to detain food that it hasreason to believe was producedunder unsanitary or unsafe condi-tions, or has been adulterated ormisbranded, for up to 30 days(previously, this could only bedone with credible evidence).

The FSMA was signed byPresident Obama last January. Itextends the regulatory powers ofthe Food and Drug Administra-tion substantially. To read moreabout how the FSMA affectsCanadian exporters, visitwww.canadagap.ca/en/publica-tions/member-notes/member-note-january-18-2011.aspx.

Late blight survey

The wet, cool spring has beenideal for development of lateblight. Some new strains are veryaggressive on tomatoes while others can do severe damage onpotatoes. OMAFRA is participat-ing in a pan-Canadian late blightsurvey organized by Agricultureand Agri-Food Canada and theUniversity of Manitoba. If lateblight is detected or suspected ina tomato or potato crop, pleasecontact Michael Celetti,OMAFRA plant pathologist at(519) 824-4120 extension 58910or [email protected] orJanice LeBoeuf OMAFRA vegetable specialist [email protected] assoon as possible so that samplescan be collected for strain typeidentification.

PAGE 2 –– JULY 2011THE GROWER

NEWSMAKERSStephen Whitney will be retiring as President and CEO of theDispute Resolution Corporation effective December 31, 2011.Prior to accepting the position in 1999, he worked for both theCanadian Produce Marketing Association and the CanadianHorticultural Council. Whitney is well-respected for his effortsin promoting fair and ethical trade of produce.

Erie Innovation and Commercialization, an initiative of theOntario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association welcomesShelley Imbeault as project coordinator. Based at the SimcoeResearch Station, she will be aiding John Kelly in new projectdevelopment, marketing and visibility support thanks to moniesthrough the Sand Plains Development Fund.

The Ontario Produce Marketing Association congratulatesJulian Sarraino, Fresh Taste Produce Limited, for assuming thechairmanship of the board. He is joined by re-elected directorsDerrick Rayner, EarthFresh Foods Corp, Frank Spagnuolo,Loblaw Companies Ltd, Chris Streef, Streef Produce Ltd andnew director Jacquie Sullivan, Faye Clack Communications.

Vineland Research and Innovation Centre (VRIC) welcomesthree new members to the board of directors. They are:Anthony Longo, president and CEO of Longo Brothers FruitMarkets Inc., Bruce McTavish, Canadian industry chair for theNorth American Plant Protection Organization and MarilynKnox, president of Nestlé Nutrition Canada.

Two new scientists join the VRIC employee roster. ValerioPrimomo, research scientist, will be developing vegetable vari-eties that perform well under environmental stresses, as well asvarieties with improved disease resistance and nutritional valueusing current molecular technology. Bernard Goyette bringshis expertise to the consumer insights and product innovationteam. He will be conducting post-harvest technology researchwhich includes precooling, storage and handling, and physicalpostharvest treatments.

The Ontario government has appointed Victor DeBono, Waterford, chairman of the Ontario Food Terminal Board, for athree-year term. He has most recently served as vice-chair andcontributed as chair of the Farmers’ Market Committee.

AT PRESS TIME…

Ontario Food BankBill denied

A private member’s bill thatwould have provided a significanttax credit to local farmers whodonate unsold or excess produceto food banks has died on theOntario order paper. The “Bill toFight Hunger with Local Food”was sponsored by Bob Bailey, aSarnia-Lambton MPP.

The bill had passed both firstand second reading in the Ontariolegislature with all-party support,but was not passed before thesession was prorogued by theLiberal government.

Seed of the Yearfinalists announced

Six seed varieties have beennamed 2011 finalists in the seventh annual Seed of the Yearcompetition for eastern Canada,sponsored by the University ofGuelph and SeCan.

AC Gehl Hulless Oats, ACRigoden Oats, Divident VLOrchard Grass, Ex Rico 23 NavyBeans, OAC Bayfield, andYukon Gold are the 2011 final-ists.

These varieties along withtheir breeders will be honoured atthe eastern Canada Seed of theYear recognition event at theRoyal Agricultural Winter Fair inToronto in November. The

winner will be announced at thattime.

The event will be open toindustry professionals, plantbreeders, media and farmingcommunity members.

Through the Seed of the Yearapplication process, breeders areencouraged to highlight theirresearch accomplishments indeveloping a new field crop, forage, fruit, vegetable or herbvariety. Any publicly developedCanadian variety is eligible tocompete.

Entries were evaluated basedon innovation, presence through-out the value chain, sustainabili-ty, marketability and overallimpact on the Canadian agri-foodindustry.

The Seed of the Year competi-tion has been designed by theUniversity of Guelph and SeCanwith additional support from theOntario Ministry of Agriculture,Food and Rural Affairs, andAgriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

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Page 3: The Grower Newpaper

JULY 2011 –– PAGE 3THE GROWER

INTERNATIONAL

ANTIOXIDANTS

Blueberry demandup in the U.S.

The demand for blueberries inthe U.S. continued to rise on bothfresh and frozen categories in2010, continuing the trend of thelast three decades. Thanks to thecampaigns of the U.S. HighbushBlueberry Council, consumersare more aware of the health ben-efits of blueberries.

From the ‘90s until 2001, U.S.consumers ate more frozen blue-berries than fresh blueberries.Since 2002, this trend hasreversed. The per capita con-sumption of fresh blueberriesnow exceeds the per capita con-sumption of frozen.-- betterhealthresearch.com

NUTRITION

Hot vegetable barsin Washington State

Adding sizzle to a cold saladbar may be as simple as a hotvegetable bar. That’s the ideabehind Washington State PotatoCommission’s pilot project tolaunch hot vegetable bars into 10school cafeterias. Grower-ship-pers and associated groups havepledged $100,000 to the projectwhich they hope will also attractgovernment grants. A bakedpotato represents a nutrient-dense preparation that’s cost-effective.

At a national level, the USDAhas released a dietary guidelineicon called MyPlate whichshows consumers how to visual-ize what they should eat. Halfthe plate should be fruits andvegetables. -- The Packer

RESEARCH

GM potatoes findingfavour

Genetically modified (GM)potatoes are on a one-way streetto consumer acceptance, says JoeGuenthner, professor of agricul-tural economics at the Universityof Idaho. While researchers areworking on late blight resistance,a trait attractive to growers, theyare also working on consumertraits such as low acrylamides.

Here in Canada, plant molecu-lar biologist Gefu Wang-Pruski,Nova Scotia Agricultural Col-lege, feels consumer concernabout GM potatoes is waningbecause they realize that manyother food products are genetical-ly modified. She is currentlyleading the Maritime Potato Con-sortium which is comprised of:tuber quality, tuber nutrition andhealth benefits, developing newdisease control systems, and thepotato consumer initiative. -- PotatoPro

FOOD SAFETY

Germany tracksdown E. coli

Contrary to early reports,Spanish cucumbers were not thesource of the E. coli O104 break-out in Germany. Authorities dis-missed raw lettuce and tomatoesas well, laying blame on veg-etable sprouts from a farm locat-ed south of Hamburg, Germanywhich was the epicenter of sick-ness. In total, 39 deaths havebeen attributed to the rare strainof E. coli 0104 with more than600 consumers in intensive care,suffering acute kidney failure. In response to the conclusiveinvestigation in Germany, theCanadian Food InspectionAgency has cancelled the tempo-rary import requirements forshipments of cucumbers, lettuceand tomatoes from EuropeanUnion (EU) member states.Analysis of the supply and distri-bution chains is continuing to seewhether contaminated seed forsprout production is the source ofthe pathogen. To date, there isno indication that either thesource of the outbreak or vehicleof infection has been distributedoutside of Germany.

The E.U. farm commissionerhas promised $304 million (US)

to compensate European veg-etable farmers who have lostbusiness over misdirected public-ity. The principle is to compen-sate up to 30 per cent of thevalue of lost vegetable sales.

This latest outbreak of food-borne illness will require muchstudy to determine better riskcommunication in view of theglobalization of media, medicine,technology and trade.- Agriculture and Agri-FoodCanada, FreshPlaza.com

Simcoe Research Station: past perfect or future tense? Continued from page 1

Kelly points out that the Simcoe Research Stationplays a critical role in identifying what will be profitableopportunities for growers. In the future, success storiesmight not be fruits or vegetables but rather biomass forgreen energy or Russian dandelion for industrial rubberproduction. While growers must evaluate return on invest-ment, so does the Agricultural Research Institute ofOntario which is currently reviewing activities at its 14research facilities and three agricultural colleges.

From the perspective of Wally Andres, station manager,his barometer is the number of summer students aidingresearch. “Everyone is doing quite well this summer,” hesays. Those technical activities are funded by OMAFRA.

The longer-term concern is funding of University ofGuelph researchers. In recent years, the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities has cut budgets, forcing a reduction in faculty positions to more accuratelyreflect student enrollment. The Ontario Agriculture College, specifically, has been dealing with a 42 per centcut. Attrition has taken a toll on agricultural scientists.

What is uncertain is staffing for Simcoe with tworesearchers close to retirement in the next two years. It islikely that future faculty will be based at the University ofGuelph to fulfill their teaching mandates. That’s the casefor Dave Wolyn, an asparagus researcher who already juggles a heavy schedule. He’s the survivor of a shutdownof an earlier research facility at Cambridge which cost theasparagus industry a decade of results due to the long timeframe to establish asparagus beds. He’s just one of many

researchers counting on Simcoe for longevity. As Peter Pauls, chair of the University of Guelph’s

Plant Agriculture department explains, “Our coping mechanism is not to replace retiring staff, but that doesn’tmean we can’t engage producers in a different fundingmodel. The new Loblaws chair in sustainable food production creates opportunities that connect directly withSimcoe and its vegetable research.”

How the research is funded will look different and nodoubt will include more partnerships with growers. Paulssees this model as more responsive and accountable togrowers.

Rob Gordon, dean, Ontario Agricultural College,agrees. “There’s not going to be a business plan that’smaintained by one organization,” he says. “Rather a newstrategy will identify key partnerships that are prepared tobe accountable for the long term. The idea is to leverageindustry support and combine that with public resources.”

As Gordon suggests, the 50th anniversary of SimcoeResearch Station is not only a catalyst to embrace the traditions of the past but an opportunity to enhance partnerships for the future. The Ontario asparagus andginseng associations already have offices at the station.Look for more of these commercial relationships in thefuture.

The Simcoe Research Station is responding to local needsas investigation continues on the agronomics and economics of biomass crops for energy. Station managerWally Andres poses with a miscanthus plot which haspotential as pelleted fuel for greenhouses.

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A tractor spreads destroyedcucumbers to fertilize a field, onJune 06, 2011 in Carquefou,western France. FrankPerry/AFP/Getty Images

Page 4: The Grower Newpaper

Prairie-tough fruits take root What do thirteen million tree seedlings

have to do with prairie fruit? If you are theBonnyville Forest Nursery at Bonnyville,Alberta, your love of greenhouses and tissue culture means there’s a corner forhardy fruit. Under a side business calledPrairietech Propagation, they have devel-oped a clientele for haskaps, sour cherries,black currants and sea buckthorn.

“We became a licenced propagator forthe University of Saskatchewan dwarf sourcherries and haskaps a few years ago as ameans of diversifying our reforestationseedling business,” says Judy Butt, horticulturist. “We propagate the dwarf

sour cherries -- Carmine Jewel and theRomance series cvs (Romeo, Juliet, Crim-son Passion, Cupid, Valentine). We alsopropagate the Evans cherry, a sour cherrythat is very popular on the prairies, androse cherry, which is a shrub sour cherry.”

In addition, haskaps are a big part of thebusiness with University of SaskatchewanBorealis, Tundra, Indigo Gem(formerly 9-15), Indigo Treat (was 9-91) and IndigoYum (was 9-92). Pollinators are also supplied. The team works closely with BobBors and his team at the university to keepup-to-date with new releases.

Hardiness is the key criteria on the

prairies. If these plants can make it inwestern Canada, then they’re good to gofor more temperate climes. That’s whycustomers have been attracted across Cana-da and the U.S. who can’t find these plantselsewhere. In recent years, the antioxidantqualities of haskaps and sour cherries haveheightened their popularity.

The company also propagates lesserknown fruit species such as gooseberries,red, pink and white currants and black currants. Black currants are now gainingstatus as nutritional powerhouses.

“We propagate the very fruitful Benseries of black currants from Scotland,”

says Butt. “I believe that there isn't muchcommercial propagation of currants andgooseberries in Canada so we can be asource for these unique plants.”

More recently, they have started to prop-agate sea buckthorn, using hardy selectionsfrom the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Association in Saskatchewan. They carrytwo cultivars which are nearly thornlesswith high levels of vitamins, C and E andnutraceutical oils.

In times of extreme weather patterns,these niche fruits are ideal for those growers looking for reliable agronomicsand something new to retail.

KAREN DAVIDSON

No career counselor could have pre-dicted that five siblings would return tothe farm to fulfill their dreams in a jointbusiness. That’s exactly what Calder,Secord, Jacey and Hollis Murphy havedone in the Alliston, Ontario area afteruniversity graduation. Connor, theyoungest, is graduating from highschool. While their parents are well-known fruit and vegetable growers, witha 500-acre stake in potatoes, it’s thevision to restore an on-farm market thathas gelled the team.

“There is no farm market within 20minutes of us,” explains Hollis Murphy,who left her landscape architect degreebehind to turn her creativity to a retailstore. “The goodwill of the communityhas encouraged us to renovate an

existing structure in 2010 and open amarket that attracts daily traffic.”

A bakery that makes pies, cookies andcakes from scratch has shown positivecash flow from the start. Locally grownwheat is used for fresh baked breadswhile the farm’s strawberries find theirway into the homemade pies. Theyhave also created a following with local-ly roasted coffee by Hockley ValleyCoffee and pre-ground fair-trade organiccoffee from Creemore Coffee.

Within the next two years, their hope

is to start a pick-your-own operationwhich will funnel more traffic to theretail store. The story of the Murphysiblings is so compelling that they madethe front cover of Harvest Ontario 2011.The guide to farmers’ markets, fruitwineries, fairs and on-farm retailers is aboon to the Ontario Farm Fresh Marketing Association and Farmers’Markets Ontario.

“We distribute about 70,000 copiesthrough Home Hardware stores,” sayspublisher Steve Watts. “It’s the mostcomprehensive yet at 138 pages.”

Thanks to this recent publicity, theMurphy’s look forward to executingtheir three-year plan. After that, they’lldecide if there’s a longer-term future.

Farms can get a free listing in the 2012guide at harvestontario.com.

PAGE 4 –– JULY 2011THE GROWER

Murphy’s law: build it and they will come

The goodwill of the community

has encouraged us to renovate an

existing structure in 2010 and open a

market that attracts daily traffic.

- Hollis Murphy

Page 5: The Grower Newpaper

THE GROWER

JULY 2011 –– PAGE 5

KAREN DAVIDSON

It’s that time of year when the Ontario premier and theministry of agriculture, food and rural affairs, recognizes55 farmers, agri-food businesses and organizations fortheir innovation. Regional award winners receive $5,000not just for great ideas, but for those that have beenbrought to life. A generous number of winners hail fromhorticulture. Here are those who have been honoured todate.

New vegetable adds value to grain farm

When Jacob MacKellar was looking for a value-addedproduct to supplement his 3,000 acre cash crop operationhe chose edamame which is a type of soybean harvested in

the pod right before it reaches the "hardening" stage. It is apopular food in Asia and increasingly, in North America itis consumed as a snack or as a vegetable dish used insoups or processed into sweets. This non-traditional cropreplaces imports and provides excellent returns. Industryrepresentatives project a 500,000 pound market in the nextfew years, and McKellar will be ahead of the pack with aplanned harvest of 100,000 pounds in 2011.

Real-time meter prevents fertilizer damage to trans-plants

Borrowing metering concepts from the greenhouseindustry, Dave Van Segbrook has put together an electricalconductivity meter that monitors salt levels in fertilizer fortransplants. As a major supplier of Brussels sprouts,tomatoes and peppers to the vegetable processing industry,this Tupperville farmer routinely plants 300 acres with asix-row planter.

When blending fertilizer, a precision injector puts anamount of fertilizer in transplanter water that isn’t toomuch to burn the roots or to stunt growth. To monitorplanting progress, a hand meter has worked in the past tomonitor salt levels but staff have asked for an “on-the-go”meter that verifies levels for each unique crop. Fertilizerlevels are a little lower for cole crops, for example, thantomatoes.

By consulting with greenhouse suppliers, Segbrook hassourced off-the-shelf components to build his electricalconductivity meter. As a result, plant yields are higherand fewer plants are lost to fertilizer damage.

“The main benefit is that it saves worry,” says Seg-brook. “I can push fertilizer levels to the max without fearof injury.”

Fruit wine combines with chocolate

Decadence is not just a best-selling wine at Rush CreekWine. It is a product innovation that has spun into winejelly, body cream, body sugar scrub and body spritzer. Thecombination of chocolate and strawberries has createdjobs, increased tourism dollars and given business to localhoney, fruit and chocolate producers. The winery which islocated just south of Aylmer, produces 21 varieties of fruitwine, growing 65 per cent of its fruit supply and sourcingthe rest locally. Sales have risen 15 per cent since the

owners developed and delivered the first bottle of Deca-dence which is so much in demand that production hasincreased to 500 imperial gallons, or about 2,200 litres.

Soup and salad ingredients getmakeover with social events, socialmedia

The Holland Marsh Growers’ Association receives fullmarks for its savvy outreach to consumers in the GreaterToronto Area. The salad bowl on the muck soils north ofToronto are traditionally known for carrots, onions andcelery. They taste just as good together in a soup. That’swhy the association has hosted an autumn soupfest, draw-ing thousands of consumers who also witness harvestingfirst-hand.

Driving attendance through conventional and socialmedia, the association never misses a chance to educateconsumers about the unique issues of the marsh: waterand soil management, urban encroachment and diversifica-tion into specialty crops such as Chinese broccoli, Asianradish and water spinach.

Irrigation water is cooled more efficiently

The cooling systems were tested to the maximum lastsummer at Robert Mastronardi’s Cedar Beach Acresgreenhouse at Kingsville, Ontario. With 35 degree Celsiustemperatures outside, his packing and irrigation rooms

were too hot. “It’s vital to cool irrigation water for thecrop,” says Mastronardi, referring to his peppers, mini-cucumbers and eggplants.

The solution was to build an enclosure around the car-

bon dioxide condensers and blow the cold air to the area inneed. His team brainstormed a system of plastic pipes andair-trapping curtains that could inexpensively direct theair.

The result has been a five-degree decrease in the pack-ing shed and 10-degree decrease in the irrigation room.The dollar benefits are hard to tally when one considersthe impact of properly cooled irrigation water on 16 acresof greenhouse produce.

Clay-lined reservoir conserves waterfor high-tunnel strawberries

Seven acres of high-tunnel strawberries wouldn’t be soluscious without judicious use of irrigation water. Ellenand Peter Jennen have perfected their system with a three-million gallon, clay-lined water reservoir that takes rain-water in times of plenty and stores for dry spells. Work-ing with OMAFRA specialists and irrigation expert Van-den Bussche, they have developed a saturation chart thatindicates exactly how much and when to fertigate theirstrawberry beds. Coupled with readings from a handheldmoisture probe, this “irrigation intelligence” is used toconserve water. In 2011, they automated the irrigationtimer with a 24-volt transformer.

Finetuning inputs such as water gives the Jennen’s con-fidence to plan expanding with another five acres of hightunnels in the next two years at their Thamesville farm.

Hydroponic greenhouse provides rawingredients for wheatgrass and broccolsprout juice

Anna Small-Adams and Carl Adams of Garden GateFarms are growing an unusual business at Barrie, Ontario.They grow, harvest, extract, package and sell pure wheat-grass and broccoli sprout juice to the organic market.They have doubled sales to $250,000 in the last year, pro-moting their high-pressure, cold pasteurization process thatextends shelf life and kills pathogens while preservingenzymes, vitamins, minerals, taste and colour. Just lastJanuary, they appeared on CBC’s Dragon Den for the sec-ond time, clinching a partnership with three of the busi-ness entrepreneurs to take the company national.

Kudos to the regional award winners for Agri-Food Innovation Excellence

Page 6: The Grower Newpaper

THE GROWER

PAGE 6 –– JULY 2011

Over the past few monthsthere has been a lot of talk aboutSelf-Directed Risk Management(SDRM) and the new programsthat were outlined in the provincial spring budget. As theMinister has not formallyannounced the new RMP/SDRMprograms, I am still not at libertyto talk about them in detail. WhatI can say however is that theseprograms for the meat, grain andedible hort sectors are going tohappen. In fact they will mostlikely have been formallyannounced by the time you readthis column.

The purpose of this columnhowever is not to dwell onSDRM but rather to look at someof the other issues that we will beworking on for the upcomingelection and beyond.

Let’s get the first point out ofthe way as it is about SDRM andthe other RMP programs, specifically getting the federalgovernment to participate in thefunding of these programs. Whenyou are talking to your federalMP tell them we need their support, Ontario farmers needthese programs. We must continue this fight and it will

likely take a long time butremember the quest for an RMPprogram for edible horticulturetook two and one half years. It isnot a quick easy fix but wellworth the struggle.

Down loading of costs on tothe backs of farmers will probably never stop but when ithappens governments must stepup and offer an offset to the sector if it expects us to competein the world of global trading.You need to remind them of this,as many of the government representatives are not familiarwith the concept of having to becompetitive; it is not a reality oftheir world. Many simply do notunderstand that you have no wayto recapture these additionalexpenses.

We continue to work on property taxation issues. Many ofour farmers are involved in value-added activities just as theyhave been encouraged by government to do. They enhancetheir standard of living and aswell create a multitude of jobs forothers but then have governmentofficials alter their property classification to something otherthan farming with a resultantincrease in taxation . . . talk aboutcounter productive. You and weneed to keep telling our MPPsthat this needs to change. It’s nota free ride -- we are looking forjust a fair one. This too impactsour competitiveness.

Governments both federal andprovincial need to support andpromote healthy eating of morefruit and vegetables. The rate ofobesity throughout our society isboth unacceptable and unsustain-able. Government must take aleadership role in this battle, abattle we cannot afford to lose forif we do we can kiss our health

care system good-bye.Governments also need to

support locally grown produce intheir own institutions and thosethey fund. I’ve often heard it saidthat local produce is more expensive and often it is, but whocreated all those regulations thatadd so much cost to our production. It wasn’t the farmer!We live in a high cost of production society, we have thehighest minimum wage rateacross Canada and indeed of ourtrading partners so yes maybe ourproduce prices have to be higherso our farmers can remain viable.

Foodland Ontario has been andremains a great advocate for

Ontario-grown produce but eachyear it seems its budget is threat-ened if not reduced. This goes tothe points above about ongoingsupport through both actions anddollars. Foodland is highly recog-nized and it represents all the good thingsgrown in Ontario. We need tokeep it strong.

Other programs are also necessary and they require adequate long-term financial support. These include programssuch as On Farm Food Safety andTraceability, as well as dollars forenvironmental farm plans. Inaddition to on-farm programs others such as Ontario Market

Investment Fund and Agricultur-al Management Institute alsorequire long-term commitments.While I recognize that all of thesecome with a cost they are essential if we are to compete in aworld of global trade.

In the area of research andinnovation we need ongoing long-term commitments. Programs need to be put in placeto assist our farmers to becomeeven more innovative. We havehad co-funded programs in thepast. It is time to bring themback.

We need to be smarter and better prepared than our competi-tors; we need to be stronger in themarket place. It is a relativelynew world of global competitionwithout protection of tariffs orlow valued currency. What weonce could afford to absorb we nolonger can. If we are expected toremain sustainable to keep onproviding the tens of thousands ofjobs that exist in our sector thenour governments need to be moresupportive than ever.

As an Ontario citizen you willhave the right to vote this fall,you will have the right to expressyourself but remember that farm-ers make up a small percentage ofour society. Your needs are notwidely known and furthermorewhat you and your sector bring tothe table that benefits all Ontarians is even less known andunderstood by the majority ofpoliticians and in fact our society.

Over the next few months Iencourage all of you to get active,talk to the folks seeking your support. Remember politicianscan’t make it without the supportof voters.

For what it’s worth, it’s theway I see it.

ART SMITHCEO, OFVGA

STAFFPublisher: Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ AssociationEditor: Karen Davidson, 416-252-7337, [email protected]: Carlie Robertson, ext. 221, [email protected]: Herb Sherwood, 519-380-0118, [email protected]

The Grower reserves the right to refuse any advertising. Any errors that are the direct result of The Grower will be compensated at our discretion with a correction notice in the nextissue. No compensation will be given after the first running of the ad.Client signature is required before insertion.

The Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association is thesole owner of The Grower. All editorials and opinions expressedin The Grower are those of the newspaper’s editorial staff and/orcontributor, and do not necessarily reflect the view of the association.

All rights reserved. The contents of this publicationmay not be reproduced either whole or in part without theprior written consent of the publisher.

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ONTARIO FRUIT AND VEGETABLE GROWERS’ASSOCIATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2011

MANAGEMENT COMMITTEEChair Brian Gilroy, MeafordVice-Chair Mac James, LeamingtonFruit Director Ray Duc, Niagara-on-the-LakeVeg Director Jason Ryder, DelhiDirector Norm Charbonneau, Port Elgin

BOARD OF DIRECTORSApples Brian Gilroy, MeafordFresh Vegetable - Other Mary Shabatura, Windham CentreTender Fruit Fred Meyers, Niagara-on-the-LakeON Asparagus Grws’. Mkg. Brd. Jason Ryder, DelhiGGO/Fresh Grape Growers Ray Duc, Niagara-on-the-LakeFresh Vegetable - Muck Jason Verkaik, BradfordON. Potato Board Mac James, LeamingtonSmall Fruit/Berries Norm Charbonneau, Port ElginON. Ginseng Growers’ Doug Bradley, TillsonburgGreenhouse Jan Vander Hout, WaterdownGreenhouse Don Taylor, Durham

OFVGA SECTION CHAIRS

Crop Protection Charles Stevens, NewcastleResearch Harold Schooley, SimcoeProperty David Lambert, Niagara-on-the-LakeLabour Ken Forth, LyndenSafety Nets Mark Wales, AlymerCHC Murray Porteous, SimcoeAGCare/Nutrient Man. Charles Stevens, Newcastle

Talk to those seeking your support!

Agriculture has achieved several important outcomes byworking together towards a common goal(s). The recentSupreme Court ruling on the“Fraser Case” is a great exampleof this. Producers can now restassured (at least for a while) thatlabour unions will not be able toorganize farm workers and threat-en to disrupt future harvests. Thiscertainly doesn’t mean that thoseworkers don’t have rights, theydo; but they do not have the rightto strike. This was not an easybattle but by having an organizedresponse through the Labour

Issues Coordinating Committeeand financing from all of agriculture, the challenge wasmet.

Another great example is therecent announcements of RiskManagement Programs whichincludes the Self-Directed RiskManagement Program (SDRM)for edible horticulture crop pro-ducers. By working together andnot giving up, the industry wasable to convince at least theprovincial government that the“Growing Forward” suite of business risk management programs, were not working.

The next challenge will be to con-vince the federal government to participate as well in order tomake these programs more meaningful.

The SDRM program is anespecially good model as it isclean, simple, understandable,predictable and bankable for boththe government and producers.SDRM recognizes and providessupport for producers affected byforces beyond their control suchas exchange rate fluctuations, bor-der disruption, the effects of disease outbreaks and costincreases which growers are

unable to recover from the marketplace. It also provides a pool offunds which producers can accessfor on-farm improvements.

These are great examples ofwhat can be achieved by workingtogether for the common good.Congratulations to all who participated and contributed.

Many hands (minds) make light work

ADRIAN HUISMANONTARIO TENDERFRUIT PRODUCERS

Events such as Horticulture for Health provide a venue for lobbyingthe federal agriculture minister. From left to right: Federal agricul-ture minister Gerry Ritz; Larry Miller, MP Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound;Andy Vermeulen, past-president, Canadian Horticultural Council andBrian Gilroy, chair, Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Associa-tion. Photo by Patrick Doyle.

Page 7: The Grower Newpaper

THE GROWER

JULY 2011 –– PAGE 7

Apple scab is one tough cus-tomer. But in at least one case,even it is no match for a GoodSamaritan.

So-called Good Samaritanorganisms are raising eyebrows inthe horticultural sector. They’renatural, highly targeted biologicalcontrol agents that can be safelyintroduced into existing produc-tion systems. They derive theGood Samaritan moniker fromthe fact that they pursue only theoffending disease agent, and leavethe rest of the bioactive environ-ment alone. Microbial biocontrolagents are generally target-specif-ic, non-hazardous to humans andenvironmentally friendly. Verygood of them, indeed.

If you know where to look,Good Samaritan organisms can befound in the darnedest places.Vineland Research and Innova-tion Centre’s new plant patholo-gist, Anissa Poleatewich, foundthem not in a lab or some othertightly controlled environment . . .but rather, in a cross section ofabandoned apple orchards inPennsylvania.

Poleatewich, who was com-pleting her doctoral research atPenn State, figured somethingnatural was keeping disease suchas apple scab and bitter rot at bayin these orchards. Even thoughcommercial production hadceased and pesticide applicationsdiscontinued, some of the treeswere still able to produce a mea-sure of fruit. Something was ontheir side, and she had a hunchbiocontrol – defined as the sup-pression of the damaging activi-ties of one organism by the activi-ty of one or more other organisms-- was at work.

So with support from the Unit-ed States Agency for InternationalDevelopment, she collected sam-ples of what she believed werethe beneficial bacteria there, andtook them back to her laboratoryfor closer analysis. She isolatedthem, and later, combined withapplications of lime sulfur andcopper, introduced those she con-sidered the most effective to culti-vars susceptible to apple scab and

bitter rot, in a research orchard atPenn State University.

The results were significant.With just two applications of thebacteria, scab severity wasreduced by 48 per cent on GoldenDelicious apples, and up to 45 percent on Rome Beauty appleleaves, compared to untreatedapple leaves. Later, Poleatewichwould find 95 per cent suppres-sion in bitter rot lesion size onRome Beauty fruit inoculatedwith the bio-organisms. It was apromising result for bacteria-based biocontrols, andPoleatewich was beaming.

“Bacteria aren’t all bad,” shesays. “With food-borne illness inthe news, people may becomeconfused about bacteria’s role.But there are many organismsdoing very good things in theenvironment.”

Finding the good ones is cer-tainly a timely pursuit. Pathogenresistance is surfacing, meaningfewer fungicides are available fordisease control. As well, con-sumer concerns are rising aboutpesticide residues, particularly onfresh produce where the sprayedsurface is directly consumed (anapple for example).

Given that reality, Poleatewichbelieves it’s prudent to developbiological control agents for foliarand fruit diseases that can beimplemented into existing pro-

duction systems, conventionaland organic. She says researchinto pre- and post-harvest biologi-cal management approaches, aswell as finding the best combina-tions of biocontrols, cultural prac-tices and chemicals, are impera-tive for unleashing the potentialof these disease reducing organ-isms and generation of new prod-ucts that will ultimately givegrowers effective pest manage-ment approaches.

And what specifically willwork in Ontario? Poleatewich is

now dedicating herself to discov-ering horticulture’s regional needsand priorities, meeting growersand developing strategies for thesector.

“A challenge to biologicalcontrol is that it must not only besafe, but a viable alternative tocurrent synthetic fungicides,” saysPoleatewich. “But the potential isthere . . . the search for new andinnovative ways to reduce pesti-cide use has emerged as animportant shift towards environ-mentally conscious ornamentaland food production.”

Still more potential may existwith crops that are in their infan-cy in Ontario, such as thosecomprising ethnocultural vegeta-bles – bitter melon and okra,among them. University ofGuelph researchers have deter-mined there’s a $60-millionuntapped market in the GreaterToronto Area alone for ethnocul-tural vegetables. Internationally,Poleatewich has worked on bio-controls on crops such as pota-toes, tomatoes and faba bean (in

Bolivia). Now, her interestsinclude understanding more aboutpathogens that might plague newethnocultural crops being devel-oped for Ontario consumers.

Ethnocultural vegetable pro-duction requires a great deal ofeducation, and with support fromthe Ontario Ministry of Agricul-ture, Food and Rural Affairs andthe University of Guelph, effortsare underway to raise awarenessof this opportunity. Poleatewichsays the same kind of imperativeapplies to biocontrols.

“In many cases consumers willnever come in contact with bio-control organisms, but educationis required because of concernsabout using bacteria for control,”she says. “It’s easy to forgetabout beneficial bacteria, such asthose found in yogurt. It’s impor-tant for growers to meet con-sumers’ demands for sustainabletechnology, and show the bacteriawe’re working with are reallyGood Samaritans.”

Here’s reason to rejoice over Good Samaritan biocontrols

OWEN ROBERTSUNIVERSITY OFGUELPH

PERSPECTIVE

“Bacteria aren’t all bad,” says plant pathologist Anissa Poleatewich.

Page 8: The Grower Newpaper

AgriInvest helps you managesmall income declines, and pro-vides support for investments tomitigate risks or improve marketincome. Your AgriInvest account,held at a participating financialinstitution of your choice, buildsas you make annual depositsbased on a percentage of yourAllowable Net Sales and receivematching contributions from gov-ernments.

Because your AgriInvestaccount is self managed, you havethe flexibility to withdraw yourAgriInvest funds at any time bysimply visiting your financialinstitution.

AgriInvest is delivered byAgriculture and Agri-Food Cana-da (AAFC) in all provincesexcept Quebec.

Participating in 2010 AgriInvestis easy:

Step 1: Complete and submityour 2010 AgriInvest form bythe deadline

In Ontario, individuals partici-pating in 2010 AgriInvest mustsubmit form T1163: StatementA - AgriStability and AgriInvestPrograms Information and State-ment of Farming Activities forIndividuals to the Canada Rev-enue Agency. Corporations mustsubmit a Statement A (which isavailable through Agricorp)directly to Agricorp. For moreinformation about the StatementA, please contact Agricorp at 1-877-838-5144.

If you have already submitted

form T1163 to the Canada Rev-enue Agency earlier this yearwhen applying for 2010 AgriSta-bility, there’s no need to completeanother form. Agricorp will for-ward the information needed tocalculate your 2010 AgriInvestbenefits to AAFC.

The deadline to submit a 2010AgriInvest form is September 30,2011. Farmers can submit their2010 AgriInvest form untilDecember 31, 2011, but theirmatchable deposit will be reducedby 5 percent for each month orpart of the month that the applica-tion is received after the Septem-ber 30, 2011 deadline.

Step 2: Receive your 2010 Agri-Invest Deposit Notice

AAFC will calculate your ben-efits based on the financial infor-mation reported on your applica-tion and send you a DepositNotice outlining the amount youare entitled to deposit.

Step 3: Make your 2010 AgriIn-vest deposit

You have 90 days from thedate your Deposit Notice wasissued to make a deposit into yourAgriInvest account at your finan-cial institution. AAFC willprocess your deposit and credit

your account with matching gov-ernment contributions.

Step 4: Withdraw your AgriIn-vest funds when you need itmost

You have the flexibility towithdraw your funds throughyour financial institution at anytime.

For more information aboutAgriInvest, visit the website atwww.agr.gc.ca/agriinvest or con-tact AAFC toll free at 1-866-367-8506.

THE GROWER

PAGE 8 –– JULY 2011

Don’t miss out on 2010 AgriInvest benefits

Only at Sheehan’s TruckCentre we offer our customer’s everything fromgreat trucks, fast deliveryof parts to extraordinarycustomer service. We arelocated in a 52,000-sq/ftfacility with 65 highlytrained staff to take care ofyour transportation needs.We have over 200 newand used vehicles on display in our newlypaved lot. Call us today for a test drive, quote on a new truck or any other questions that youmay have.

Garlic growers view new technology

More than 50 Ontario garlicgrowers gathered at the farm ofWarren Ham for our annual sum-mer Field Day, June 12. Althoughthe day was overcast the sun did

try to peek out. We first had arelaxed walking tour of Warren'scrop where we looked at his vari-ous trials of one and two-yearproduction from bulbuils. Warrenis certified organic and grows thebulbuils all on raised beds. Hehad a number of different vari-eties, row spacings and variationson planting methods. The resultsare very promising and with ashortage of seed, we think thiswill prove a necessary method forincreasing crop size.

After touring the fields, wethen looked at Warren's equip-ment, much of it modified fromideas that he has gathered frombeing in the garlic business formore than 20 years, and travellingand seeing garlic production inmany parts of the world. We thenviewed new equipment by Wiltsie

Farm Equipment who are a mem-ber and manufacturer of specialtyvegetable production machinery.

Also on display was a garlicplanter from Italy by Chechi-Magli. Growers are always on thelook-out for a better way to doplanting, harvesting, cleaning andgrading.

At our association meeting,growers were encouraged to bringin 10 bulb samples for our Bulband Stem Nematode projectwhich has just been funded forthree years by the AgriculturalAdaptation Council. Becky Hugh-es from New Liskeard and MikeCelleti from OMAFRA were onhand to receive grower samplesand surveys and explain what tolook for in terms of damage. Ourproject is to find out just howprevalent the nematodes are and

what race (type) a grower mighthave. Treatments can range fromlonger crop rotation to differentmethods of seed treatment. Need-less to say there were plenty ofexcellent questions as not a lot iswell known about this very seri-ous pest in garlic.

Growers were updated on thenew Self-Directed Risk Manage-ment program that will be comingout later this summer, as well asthe farmers’ market at the RoyalAgricultural Winter Fair inToronto in November, the Veg-Tech expo in Norfolk county Sep-tember 1-3 and the new TorontoGarlic Festival at the Brickworkson September 25 which will beanother great opportunity to putour product directly into thehands of our customers.

Everyone left with lots of new

ideas such as possibly growinggarlic for the "green garlic" mar-ket.

Our annual Field Day isalways a great opportunity forgrowers to see other member'sfarms and get together and shareideas. I wish everyone a goodseason and we will be scapingsoon and harvesting by mid-Julygetting ready for the Garlic Festi-vals starting in August. Please goto our website (www.garlicgrow-ers.on.ca) and follow links to thedifferent festival websites. I lookforward to seeing many of you atupcoming events, and once againcarry on producing the best garlicin the world!

MARK WALESGARLIC GROWERS’ASSOCIATION OFONTARIO

July 5 – 7 The Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council Annual Forum on Employment and Skills Development, Rodd Charlottetown, PEI

July 7, 8 Federal/provincial/territorial agriculture ministers’ meeting, St Andrews, New Brunswick

July 13 Northumberland Durham Apple Growers’ Summer Tour, 1:30 – 7 pm, for information, contact: [email protected]

July 14 50th Anniversary Simcoe Research Station Open House, Simcoe, ON 2 pm – 7 pm

July 24 – 30 International Tree Fruit 2011 Study Tour: England, Netherlands and Belgium

July 29 – 31 PMA Food Service Trade Show, Monterey Conference Center, Monterey, CA

August 2 – 4 Canadian Horticultural Council Mid-Summer Apple Meeting, Old Orchard Inn, Wolfville, NS

August 11 Peak of the Market’s Family Fun Day, Winnipeg, MB

Aug. 13, 14 14th Annual Perth Lions Garlic Festival, Fairgrounds, Perth, ON

Aug. 18, 19 Apple Crop Outlook and Marketing Conference, Ritz-Carlton, Chicago, IL

Aug. 18 – 20 QPMA Annual Convention, Fairmont Tremblant, Mont-Tremblant, QC

Aug. 19 – 21Leamington Tomato Festival, Leamington, ON

August 20 Newmarket ‘Garlic is Great’ Festival, Newmarket, ON

COMING EVENTS 2011

Page 9: The Grower Newpaper

THE GROWER

JULY 2011 –– PAGE 9

Following are highlights from theOFVGA board meeting held June9, 2011. The purpose of this briefis to keep you up-to-date on theissues that the OFVGA is workingon, as well as projects and initia-tives the organization is involvedin. Board Briefs is also availableon the OFVGA website,www.ofvga.org.

GovernanceMary Lynn McPherson fromStrive led the Board through aworkshop that served as a follow-up to a governance review work-shop the Board took part in thispast March. Discussion focusedon the role of committees, succes-sion planning, board and sectionchair workloads and governance.

Open for business consultationThe OFVGA has been participat-ing in the “Open for Business”consultations being lead by theOntario Federation of Agricultureon behalf of the Ontario govern-ment. One of the OFVGA’s keypoints has been the need for farmgroups to be consulted in advancewhen the government is consider-ing new legislation or looking atmaking changes to existing legis-lation. By the time a piece of leg-islation is posted on the Environ-mental Bill of Rights (EBR) forpublic comment, it is often toolate to make significant changes.

Canadian Horticultural Councilreport Food safety programs: OFVGA’srepresentative to the CHC, Mur-ray Porteous, reported that uptakein food safety programs has beenhigher so far than anticipated. Theprograms are adapted and modi-

fied on an ongoing basis to makethem more effective and userfriendly.

PACA-like trust: Work continuesto encourage the Canadian gov-ernment to establish a PACA-liketrust in Canada. In the U.S., thePerishable Agricultural Com-modities Act (PACA) licensesbuyers of produce to ensure thatthose who sell produce receivepayment for their products and atthe same time has established leg-islation that protects produce sell-ers when buyers fail to pay. TheOFVGA and the CHC are lobby-ing for the establishment of amade-in-Canada PACA-like trustprogram that extends the samebenefits to the Canadian produceindustry as in the U.S.

Labour Section chair Ken Forth reportedthat the decision rendered by theSupreme Court of Canada thisspring with respect to the union-ization of agricultural workerswas the most important labourdecision – and one of the mostsignificant constitutional rulings –the Court has ever made. Theeight to one decision was a verydefinitive ruling and underscoresthe strength of Ontario’s Agricul-tural Employment Protection Act.

Crop protectionTelone: Section chair CharlesStevens reported that a new com-pany had indicated its interest inpicking up the registration forTelone, a soil fumigant that hasbeen withdrawn from the marketby its manufacturer due to arequest by the Pest ManagementRegulatory Agency (PMRA) for

extra data. No timeline has beenreleased. Farmers who grow rootcrops, muck crops and ginsengdepend on Telone to keep theircrops free of pathogens andnematodes.

Grower Requested Own Use(GROU): Arrow 240EC herbicideis now on the GROU list and isavailable for farmers to make anapplication to bring it into Cana-da. Currently, participation inGROU is voluntary, which meanscrop protection companies maykeep products out of the programif they wish. GROU will becomea regulated program by PMRAwithin the next six to 12 months.This means if a product meets allthe guidelines for approval, theproduct will be placed on theGROU program with or withoutmanufacturer approval.

Invasive species: The departmentof agriculture at Penn State Uni-versity is working on the problemof invasive species, such as mar-morated stink bug and spottedwing drosophila, which haverecently been detected in Canada.The spotted wing drosophilaattacks fruits and berries, includ-ing raspberries, blackberries,blueberries strawberries, cherries,plums, peaches and nectarines.The brown marmorated stink bugaffects fruit trees, vegetables andlegumes, as well as ornamentalcrops. Monitoring programs arebeing put in place here to try todetermine the extent of the pests,which are native to Asia and cancause severe crop damage. Nocontrols are currently registeredin Canada.

Safety netsSection chair Mark Wales report-ed that an announcement withdetails regarding the Self DirectedRisk Management (SDRM) pro-gram by Ontario Minister ofAgriculture, Food and RuralAffairs Carol Mitchell is expectedin the second half of June.

The Ontario Agricultural Com-modity Council is working toestablish farmer participation inthe Agri-Invest program. Current-

ly, it would appear that less than80 per cent of farmers are usingthe program, so this informationwould help OACC possibly targetregions or commodities that arenot participating as fully as theycould.

ResearchSimcoe Research Station: TheSimcoe Research Station is mark-ing its 50th anniversary nextmonth. Section chair HaroldSchooley contributed an essay onwhat is happening with researchin Ontario and the future of theSimcoe station to the commemo-rative booklet. Of the over 100horticultural crops grown inOntario, most have beenresearched in some capacity atSimcoe.

Erie Innovation and Commer-cialization: The goal of this pro-ject, headed by Dr. John Kelly, isto find new opportunities for agri-culture. Currently, 26 projects areunderway. OFVGA is the lead onthis project, which is a partner-ship between different govern-ments, municipalities and organi-zations. More information isavailable atwww.erieinnovation.com .

Royal Agricultural Winter FairOFVGA Chair Brian Gilroyreported that the Royal is lookingto run the farmers’ market againthis year. This will be the secondyear for the farmers’ market atthe show and will be in a newlocation this year with improvedexposure. Opportunities also existto develop new agricultural com-petitions and displays to show-case Canadian horticulture prod-ucts to consumers.

OFVGA will be booking a boothat the Journey to your GoodHealth display again this year andrenting the space out by the dayto its member organizations. Thisallows member groups a chanceto have a presence at the Royalbut without having to incur theexpense of staffing a booth forthe entire 10-day show.

OFVGA summer barbecue

updateThe OFVGA summer barbecuewill take place August 24 in Nor-folk County. Tour stops willinclude the Simcoe Research Sta-tion, a lavender and grape opera-tion, a sweet potato farm, and theNaturally Norfolk processingplant. The day will end with atour and barbecue at Burning KilnWinery. For more information,contact Deanna Hutton at [email protected] or 519-763-6160,ext. 116.

Future of tech transferExtension plays a key role inagricultural innovation and adap-tation and the OFVGA feels it iscritical that a certain level of techtransfer expertise is retained with-in provincial and/or federal gov-ernments in Canada. Althoughprivate companies undertake a lotof the research and developmentwork in some sectors, horticul-ture’s diversity means its farmersdepend heavily on public sectorextension work. As governmentbudgets tighten in order to getdeficits under control, there isconcern that governments maynot replace staff in important techtransfer positions as those posi-tions become vacant.

Faces of Farming calendarThe OFVGA board agreed to par-ticipate in the 2012 Faces ofFarming calendar, publishedannually by AGCare and theOntario Farm Animal Council.Approximately 7500 copies areprinted and distributed to media,politicians, restaurants, and butch-er shops, as well as being avail-able for sale atwww.ofac.org,TSC stores acrossOntario and at select local foodshops. The 2010 calendarreceived extensive media cover-age, including television, radio,major urban dailies and manyweekly publications.

The next board meeting will beheld July 21 at the OFVGA officein Guelph starting at 10 a.m.

Board briefs

[email protected]

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Page 10: The Grower Newpaper

KAREN DAVIDSON

Importing crop protectionproducts from the United Statesunder the Grower Requested OwnUse (GROU) program could becompared to a race over hurdles.But if you’re in shape likeCharles Stevens, the finish line isworth it. The apple and blueberrygrower near Newcastle, Ontarioand a partner grower saved$30,000 this past spring on a miti-cide for 500 acres of appleorchards.

“The GROU program is reallyabout easing the inequalities inprice between Canada and theU.S.,” says Stevens, chair of theOFVGA crop protection section.“The miticide I imported – Agri-mek -- was four times moreexpensive in Canada than acrossthe border. As recently as lastDecember, it was nine times moreexpensive but the price was low-ered likely due to the GROU pro-gram. If the product in question isabout 20 per cent more expensive,it’s probably not worth the timeand effort unless you’re includingit in a truckload of other prod-ucts.”

The GROU program has beenin effect for about two years now,an outgrowth of the Own-Use-Import program which was usedprimarily by row croppers. Oncehorticultural growers realized thepotential savings, the GROU

program listed eligible productsfor import. To date, crop protec-tion companies participate volun-tarily with products that are at theend of their life cycle. In otherwords, patents have run out andthe companies have alreadyrecouped their research anddevelopment investments.

The Pest Management Regula-tory Agency (PMRA), whichadministers the program, listed 25products in 2011. A GROU com-mittee nominates and prioritizesproducts for the program. Thatcommittee is comprised of theGrain Growers of Canada, Cana-dian Canola Growers Association,Canadian Horticultural Council,Pulse Canada, the Canadian Fed-eration of Agriculture andAGCare.

As a first-timer navigating theapplication process through thePMRA, Stevens shares some of

his learnings. First, the PMRAopens on-line applications in mid-January and is supported bystaffer Robert Martin. Growersmust apply for specific amountsof product for the current yearonly. The application formrequires the number of acres to besprayed and the rate at which youplan to apply the product.

“This process is not somethingyou do on an ASAP basis,” saysStevens. “I advise spending a dayfamiliarizing yourself with all therules on the website.”

Once Stevens had approval toimport, he researched a retailer inNew York State who had productto sell. A New York State spraylicense was required from thestate department of environmentalconservation in order for theretailer to release the product.This process took some negotiat-ing with the Bureau of Pesticides.For the future, OFVGA’s CraigHunter is working to haveOntario’s grower pesticide coursecertificates recognized stateside.

Stevens used the Gananoque-Thousand Island crossing to enterthe U.S. with a half-ton truck. Asmall fee of $10.90 was requiredfor the commercial vehicle toenter. Canadian labels were print-

ed in advance to affix to all thecontainers for transport back toCanada. The container boxeswere covered to prevent anyexposure. There is no duty onpesticides crossing the border.The truck must deliver the prod-uct directly to the farm.

Stevens considers the GROUprogram a bandaid that eventuallywon’t be needed in the years tocome as joint registrations oreven global registrations willlower the cost of crop protectionregistrations in Canada.

“The U.S. is our biggest com-petitor,” says Stevens. “We needto find ways to have equal inputcosts.”

One wise warning. Don’t con-sider cost as the only determinantof importing products at theexpense of integrated pest man-agement. Rotation in crop chem-istry is crucial in stewardship.

Long-time grower shares first-time lessons in importing miticideSavings go straight to the bottom line

THE GROWER

PAGE 10 –– JULY 2011

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“This process is notsomething you do on

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Page 11: The Grower Newpaper

In mid-season, time is not on your side. But a few last-minute tips from Bernard Pan-neton may save some costly mistakes on the next orchard trip. He’s a Quebec-basedAgriculture and Agri-Food Canada researcher who spoke at last winter’s Ontario Fruitand Vegetable Convention.

Panneton reminds growers that to spray properly, you must move and shake the vege-tation to help the spray penetrate the canopy. You must transport spray to the canopyand promote droplet impaction on the plant.

Through photos and graphs, Panneton showed how air speed can affect success. “Ifyou go too fast, the less vegetation is exposed to spray,” says Panneton. “Air is usefulbut too much is counter-productive. Be sure to confine air flow and spray to the target.This requires less air and generates less drift. Reducing air flow is better than low-driftnozzles alone.”

THE GROWER

JULY 2011 –– PAGE 11

‘More air is not better ’: spray expert

ProGuard Row CoverPremium Frost Protection

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Gintec is a world renowned provider of innovative growing solutionsfrom the ground up!

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Page 12: The Grower Newpaper

Nursery producers interestedin optimizing their efforts to control pests and diseases areinvited to attend a free hands-onsprayer workshop on how toeffectively assess spray equip-ment, coverage and make applications more efficient.

Attendees will receive a work-book package including articlesand OMAFRA factsheets describ-ing the techniques demonstrated.

Please bring sprayer pressure

gauges for a free accuracy testing.

Date: Wednesday, August 3,2011Location: Connon NurseryNVK Holdings – PropagationGreenhouse, Dundas, ON Time: 9:00 to 12:00Please pre-register with Jen @[email protected]

Space is limited to keep theworkshop interactive.

THE GROWER

PAGE 12 –– JULY 2011

Improved IPM in nursery production –sprayer workshop

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DR. JASON S.T. DEVEAU, APPLICATION TECHNOLOGY SPECIALIST

Agricultural herbicide drift hasthe potential to damage neigh-bouring crops and contaminatesensitive environmental areas

such as open water, but itcan also damage gardensand ornamental cropsaround neighbouringhomes.

I visited a home wherethe owner suspected herbi-cide drift from a nearbyfarming operation. In thiscase, the product applied

was most likely clomazome, andit was applied less than five daysbefore the homeowner began tonotice suspicious discolourationsin the gardens.

I’m familiar with the principlesbehind drift, including how far

droplets are capable oftravelling in the rightconditions (see Figure1), but it was still sur-prising to see damagebehind large obstacleslike the home owner’sshed and the houseitself. (Figures 1 and2) What could thespray applicator do toavoid situations likethis in the future? They could:• plant a windbreak, • use drift-reducingnozzles, • install drift shieldson the boom, • keep the boom height at thelowest, practical distance from thetarget,• do not spray when wind isunreasonably high or changeable,and • do not spray when prevailingwind is blowing towards sensitiveareas, such as residential homes.

The importance of good relations between rural and urbanneighbours cannot be overstated –they often prevent situations likethis from escalating. Think ofyour neighbours before you spray.

To find out more about pesti-cide drift, and what to do if yoususpect drift damage, consultOMAFRA factsheet 11-001 “Pesticide Drift from GroundApplications” www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/facts/11-001.htm

Left: Figure 1: Potential drift distance of dropletsTop: Figure 2: Visual damage tovarious ornamentals and weeds

Herbicide drift close to home

Drift-reducing air curtain on afield sprayer.

Page 13: The Grower Newpaper

THE GROWERJULY 2011 –– PAGE 13

NURSERY AND ROOTSTOCK

R.R. #4 Creek RoadNiagara-on-the-Lake, ON. L0S 1J0

Tel: (905) 262-4971Fax: (905) 262-4404

[email protected]

Howard A. ColcucNursery Manager

SPECIALIZING IN FRUITTREES & GRAPE VINES &

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QualityFruit Trees

for 60 years.

Mori Nurseries1695 Niagara Stone Rd., RR#2

Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON L0S1J0 T: 905-468-3217 F: 905-468-7271

Email: [email protected]

MARKETPLACETo advertise phone: 519-380-0118 • 866-898-8488 x 218 • Fax: 519-380-0011

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NEW TURBO-MIST SPRAYERS - VARIETY OF MODELS IN STOCKLOW DRIFT SPRAY TOWERS to fit any TURBO-MIST - IN STOCK NOWTurbo-Mist 600 gal. Narrow, New Centrifugal Pump . . . . . . . . . $12,950Turbo-Mist 500 gal, Narrow, Hydraulic Controls, Used 40 Hrs . . . $16,900Turbo-Mist 400 gal, Big 30” Fan, Almost New . . . . . . . . . . . . . $15,500Wilspray 200 Gal Stainless, Adjustable Outlets Bush Hog 3210 HD Rotary Mower, New Blades, Nice Cond . . . $5,900Perfect ZA380, Kick Wheel, All New Blades (2005) ... . . . . . . . $5,700Seppi 200 Flail Mower, Cut Grass or Mulch Prunings. . . . . . . . $5,500Apple Bin Carriers Tandem Axle, Narrow, Low Profile - Used(Different Models and Prices)New Perfect H.D. Flail Mulchers in StockNew Myers Centrifugal Sprayer Pumps in Stock

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Page 14: The Grower Newpaper

THE GROWER

PAGE 14 –– JULY 2011

MARKETPLACETo advertise phone: 519-380-0118 • 866-898-8488 x 218 • Fax: 519-380-0011

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Supplying Fruit and Vegetable Growers with:

• Baskets • Berry Boxes• Masters • Waxed Cartons• Fertilizer • Crop Protection Material• Vineyard Trellis Supplies

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Page 15: The Grower Newpaper

THE GROWER

MARKETPLACETo advertise phone: 519-380-0118 • 866-898-8488 x 218 • Fax: 519-380-0011

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production with very good varieties including strawberries and youngertrees. List of varieties available with age and quantity of trees, cropsnot included in asking price, but available. Also list of equipment available but not included. The orchard is recognized as the best orone of the best orchards in Ontario.Very good home and storage buildings on property.Great opportunity to get into the business with increased production inthe coming years. Asking $1,300,000.00.Address: 5893 Sawmill Road and 5894 Sawmill Road, RR2 Aylmer,Malahide TWP, Elgin County

JULY 2011 –– PAGE 15

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Page 16: The Grower Newpaper

PAM FISHER, BERRY CROPSPECIALIST AND MICHAELCELETTI, PLANT PATHOLO-GIST, HORTICULTURECROPS PROGRAM LEAD

Heavy rains, standing water,surface water flowing across thefields: these are conditions whichfavour the soil-borne water-moldpathogen Phytophthora. Thispathogen can infect crowns andfruit on strawberries. Watch forthese symptoms after the wild andwet conditions experienced inMay 2011.

Red stele of strawberries:When Phytophthora fragariaeattacks roots, the root hairs rotaway leaving rat-tail symptoms.Roots sliced lengthwise will havea red core but the outer core ofthe root is white. Plants are stunt-ed and sometimes turn a bluishgreen before turning reddish andeventually wilting. Often severelyinfected plants collapse duringfruit development when thedemand for nutrients and waterfrom the compromised roots isgreatest. Watch for this problemto also show up in fall and spring,from infections this year.

Phytophthora crown rot instrawberries: Brunswick, Jeweland Cavendish appear to be espe-cially susceptible to Phytophthoracrown rot. The problem is oftenworse in plasticulture, or wheresurface water flows through afield. Plants are stunted and even-tually collapse. Sometimes small-er branch crowns develop at thebase of the infected crown; theseare weaker and rarely productive.

When the crown is sliced open,reddish discolouration marbledthrough the white crown tissue isa typical symptom. Anthracnosecrown rot has symptoms similarto those caused by Phytophthora,and both diseases should be con-firmed by laboratory tests.

Phytophthora crown rot in straw-berries

Leather rot in strawberries:When Phytophthora spore sacksor zoospores (swimming spores)are splashed onto flower clustersor fruit, leather rot can set in.Blossom clusters turn brown anddie back. Green fruit developpatches of brown discolouration.Infections on ripening fruit appearas dull discoloured areas on thefruit, with a foul odour and taste.Straw mulch really helps preventthis disease. Expect problemswhere the straw has floated away,because exposed soil can besplashed onto the blossom clus-ters and fruit.

Leather rot on strawberry fruit.Photo courtesy Mike Ellis, OhioState University

Phytophthora crown rot in rasp-berries: Primocanes suddenlywilt. On fruiting canes, leavesturn yellowish between the veinsthen brown and dry. Entire canescollapse. Crowns show reddish

brown discolouration when barkis scraped away at soil level.Phytophthora root rot causes sud-den die back of fruiting canes

Phytophthora crown rot inblueberries: Foliage on canesmay turn yellowish, and growth ispoor. Eventually entire canes die

THE GROWER

Symptoms of Phytophthora in berrycrops

PAGE 16 –– JULY 2011

Red stele in the root of strawberry

Typical leaf symptom from Phytophthora infection

Phytophthora causes reddish dis-colouration on raspberry crowns,and is visible when bark isscraped away

back, and leaves turn reddish and dry. Root growth is poor, and roottips become necrotic and brown.

Products registered for control of Phytophthora in berry cropsinclude Aliette and Ridomil. Use these products for diseases listed onthe label.

Aliette WDG: This product is systemic, moving up and down in theplant. It is taken up by plant foliage, and helps to protect the roots andcrown from Phytophthora, but it does not kill the pathogen. Applytwice in spring, to foliage, when there is enough growth for uptake.Apply twice in fall, when soils are wet and cool (usually September-October). Apply at intervals of approx 14-30 days as specified on thelabel.

Ridomil Gold, 480 SL: This product is also systemic, but moves pri-marily up in the plant. It is important to apply it as a drench to the soiland roots. It is toxic to Phytophthora and works because it kills thispathogen, unless resistance has developed from over use. Do not applyin spring before harvest to established raspberries or strawberries.Make fall applications in September and October, when soils are wetand cool.

For resistance management it is best to apply Aliette in the spring andRidomil in the fall.

Use of Aliette WDG on berry crops

Crop Labelled for: Days to harvest(phi)

Max #sprays/yr

Strawberries Red stele 30 days phi Max 4 sprays

Raspberries

Blackberries

Phytophthoraroot rotPythium root rot

60 days phi Max 4 sprays

Blueberries Phytophthoraroot rot

1 day phi Max 4 sprays

Use of Ridomil Gold 480 SL on berry crops

Crop Labelled for: Days to harvest(phi)

Max #sprays/yr

Strawberries Red stele Do not apply beforeharvest

Max 2 sprays

Raspberries

Blackberries

Phytophthoraroot rotPythium root rot

Do not apply beforeharvest

Max 2 sprays

Blueberries Phytophthoraroot rot

80 days Max 1 sprays

OBGA season wrap-upand farm tour: Sept 14

The Ontario Berry Growers’ Association will hold their annual twi-light meeting and get-together at Jennen Market, near Thamesville,September 14, 2011.

This meeting is traditionally a time to get together with other grow-ers and share stories from the season. The farm tour will feature hightunnel production of strawberries and raspberries. For more information, please contact the Ontario Berry Growers Asso-ciation: 613-258-4587 or [email protected]

Page 17: The Grower Newpaper

The spotted wing drosophila(SWD) is a new invasive vinegarfly that attacks soft-skinned fruits.Monitoring for adult SWD isunderway at more than 50 sites inmajor production areas in Ontariowhere susceptible crops aregrown. So far, in Ontario, onlyone fly was detected in November2010, and none have been report-ed in 2011. Watch OMAFRAresources such as the Berry Bul-letin and the Hort Mattersnewsletter for updates on activityof this pest across Ontario.

If SWD does show up in yourarea, it is important to keep popu-lations low with good manage-ment practices. Cultural controlscan help reduce breeding sitesthat contribute to season-longpopulations. By preventing largepopulations of SWD from build-ing up in and around your fields,you may reduce the risk of

extensive damage to your crops.Consider the following practicesas part of an integrated pest

management strategy.1. Management of alternativehost plants in surrounding habitat:

remove fruiting alternative hostssuch as blackberry, raspberry,blueberry and wild cherry fromareas near crops to reduce feedingand breeding sites for SWD.Alternative hosts could be con-trolled by cutting plants downenough to prevent fruiting.2. Sanitation: Where practical,remove or bury cull fruit to elimi-nate additional SWD feeding andbreeding sites. Bury fruit to adepth of more than 30 cm, orsolarize cull piles by coveringwith plastic and sealing the edges.Crushing any fallen fruit will helppromote their dessication andmay reduce their attractiveness asbreeding sites. Keep equipmentand processing areas free of oldfruit.3. Timely harvest: shorten pick-ing interval where possible. Pick

early, clean and often. If SWD adult flies are present

in your area when soft fruit isripening, additional control mea-sures may be required. Severalinsecticides have been registeredthrough the emergency use regis-tration program for 2011.

For more information on SWDmanagement, contact the OntarioMinistry of Agriculture, Food andRural Affairs:Hannah Fraser, EntomologyHorticulture Program Lead (905)562-1674,[email protected] Appleby, IPM Sys-tems Specialist, (613) 475-5850,[email protected] Pam Fisher, Berry Crop Special-ist, (519) 426-2238, [email protected]

THE GROWER

JULY 2011 –– PAGE 17

Tank mixes: labelled versus unlabelledDENISE BEATON, CROP PROTECTIONPROGRAM LEAD, OMAFRA

There can be benefits to tank mixingpest control products. You can save timeand fuel with fewer trips over the crop withthe sprayer. You may be able to controlmore pests. Also, it may be a good resis-tance management or integrated pest man-agement strategy.

Many pest control product labels havedirections for tank mixing two or moreproducts together. These labelled tankmixes were reviewed by the Pest Manage-ment Regulatory Agency (PMRA) anddetermined to be acceptable and to havevalue.

But what about unlabelled tank mixes?Some growers want to apply tank mixes

that do not appear on the product labels. Itwasn’t clear whether growers were allowedto apply these unlabelled tank mixes.In October 2009, the PMRA clarified theirposition regarding the use of unlabelledtank mixes of commercial class pest con-trol products used for crop production andvegetation management. According to thePMRA, growers can apply unlabelled tankmixes, subject to the following conditions:1. Each tank mix partner is registered foruse in Canada on the crop being sprayed,including genetically modified crops. 2. Use an adjuvant only when required byone of the tank mix partner labels. 3. The application timings of all tank mixpartners are compatible with regards tocrop and pest staging. 4. You follow the directions on the label

(for example, Directions for Use, Precau-tions, Buffer Zones, etc.). In cases whereinformation on the tank mix partner labelsdiffers between them, the most restrictivedirections must be followed. 5. Do not mix products if one of the tankmix partners' labels says you should notmix these products together. 6. The use of the tank mix provides addi-tional value to the user (for example,increased scope of pests controlled, con-tributes to resistance management or inte-grated pest management, cost- or time-sav-ings).

Be aware that any person who recom-mends or applies an unlabelled tank mix isresponsible for what happens. They aredoing this at their own risk and are liable,since this tank mix has not been reviewed

by the PMRA.Some negative results that could resultfrom using unlabelled tank mixes are:• reduced control of the targeted pest(s)• crop injury

Ensure that tank mix partners are com-patible (mix well together). Do not useproducts together if you see separation,coagulation, gelling or curdling when theyare mixed.

You can direct any questions on unla-belled tank mixes of commercial class pestcontrol products used in agriculture to thePMRA’s Pest Management InformationService:• By phone: 1-800-267-6315 (within Cana-da) or 613-736-3799 (outside of Canada)• By email: [email protected]

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Heat stress guidelinesThe Ministry of Labour has revised heat guidelines as of May 2011.This guideline is intended to assist employers, workers and other

workplace parties in understanding heat stress, and in developing andimplementing policies to prevent heat stress-related illness in theworkplace. Heat stress can happen when hot, humid conditions andphysical activity overcomes your body’s natural cooling system. Youmight suffer cramps and fainting, or even serious heat exhaustion andheat stroke. Heat stroke can kill quickly.www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/hs/pubs/gl_heat.phpwww.labour.gov.on.ca/english/hs/topics/heatstress.php

Cull piles are a good place for fruit flies to build up quickly. Unmarketable fruit should be buried to a depth of 30 cm.

Management of spotted wing drosophila (SWD) in Ontario

Conference call. Have you considered how the hygiene practices of your workers can directly

impact the safety of the food you produce? Do you wonder what’s involved or even where to begin with afood safety program? Get the answers to these and any other questions you may have about on-farm foodsafety programs, during a lunch hour food safety conference call for the Berry Growers, held on Tuesday,July 19th, 2011 @ 12 noon – 1pm. On-farm food safety specialists will be joining the conference call toprovide answers and support to you for your questions about farm food safety. For more informationregarding the Conference Call, please contact Colleen Haskins at 519-826-3289,[email protected]

Page 18: The Grower Newpaper

THE GROWER

PAGE 18 –– JULY 2011

I had a very sad document passacross my desk this week. It out-lined the loss of a great many ‘oldfriends’ that I had come to rely onin the past. Starting back in the1960s, and up to the present day,these friends have helped me (andyou) deal with crises, calamities,outbreaks of disease, insects andweeds, and other horrible fatesworse than death. In my career Ihave sold them, used them, rec-ommended their use to others,developed educational programsto instill good practice in theiruse, dealt with various pieces oflegislation that sought to elimi-nate or minimize their use andhave encouraged and even con-ducted research to further thebenefits they could provide.

All for nought!It is hard to reconcile the loss

of almost 100 pesticide activeingredients, on the basis of a needfor much more new data to meet

a new standard, when the actualevidence of real-life use patternsof decades in some cases, wouldshow a dearth of reasons to do so.

In my mind’s eye, there isnothing wrong with asking fordata when we know nothingabout a new active. It takes yearsof actual use to learn some thingsabout an active whereas lab workcan expedite the knowledgecurve. However, when we havehad that knowledge curve alreadybased on real-life situations, whydo we need to spend millions ofdollars to develop new data toprove a self-evident truth? Whydo we need to employ thousandsof scientist hours to furtherreview this data? Is there not abetter way?

Any ‘model’ used to predict areal-life condition is only as goodas the data used to develop it andthe data plugged in to get the pre-diction. However, a thoroughreview of real-life situational datacan do it better, and be less likelyto be manipulated to get theresults that someone wants to por-tray! I have a huge problem whenthe conservatism inherent in thesemodels gets multiplied by anotherconservative estimate, timesanother… you get the picture!The estimate becomes so deeplymired in unreal numbers thatnothing resembles the reality!

Most of the products being lostare because the company thatowns them cannot make a busi-ness case to spend the money for

the new data when the product isalready generic, and there is noreasonable way to get a paybackfrom the current marketplace.There is often no actual proof ofharm when using the product as ithas been used for many years.New staff with a different per-spective (world-wide) with newstandards and new ideas have cre-ated what would appear at firstblush to be a ‘better’ and ‘safer’set of regulations that may in facthave made things worse, if a fullcost accounting were to be done!The new standards may not andlikely can not show a ‘safer’regime of pesticide use will resultin betterment of the health ofhumans and the environment.What can be shown is that suc-cessful reductions in overall pesti-cide use in many crops that wehave achieved will go out thewindow! Furthermore, pest resis-tance has and will continue toaccelerate as we are forced to usemore focused actives with a muchnarrower mode of action. This inturn will necessitate the use ofmore products more often thanthe older broad spectrum onesthat are being lost. Furthermore,the residual activity of productsthat was sought for the very rea-son that it did provide longer last-ing effect has now become almostverboten in development labs forfear they cannot pass the newdata requirements. Long lastingeffective treatments mean lessexposure to applicators, they

mean less total applications (sav-ing at least $30 per acre in costsper application alone) plus theassurance that bad weather lateron will not mean the loss of con-trol if the spray window for asubsequent spray is delayed.

There are already too manymyths that have become endemicin the system. One seems to bethat granular insecticides are all‘bad.’ This is patently NOT true,but virtually all of them are nowgone. Another seems to be thatsoil fumigants must be bad for thewater system, yet in routine test-ing (not of known spill sites) theyjust do not show up. (Maybebecause gases rise through thesoil, not migrate downward as alarge volume of liquid might if aspill does occur.) The other oppo-site thesis is that all ‘organic’ or‘natural’ products must be inher-ently safe, and should need littleor no oversight before they areused. The fact is that some ofthese are of a much greater toxici-ty that so-called synthetics!

Another consideration thatdoes not seem to get much shriftis the effect of pesticide educationand training. Our growers are pro-fessionals, and prove it by takingthese courses. The ‘bad old days’when there was virtually no edu-cation available, and labels hadlittle or no information on person-al protective gear are long gone.Products can be used safely todaythat may have been a problem inthe past simply because knowl-

edge was lacking. It seems thatwhile growers have movedonward and upward in theirsophistication and responsibilitywhen using pesticides, “BigBrother” continues to assume thatthey cannot be allowed to contin-ue to use (safely) those productsthat they have been using formany years.

None of this will bring backthese old friends. Companies havebeen forced to drop them and areunlikely to reprise them even ifthe regulators had a change ofheart. When we see a pest issue inthe future that could have beensolved easily and cheaply in thepast, we will remember these oldfriends and mourn their passing.

I can recall how Prof. HaroldGoble at the Ontario AgriculturalCollege used to teach us about thevalue of the organo-chlorineinsecticides and other productsdating back to the 1920s. Theywere already on the way out then-mostly because of resistance.Now their replacements are alsoalmost all gone too. The pests onthe other hand are here to stay,and we are getting new ones freeacross international borders, thatthreaten our livelihoods. Wherewill the next generation of grow-ers find help to control these pestswhen they too lose what theyhave come to rely upon, if thedata requirements eliminate allthe good controls before we eversee them?

Good-bye old friends!

CRAIG’S COMMENTS

Did we really need to lose them?

CRAIG HUNTEROFVGA

MINOR USE

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Tracking grape pestsThis summer, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency

(CFIA) is conducting two grape pest surveys in BritishColumbia and Ontario. According to Charles Lemmon,CFIA horticulture specialist, the first survey is to deter-mine the possible presence in Canada of grapevine virusA, a regulated virus for Canada. CFIA first detected thevirus in a sample of grapevines imported in 2009 fromPépiniére Guillaume Nursery in France.

The objective is to obtain representative leaf samples fromplants that were imported from this nursery, specificallythose grafted on rootstock 3309 cl 144. This is the rootstockthat was carrying the plant found to be infected with this virusand originated from one of a small number of source nurseryblocks in France. The CFIA’s inspection staff will be working withgrapevine importers and growers to specifically locate blocks of these

imported plants. The second survey is a more generaltrapping survey of some commer-cial vineyards and other grapegrowing sites for early detection of

the European grapevine moth, Lobe-sia botrana. To date, this pest has

been found in California. However,CFIA is keeping vigilance for any signsof introduction to Canada. The surveywill be limited to areas that have a cli-

mate considered warm enough to support theinsect through its life cycle.

Grapevine moth

Page 19: The Grower Newpaper

JIM CHAPUT, OMAFRA,MINOR USE COORDINATOR,GUELPH

The Pest Management Regula-tory Agency (PMRA) recentlyannounced the approval of anURMULE registration forMovento 240SC Insecticide forcontrol of swede midge on Bras-sica vegetables, crop group 5 inCanada. The active ingredientspirotetramat was already labeledon a wide range of vegetables,

fruits and field crops.The minor use project for

swede midge on Brassica vegeta-bles was sponsored by the MinorUse office of OMAFRA in 2010as a result of minor use prioritiesestablished by growers and exten-sion personnel. Swede midge hasbeen a devastating new pest ofBrassica crops in Canada inrecent years. This minor use labelexpansion for Movento 240SCinsecticide is a significant steptowards developing an improved

pest management toolkit for thispest in Canada.

The following is provided as ageneral outline only. Users shouldconsult the complete label beforeusing Movento 240SC insecticide.

For swede midge on Brassicavegetables (including broccoli,broccoli raab (rapini), Brusselssprouts, cabbage, cauliflower,cavalo broccolo, Chinese broccoli(gai lon), Chinese mustard cab-bage (gai choy), collards, kale,kohlrabi, mizuna, mustard greens,

rape greens) Movento 240SCinsecticide can be used for controlof swede midge at a rate of 220 –365 mL per ha applied in a mini-mum of 500 L water per ha. Thelabel also recommends the addi-tion of a spray adjuvant such as anon-ionic adjuvant, methylatedseed oil or horticultural oil. Beginapplications when swede midgeare first noticed. Reapply whenmonitoring indicates it is neces-sary but do not apply more thanonce every seven days.

Do not apply more than 730mL per ha per year and do notapply within one day of harvestfor Brassica vegetables.

Movento 240SC insecticideshould be used in an integratedpest management program and inrotation with other managementstrategies to adequately manageresistance.

Follow all other precautionsand directions for use on theMovento 240SC insecticide labelcarefully.

The Pest Management Regu-latory Agency (PMRA) recentlyannounced the approval of anemergency use registration forDelegate WG Insecticide (spine-toram) for control of onion thripson dry bulb onions in Nova Sco-tia, Quebec, Ontario, Manitobaand Alberta. Delegate WG Insec-ticide was already labeled inCanada for control of severalinsect pests on a range of crops.Furthermore a complete minoruse submission is under review toseek eventual, full registration ofDelegate for thrips control on drybulb onions in Canada.

Onion thrips, Thrips tabaci(Lindeman) are a pest of onionsaround the world. In Canada, it isconsidered a key pest whereveronions are grown and the numberone pest of onions in mostprovinces. Various life stages ofonion thrips actively feed ononion leaves, reducing photosyn-thesis, reducing plant vigour andyield, and vector and transmit IrisYellow Spot Virus (IYSV).

In the U.S onion thrips wereranked as the number one pestrequiring urgent attention due tolack of effective solutions at the2005 U.S. IR-4 Food Use work-shop. Rapid resistance develop-ment to all available, registeredmaterials has become widespreadin North America and around theworld. Delegate WG Insecticidewas identified as a viable solutionto help manage onion thrips.

There have been no new prod-ucts registered in Canada foronion thrips management in sev-eral years and control failurescontinue to increase.

The emergency use registra-tion of Delegate WG will help inthe interim to manage resistantthrips populations; however man-agement of onion thrips willrequire a comprehensive IPM andresistance management programwith access to all available toolsand strategies. The following isprovided as general informationonly. Users should consult thecomplete label before using Dele-gate WG.

Delegate WG Insecticide canbe used for control of onion thripsin dry bulb onions in Ontario,Quebec, Nova Scotia, Manitobaand Alberta until October 31st,2011 only. Delegate WG can beapplied at a rate of 200 – 336grams product per hectare in 300

– 500 litres of water per hectare.A maximum of three applicationsper year is permitted at a seven –10 day interval. A three-day pre-harvest interval is permitted.

Follow all other directions for

use on the Delegate WG insecti-cide label carefully.

DelegateWG Insecticideshould be used in an IPM pro-gram and in rotation with othermanagement strategies to ade-

quately manage resistance.For copies of the emergency

use label contact Marion Pai-bomesai, OMAFRA, Guelph(519) 826-4963, Jim Chaput,OMAFRA, Guelph (519) 826-

3539 or visit Dow AgroSciencesCanada Inc. website atwww.dowagro.com/ca

THE GROWER

JULY 2011 –– PAGE 19

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Dry bulb onion growers receive emergency use for thrips

MINOR USE

Insecticide label expanded to control swede midge

Page 20: The Grower Newpaper

Proline fungicide now registered for lowbush blueberriesLowbush (wild) blueberry

growers in Canada finally have anew fungicide for control of cost-ly leaf diseases, with the registra-

tion of Proline fungicide. Prolinewas recently registered through

the User Requested Minor UseLabel Expansion program, result-

ing from collaborative effortsbetween growers, researchers,Agriculture and Agri-Food Cana-da Pest Management Centre, PestManagement Regulatory Agencyand Bayer CropScience.

“Lowbush blueberry growersnow have an effective option tohelp protect against economicallyimportant diseases in the vegeta-tive (sprout) year,” says DavidKikkert, Portfolio Manager, Hor-ticulture with Bayer CropScience.

Proline, a Group 3 fungicide,is registered to help Canadiangrowers protect their lowbushblueberry crop against blueberryrust and Septoria leaf spot. Theseleaf diseases typically occur midseason during the vegetative year,causing early leaf drop anddepleting the plant’s reserves fordeveloping floral buds for thenext season’s crops.

“In the last 10 years, we’veseen an increase in these two leafdiseases that cause the bulk ofdamage to wild blueberry crops,”says Dr. David Percival, WildBlueberry Research Chair at theNova Scotia Agricultural College.Percival has been conducting trialwork with Proline in the Maritimeprovinces since 2008 and says:“The registration of Proline hasreally improved the growth anddevelopment of wild blueberrycrops, and growers are seeingmore consistent and increasedyields. This is an excellent newtool for the wild blueberry industry.”

As with many specialty cropproducts, the registration of Pro-line is the result of collaborationand coordination through the UserRequested Minor Use LabelExpansion program. Percivalspecifically credits Nova Scotiablueberry technical advisor GaryBrown and Bayer CropScience’sAndrew Dornan for helpingjumpstart the minor use registra-tion process.

Proline is also registered onmany other crops. Consult theProline product label for completeapplication rates and recommen-dations at BayerCropScience.ca.Source: Bayer news release

THE GROWER

PAGE 20 –– JULY 2011

JIM CHAPUT, OMAFRA,MINOR USE COORDINATOR,GUELPH

The Pest Management Regula-tory Agency (PMRA) recentlyannounced the approval of aminor use label expansion forBartlett Superior 70 OIL andUAP Superior 70 Oil (mineraloil) as a foliar spray for potatoesto reduce the spread of PVY(potato virus Y) which is vectoredto potatoes by aphids. Superior 70Oil was already labeled in Canadaas a dormant season treatment on

fruit trees and blueberries and as asummer season treatment forselected ornamentals and rutaba-gas.

The minor use projects forpotatoes were jointly sponsoredby Agriculture & Agri-FoodCanada, Pest Management Centre(AAFC-PMC) and the minor useoffice of OMAFRA in 2010 inresponse to minor use prioritiesidentified by producers and exten-sion personnel in Canada.Research work to support thisregistration was carried out byseveral organizations and

researchers in different provincesincluding PEI, New Brunswick,Quebec and Manitoba over thepast several years.

Management of aphid vectorsof PVY on potatoes has been ahigh priority item for a number ofyears and the registration ofSuperior 70 Oil will provide pro-ducers with an effective and use-ful pest management tool.

The following is provided asgeneral information only. Usersshould first consult their cropextension specialists for precisetiming and application informa-

tion and then review the completelabel before using Superior 70Oil.

: since not all potato varietieshave been tested for tolerance toSuperior 70 Oil, first use of Supe-rior 70 Oil should be limited to asmall area of each variety to con-firm tolerance prior to adoption asa general field practice.

Superior 70 Oil can be used onpotatoes as a foliar spray at a rateof 10 L product per ha. Apply insufficient water volume to ensurethorough coverage. Apply at aconcentration of 1% (10 L of

product per 1000 L water) in anapplication volume of 1000 Lwater per ha. Spray at one weekintervals as soon as aphid vectorsare present. A maximum of 10applications is permitted with a14 days to harvest interval.Follow all other precautions anddirections for use on the Superior70 Oil label carefully.

Superior 70 Oil should be usedin an IPM program and in rota-tion with other managementstrategies to adequately manageresistance.

MINOR USE

Emulsifiable mineral oil controls vector for PVY virus in potatoes

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