Today’s episode of the Orchard Outlook podcast is all about the annoying and persistent disease powdery mildew, folks. It’s there flagging shoots and curling leaves leading to some ghostly-looking Honeycrisp and Cortland trees. Today’s guests Dr. Kerik Cox and graduate student David Strickland are like ghost busters researching management strategies for tree fruit diseases like powdery mildew to bust away those white and fuzzy symptoms. Guest: Dr. Kerik Cox is an associate professor in the School of Integrative Plant Science Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology Section at Cornell AgriTech. To address pain points for growers, he wields his pathology expertise to focus on antimicrobial resistance and very applied disease management. In his extension appointment, he also focuses on pesticide education and disease forecasting. David Strickland is a Ph.D. candidate in Kerik’s program and his focus is apple powdery mildew. He’s investigating applied solutions for the management of this disease including field trials to explore efficacy and optimize fungicide applications and work on disease resistance. Website: www.perennia.ca Host: Michelle Cortens, Tree Fruit Specialist Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

Orchard Outlook

E10 S2. Ghosts and Skeletons of Powdery Mildew

In today’s episode, we find out juicy information about local food. We check in with our guest Patrick Kelly about the buy local program, how local food is defined, in-store signage, and some pandemic response. Nova Scotians want to buy local and our guest explains how buy local promotion is helping customers identify and purchase local food products in retail stores. Guest: Patrick Kelly is the Buy Local Development Officer for Perennia and the NS Department of Agriculture. His work on the Buy Local marketing team has contributed to the development of effective marketing initiatives, aimed at creating a recognizable brand for Nova Scotians to feel confident in their decisions when purchasing high quality, locally grown and produced, Nova Scotia food and beverages. Show notes: A directory of food and beverage businesses in Nova Scotia: https://buylocal.novascotia.ca Website: www.perennia.ca Host: Michelle Cortens, Tree Fruit Specialist Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

E9 S2. Loving Local Food

As I was driving to a farm this month, I listened to our very first episode from 2019 about fire blight. Not only is it our most popular episode but it’s also timely. So I’ve decided to release this episode to revisit my conversation with Dr. George Sundin. This episode is oozing with information about bacterial growth on flowers and in trees, misconceptions, trauma blight, and why antibiotics need to be timely. Guest: Dr. Sundin is a Professor of Plant Pathology and runs the Tree Fruit Pathology Lab at Michigan State University.  He performs extension and research in tree fruit disease control including management of fire blight, fungicide resistance, and the evaluation of new bactericides and fungicides. Website: www.perennia.ca Host: Michelle Cortens, Tree Fruit Specialist Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

E8 S2. Don’t play with fire blight (ENCORE)

In this episode, I forecast that you’ll learn a lot about weather stations. Their components. How to site them for reliable results. Installing and maintaining them. I sense a clear conversation about collecting weather information with our guest, Jonathan Buffet. Guest: Jonathan Buffett is the founder and manager of the Cape Breton Mesonet, a network of community-owned and operated weather stations in Cape Breton and the eastern mainland. Jonathan also works as a Meteorological Inspector for Environment and Climate Change Canada by day. Born and raised in Nova Scotia, he is extremely passionate about our local climate, focusing mainly on data collection at the mesoscale/micro-climate level. Show notes: Cape Breton Mesonet: www.capebretonweather.ca In this podcast, Perennia representatives mention the Davis Vantage Pro 2 weather station but it is neither an endorsement of the technology nor a suggestion that similar technologies are ineffective. Website: www.perennia.ca Host: Michelle Cortens, Tree Fruit Specialist Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

E7 S2. Welcoming Weather Stations

This episode is Part 2 of 2 on effective and efficient spraying. If you haven’t listened to Part 1 you should give it a go first. In Part 2 now, the stories about spraying continue, with our guest Dr. Jason Deveau. He will answer confusing questions about spray concentration and then explain crop-adapted spraying. Guest: Dr. Jason Deveau is the application technology specialist with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, or he is more commonly known as spray guy. Jason has literally written the book on airblast spraying and he joins us after recently publishing the second edition with colleagues. Show notes: Airblast 101 book: https://sprayers101.com/airblast101/ Sprayers 101 website: https://sprayers101.com Micron woman comic book: https://sprayers101.com/micronwoman/ Exploding sprayer myths videos: https://sprayers101.com/articles/multimedia/myths/ Snapcard app: https://www.agric.wa.gov.au/grains/snapcard-spray-app Website: www.perennia.ca Host: Michelle Cortens, Tree Fruit Specialist Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

E6 S2. Part 2 Still Speaking of Sprayers

In episode Part 1 of 2, our guest Dr. Jason Deveau blasts through common questions about spraying. Don’t let your thoughts drift through the air as we cover goodies like pesticide labels, leaf area coverage, product concentration, and the practicality of making adjustments. We certainly won’t drench you with information. We’ve got our eye on the target, and that’s effective and efficient spraying. Guest: Dr. Jason Deveau is the application technology specialist with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, or he is more commonly known as spray guy. Jason has literally written the book on airblast spraying and he joins us after recently publishing the second edition with colleagues. Show notes: Airblast 101 book: https://sprayers101.com/airblast101/ Sprayers 101 website: https://sprayers101.com Micron woman comic book: https://sprayers101.com/micronwoman/ Exploding sprayer myths videos: https://sprayers101.com/articles/multimedia/myths/ Snapcard app: https://www.agric.wa.gov.au/grains/snapcard-spray-app Website: www.perennia.ca Host: Michelle Cortens, Tree Fruit Specialist Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

E5 S2. Part 1 Speaking of Sprayers

There is a real science to disrupting fertilization to keep early flowers and remove late flowers. Yes, the timing is uncomfortable, and the results can be inconsistent, so we’ll explore one way to improve our confidence with this process – the pollen tube growth model (PTGM). Guest: Michael Basedow is the Tree Fruit Specialist with the Cornell Cooperative Extension and part of a regional program called the Eastern New York Commercial Horticulture Program. Michael was recently featured in an article for his work on trialing a decision-support tool for blossom thinning. Show notes: Article by The Good Fruit Grower “Thinning decisions by the numbers”: https://www.goodfruit.com/thinning-decisions-by-the-numbers/ Network for Environment and Weather Applications (NEWA): http://newa.cornell.edu Website: www.perennia.ca Host: Michelle Cortens, Tree Fruit Specialist Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

E4 S2. Don’t sneeze at blossom thinning

Today’s guest is going to filter through the horticultural information to give us a taste of growing fruit for hard cider. In this episode we’ll focus on the production challenges and economics of growing specialized cider varieties. The information might be refreshing or sobering! Guest: Dr. Gregory Peck is an assistant professor of horticulture at Cornell University in the School of Integrative Plant Science. A common thread across his research is to facilitate economic sustainability in the tree fruit industry. He was awarded Grower Advocate of the year in 2018 by the American Cider Association. Website: www.perennia.ca Host: Michelle Cortens, Tree Fruit Specialist Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

E3 S2. Bitter and Sweet Sides of Cider

Bernard came recommended for his research on climate resilience in food systems. He has heard from our local growers in Eastern Canada and is interested in grower-led solutions. Prepare to value your local knowledge and learn what you have to offer in climate discussions. Guest: Bernard Soubry is a writer, a researcher, and a hiatused farming apprentice torn between Oxford, UK, and Eastern Canada. His current research focuses on how food systems can adapt to climate change. Website: www.perennia.ca Host: Michelle Cortens, Tree Fruit Specialist Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

E2 S2. Confronting Climate

Dr. Denise Neilsen understands root architecture and she uses that knowledge to help explain the precision management of water and nutrients. She explains the effect of drought stress and why the timing and frequency of irrigation matters. Guest: Dr. Denise Neilsen is a retired Research Scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Summerland, British Columbia. She was the co-recipient of the IFTA Research Award in 2014 and the distinguished Carlson Lecturer. Website: www.perennia.ca Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

E1 S2. Rooting for Water Management

Dr. Agnello joins us at a time when orchards full of tender young leaves are susceptible to damage by potato leafhopper. He brings an entomology lens to the issue and isn’t fooled by hopperburn. Guest: Dr. Arthur Agnello is the Tree Fruit Extension Entomologist at Cornell AgriTech in Geneva, New York – and you might recognize him as the editor of the Scaffolds newsletter. His interest in insects led him to his longstanding role in research and extension. Website: www.perennia.ca Follow us on Twitter: @nsperennia @nstreefruit Connect with us on: Instagram: @nsperennia Facebook: @nsperennia Music: A Sunny Day by J. Tones Logo Created by: Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. Email us at: info@perennia.ca

Stop the Hop

Dr. Peter explores the fuzzy fungi that cause powdery mildew and a slew of summer rots including black rot and bitter rot. Then shifting our focus from fungal diseases to bacterial, she explains how to curb the spread of a tumour-like growth known as crown gall and infamous fire blight infections. Dr. Kari Peter is an Associate Research Professor of Tree Fruit Pathology who loves to help with a burning question about tree fruit diseases! She is located at the Penn State Fruit Research and Extension Center in Biglerville, Pennsylvania.

Dealing with Diseases

Tom shares insights from his research program that is focused on replant management for perennial fruit crops and the ecology and management of plant-parasitic nematodes. Tom explains exactly who is taking microscopic munches out of your root systems and feeding on productivity. Dr. Tom Forge is a research soil ecologist and nematologist for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, at the Summerland Research and Development Centre. He’s captivated by the diversity of micro-animals in the soil – especially nematodes that are economically important plant parasites.

Microscopic Meddlers Part 2

Keith describes why digging for facts is better than jumping to conclusions – because replant disease acts in concert with adverse soil properties. Learn how to modify the soil in a replant situation and have your questions answered about soil fumigation. Keith Fuller is a soil research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada based out of Nova Scotia. He is a familiar face in our local apple industry, fascinated with soil, and currently involved in a project on replant disease.

Microscopic Meddlers Part 1

Jon gets techy – in an approachable way – by explaining what tools are available to tree fruit growers. Make your smartphones smart by downloading tools for pest modeling, predicting fruit set, and pocket pathology. Jon Clements is an Extension Educator for commercial tree fruit growers with the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Apart from the usual farm calls and meetings, he has an interest in computers that has helped him embrace decision-support tools.

Downloading Decisions

Tangible, practical advice and information. Orchard Outlook is a podcast by Perennia Food and Agriculture Inc. hosted by our Tree Fruit Specialist, Michelle Cortens. These insightful discussions can help any grower navigate commercial tree fruit production for sweet success. Perennia is a technical development agency based in Nova Scotia, Canada with the mission to help farmers, fishers and food processors be more prosperous and profitable.

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Orchard Outlook

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