In today’s Almond Matters, brought to you by Valent U.S.A., growers are struggling to work around challenges with waterlogged orchards. Several storm systems over the past several weeks have significantly altered management practices. Field Market Development Specialist with Valent U.S.A., Todd Burkdoll said that disease pressures will likely be high this year based on damp conditions. Growers will want to work as quickly as possible in between rain events to get preventative applications out in orchards.
“If it saturated soils in where it was flooded and you can get that water off, it might be advantageous to put on a soil-applied, or systemic fungicide to take care of the likes of phytophthora, and fusarium, and Rhizoctonia, and pythium, and all these soil-borne pathogens that will proliferate in those wet and soggy conditions,” Burkdoll explained. “There are tools out there. The key is getting them on as fast as you can before the disease has a chance to infect.”
The excessively wet orchard conditions continue to create issues for growers looking to make applications. Some preventative approaches have been hindered by the lack of ability to get spray rigs into an orchard. Burkdoll said there are a lot of preventative materials that are available to growers who have the ability to make applications. Growers will be best served by getting into the orchard as soon as possible, with applications of materials that will not wash away with rain.
“Quash is one of Valent’s products. It’s a very powerful triazole fungicide. So I would use something in that realm. A contact that won’t wash off and then something that’s systemic that will get in there and keep the plant clean,” said Burkdoll. “And because we’ve had so much water, we’re probably going to see some bacterial diseases that pop their heads up this year as well. Again, it’s going to depend on the weather going forward and how much more rain we get.”
Listen to the report below.