CaroVail Agronomy Update May 29, 2015

CaroVail Agronomic Technical Service Group

In 2015 CaroVail expands its Agronomic Technical Service Team. The team’s mission is to evaluate program, and product performance, develop cropping strategies, and assist growers with crop decisions to ensure economic, agronomic, and environmental success. We welcome this year’s summer intern assistants: Meagan Chittenden, Kassidy Hitt, Dana Kupiec and Kate Vail.

Meagan Chittenden: Meagan comes to CaroVail from her home on Dutch Hollow Farm in Schodack Landing, NY where she has grown up with a fine herd of Jersey cattle. Growing up on the farm has afforded Meagan with hands on experience not only with cattle but with crop production and harvest practices. Meagan attends SUNY Cobleskill where she is working on her bachelor’s degree in Ag Business with a minor in AAS in Sustainable Crop Production.

Kassidy Hitt: Kassidy is from Hoosick Falls, NY and is a junior at Cornell University, majoring in Animal Science/Animal Nutrition with a focus on Dairy Nutrition. Kassidy’s experience feeding and caring for livestock on local dairy operations, as well as assisting with field operations, gives her a keen insight of the need to produce high quality forage.

Dana Kupiec: Dana returns for her second season field scouting for CaroVail. Although a coaching major at SUNY Cortland, her field experience has proven invaluable. Dana from Salem, NY navigates easily throughout Washington County and eastern New York. With her past experience and knowledge of local cropping practices and attention to detail, she gathers pertinent field information.

Katherine Vail: Kate is from Saratoga Springs, NY and will be a junior at Cornell University majoring in Animal Science with a minor in Ag Business. Kate, a third generation in the CaroVail family, is an excellent horseperson, has a keen eye for cattle, posseses a strong agronomic heritage, and brings a real enthusiasm to the field.
We welcome these talented individuals to the Agronomic Technical Service Team. We look forward to assisting our growers to meet their Economic, Agronomic and Environmental needs and goals.

The Potato Leafhopper

The potato leafhopper feeds on over 100 cultivated and wild plants including alfalfa, clover, eggplant, potatoes, soybeans, snap beans, apples, and grapes. The adults arrive in the north at the end of April and early May on the winds and weather currents from their usual overwintering areas in the south. Recent warm weather conditions originating around the Gulf of Mexico streaming north are the perfect conduit for their transportation north for the summer.

Upon arrival, the adults begin to lay eggs on the stems of host plants laying 3 to 4 eggs per day per individual, with a life expectancy of one month that’s potentially a lot of eggs. The nymphs emerge and begin the feeding frenzy and are the source of the most damage. The feeding nymphs inject a toxin into the plant decreasing the plants ability to produce photosynthate, which is a sugary substance made during photosynthesis that growing plants break down and use as an energy source.

If dry conditions persist this will be another stress to the regrowth of alfalfas and clovers and possibly an additional stress to other host plants. Scouting fields will allow you to determine if a control will need to be instituted. Sweeping regrowth and new seedings to determine thresholds, as well as close examination of leaves on effected crops, will drive treatment decisions.