Fruit Growers News

Michigan hort president tackles issues

When Steve Thome was a teenager, the last thing he wanted to do was run the family farm. Now, as he prepares to take the reins as president of the Michigan State Horticultural Society (MSHS), he knows farming is what he was meant to do. Thome Orchards, near Grand Rapids, Mich., is a family business. Steve’s father, Harold Thome, ran the farm and still works on it, although these days it’s more of a semi-retired role. They farm apples on roughly 115 acres, with some land rented out for cash crops. The apple varieties grown at Thome Orchards include Honeycrisp, Fuji, Jonagold, Cameo, McIntosh, Gala, Paula Red, Golden Supreme, Empire, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious and Rome. As president, Thome wants to continue to serve the horticultural industry in Michigan. He is also looking at furthering research opportunities with Michigan State University (MSU) and working at…  » Read more

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SWD found in Michigan; team planning a response

The Spotted Wing Drosophila (SWD), a pest of Asian origin that is already established in many of the main fruit-producing regions of the United States, has been found in Michigan, according to Michigan State University. SWD is a pest of berry crops, grapes and tree fruit, with a preference for softer-fleshed fruit. A monitoring program for SWD found no flies this past summer, but in late September the first flies, both male and female, were found in traps deployed in southwest Michigan. This was well after harvest of most fruit crops, and no pests were found in any fruit, according to MSU. In October, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service confirmed that SWD had been found in three counties in central Michigan: Ingham, Ionia and Genesee. An SWD Response Team made up of Michigan State University research and Extension staff, the Michigan Department of…  » Read more

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Saskatoons an opportunity for Midwest growers

What do saskatoons and William Shatner have in common? They both originated in Canada. And like Shatner, saskatoons can be a very “enterprising” move for your farm. Will you boldly go where few growers have gone before? Saskatoons are a member of the rose family and related to the apple, mountain ash and hawthorn. They are often compared to a blueberry, due to appearance and nutritional composition, yet it would be more accurate to think of them as a tiny apple, said Sarah Lutz of Saskatoon Project Midwest. Like an apple, saskatoons have seeds, but the seeds are eaten along with the rest of the fruit. This provides a crunchy texture, a high level of fiber and a subtle flavor that many refer to as almond-like. The skin and flesh of the saskatoon is firmer than many other berry fruits, causing the saskatoon to retain…  » Read more

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Bug raising a stink this year

On Sept. 22, nearly 14,000 people visited the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences’ website to learn about the brown marmorated stink bug. The brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) is relatively new to Pennsylvania and the United States. It is known to be a pest in its native range in Asia, but it was first noticed in Pennsylvania only in 1998. The bug has been a nuisance to homeowners for several years. It spends the winter as an adult in sheltered locations, so it begins to congregate on the outside of homes this time of year, and it can find its way inside, to the chagrin of residents. This summer, however, we saw a different side of BMSB. It has emerged as a significant pest of food and feed crops. Fruit growers are noticing serious injury – the BMSB feeds by sucking plant fluids through…  » Read more

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