Extension Update by Gary Zoubeck [April 30, 2015]

Coming Events

April 29, Eileen Krumbach’s Retirement Reception, 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., 4-H Building

May 18, Extension Board Meeting, 8:00 p.m., Extension Office, York

Cropping Update

It was nice to again get a little additional rain this past week.  At the office we received .60”.  It slowed planting a little, but it looks like producers will be able to make great progress this week unless weather predictions change.  It’s always difficult to accurately predict planting progress.  I’m guessing we’ve planted between 40-50% of the corn here in the York area with only a few of the soybeans planted.

I’m guessing the majority of corn will be planted this week with many producers getting started with soybeans planting.  I would encourage all area producers to continue to check CropWatch http://cropwatch.unl.edu for the latest cropping information.  Soil temperatures for the week in the York area averaged 53.8 °F just slightly below our normal temperatures.  Please check out the “Soybean Planting Tips for Optimal Yield. Eight factors to consider or implement this planting season” article!  We are continuing to see soybeans being planted earlier and earlier over the years!  With today’s economics it’s important to maximize yield and minimize inputs.

Last Monday Ray and Ron Makovicka and I got the York County Corn Grower plot planted.  It’s a ridge till system into soybean residue.  Soil conditions were really great.  We’ll see how soon it emerges.  I’m sure it will be among some of the earliest planted corn in the area.

Lawn and Garden Update

Did the wet/damp weather mess up your mowing schedule?  It’s really important to be timely with your mowing and follow the 1/3 rule.  You should never remove more than 1/3 of the leaf surface at one time.   It’s important to maintain a sharp mower blade by sharping it on a regular basis.

Last week I visited a little about the two of the three major diseases we are seeing on pines trees.  Those two diseases are diplodia and dothistroma needle blight.  The most distinguishing characteristic of Diplodia  blight is the presence of dead, stunted needles at the tips of branches (hence the common name, “tip blight”).   The needles die in spring when the developing shoots are attacked and killed by the fungal pathogens.  Another identifying characteristic is the presence of tiny black structures resembling pepper grains on the base of stunted needles and on the ends of cone scales.  This is the reproductive stage of the Diplodia fungus.  These structures release billions of spores that can initiate new infections.

The second disease we’ve seen is Dothistroma needle blight.  If you are wanting to control these two diseases, several fungicides will do the job, but timing is important.  We would suggest applications made about the third week of April just before the needles emerge, about 14 days later with a third application in late June.

For more information about products and controlling these diseases, goto:

http://nfs.unl.edu/documents/foresthealth/Diplodia%202012%20June.pdf

http://nfs.unl.edu/documents/foresthealth/diseasesevergreen.pdf

I should also share information of the third and most serious disease we’ve been seeing.  It is Pine Wilt which is spread by pinewood nematodes.  It has been killing many of our Scotch pines, but can also kill other pines.  Pine wilt typically kills pines with a few weeks to months after the nematodes is introduces to the tree by pine sawyer beetles.  Initially the needles turn grayish green, then tan and finally brown.  The majority of the trees affected are 10 years old or more.

If your turns brown rapidly, pine wilt is probably the leading suspect.  If you suspect pine wilt, collect a disk of wood from a branch 2-3” in diameter and bring it into our office.  We can then have it tested for this pest.

If your tree does have pine wilt, to help prevent the spread of this disease to healthy tree, you should remove and destroy the diseased tree before pine sawyer beetles emerge from the trees.  Trees dying between May 1 and October 1^st should be cut down promptly and burned, buried or chipped.  Do not hold onto the wood for firewood because the beetle can still emerge from the wood.  Trees that die after October 1^st do not need to destroyed immediately because the beetles will not emerge until around the end of April, so they should be removed and destroyed by then.

For more information go to:  http://www.ianrpubs.unl.edu/epublic/live/g1899/build/g1899.pdf or http://nfs.unl.edu/publications.asp

How’s your garden doing?  Did the frost get any of your cool season crops?  I’ve received a few calls about black potatoes, but not too many.  I’m pretty sure that those potatoes will be ok.  For future reference if they’re predicting cold temperatures, just hoe a little soil onto they, they’ll be fine and won’t freeze.  I don’t think we had any damage in my garden.  In fact just yesterday a few of my early planted snap beans were just beginning to poke out of the soil.  We still may get a frost so we’ll see how they do?  As I mentioned last week, our typical last spring 32°F date is April 22^nd in our area, but we all know that we can have frost well into May!

Finally it’s that time of year when we can be thinking about some of our warm season veggies/fruits like tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and cucumbers and other vine crops.  What’s your favorite garden plant?  I could chose many, typically the first of the season for each.

When planting transplants, a little protection can go a long way.  I recycle gallon milk jugs, they make great mini hothouses. For a copy my suggested planting guide goto:  http://york.unl.edu/water-environment and click on the appropriate link.

Do you want to stay up to date with the latest horticulture information? Check out our NE Extension Horticulture Update page at: http://hortupdate.unl.edu/home.  The April 20^th update covered 28 topics include:

Lawns

1. Crabgrass and soil temperature F
2. PRE products and overseeding
3. Dandelion/broadleaf weed control
4. Repairing salt/plow damaged strips
5. White grubs in spring

Trees & Shrubs

6. Winter desiccation
7. Only new growth of yews brown
8. Siroccocus spruce tip blight
9. Trunk frost cracks
10. Dormant oil vs. horticultural oil

Landscape Ornamentals

11. Pruning roses
12. Pruning ground cover ivy
13. Dividing perennials
14. Mulching perennials
15. Weed control for landscape beds
16. Iris borer control.
17. Peony blights
18. Hosta virus X
19. Bacterial crown gall management
20. Rose rosette

Fruits & Vegetables

21. Basil downy mildew management
22. Fire blight management
23. Spotted wing drosophila management
24. Planting bare root fruit trees and container plants
25. Disinfecting tomato cages and supports

Miscellaneous

26. DriftWatch Specialty Crop Registry
27. Odorous house ant control
28. Watch for emerging beneficial insects

Lots of great information this month!  I hope you’ll check them out.  For example the first article about crabgrass germination.

“Research shows crabgrass seed germination begins when the average daily soil temperatures reach 57 to 64 °F at a one-inch depth although large quantities of crabgrass seedlings will not begin germinating until soil temperatures increase to 73 °F or above at a one-inch depth.  As of April 26^th, the 7 day average for soil temperatures at a four inch depth on bare soil ranged in York averaged 54 °F.

In Nebraska, crabgrass seed germination typically begins sometime in May and continues well into June and beyond. This is why the recommended window for application of preemergence herbicides (PREs) applied by do-it-yourself (DIY) homeowners is mid-April to early May across Nebraska, and about one week later for western Nebraska. This is early enough for PREs to activate, but late enough for the product to remain effective during the active germination period. Most products that we recommend to homeowners are active for about 60 days.”

If you’d like to be updated when new items are posted, you can register for a subscription at: http://hortupdate.unl.edu/hortupdatesubscription.