“A Seed for Thought” Randy Cubbage, County Extension Agent
Wednesday, June 16, 2004 Clemson Extension, Bishopville
The Clemson Extension Office in Bishopville, and I expect other county seats, is beginning to take in insect samples and calls about vegetable problems. One nuisance in 2002 that was fairly uncommon in this area until recent years was the Japanese beetle. After taking a sabbatical in 2003, this pest is back and they seem to come in twos. This small metallic-looking (gold and green) beetle likes lots of host plants and their fruits, be it blackberries, roses, plums, and the list goes on to include sweet corn, field corn, cotton plants, and more. The small beetle looks like a miniature June bug. They enjoy the foliage just as much as the fruit.
There are non-toxic traps available with very sweet-smelling lures to attract them into a plastic bag which you need to check and dump often. These lures are so effective, if you spend too much time putting the trap together, the beetles will light all over you, once the lure has been opened. The only catch to using the lure is it will attract these beetles from other areas, so you might end up with more than you actually had in your immediate surroundings. They know how to multiply. If you must resort to insecticide spray, carbaryl (active ingredient in Sevin products) is an excellent product. These treatments may have to be repeated later, so remember to read the label. Edible fruit treated with carbaryl may have a 7 day waiting period after being treated before it is legal to harvest, so keep this in mind if you have perishable fruit. You may be better off to put up with the lures which really do an excellent job. Just remember not to put these traps too close to the infested plants or fruit since the attractant is so strong, you may get a larger infestation. They do seem to prefer the host plant or fruit when they have a choice.
Now that we know how to address the problem of Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus in our tomatoes via resistant varieties, the common bacterial wilt seems to be running rampant this season, at least in my own patch. Symptoms of the disease are a drooping plant that happened overnight and once the stem has been cut across a few inches above the ground, a brown area will be noticed inside all the way around the stem. Once the plant begins the droop, you can take off your best tomatoes and pull up the plant. It will only get worse. This disease will spread in the soil from plant to plant as the roots die, and water is an excellent carrier for the pathogen. So, you water the plants to keep them healthy and they die faster if the disease is present. The TSWV disease only spreads to other tomato, tobacco, and potato plants if pathogen-toting thrips visit another plant. Bacterial wilt just keeps moving in the soil from root to root. What do you do to get rid of it? Don’t really know if you ever will, but Clemson folks advise to keep tomatoes off the infested area for at least three years. Pulling out the infested, drooped plants as soon as possible will help prevent the pathogen from spreading. This will help but probably not totally get rid of the pathogen.
If you are a grower/operator of a confined animal facility (specifically poultry, swine or dairy) and you have not been certified in the CAMM program (Confined Animal Manure Manager) the last training sessions are coming up next week before the deadline of June 28th approaches. A swine training class will be offered June 22nd and poultry on June 23rd at the Sandhill Research & Education Center’s Lakehouse between Pontiac and Columbia. You need to pre-register in order to have a manual prepared for you. The fee is $55 per person. The number to call is 864-984-2514. Bryan Smith, Clemson Extension agent, is in charge of the training, and several instructors will participate. There are currently 51 swine growers and 48 poultry growers signed up for the two sessions. If you are permitted by SCDHEC, you are required to attend the CAMM training by June 28th, 2004 if you have not already done so.