North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Gord Hawkes" <logcabinorchard@cyberus.ca>]

Hi Tom.  We've identified our practices on our web site
(www.logcabinorchard.com) and have linked to others.  Our controls have
consisted of lime sulphur for early season scab control and liquid sulphur
for blossom and post blossom scab control.  We use molasses as a sticker -
works great.  We hang white cards coated with tanglefoot just prior to bloom
to trap out apple sawfly and tarnished plant bug.  We use concentrated
garlic solution in all our sprays from green tip til three weeks after petal
fall - serves as a great repellent and has anti-fungal properties.  BT is
used as a pre-blossom spray for tent caterpillars and Oblique Banded Leaf
Rollers and post blossom for leafrollers and to some extent coddling moth.
We also do trichogramma releases post blossom in excess of a 100,000/acre x
3.  Diatomaceous earth is used when pest pressure is greatest but only
sparingly.  For apple maggot fly control we hang yellow cards and red
spheres coated with tangle foot - in our 1,000 tree orchard we strategically
hang 100 of each.  Both fish emulsion and seaweed extract are tank mixed
with other controls prior to blossom and post blossom.  One pest that can be
problematic using organic controls is curculio - our Emarcan cousins can use
Surround but not yet registered here in Canada Eh?

Epson salts (magnesium)and boron are applied a couple times through the
summer and calcium later summer.

This might sound like a considerable amount of work but most products can be
tank mixed together.

Now having said all this I must agree with Ed - we have been hard at this
organic apple growing for 4+ years and last year we got hit with scab that
resulted in no crop.  This year we had considerable damage to our blossoms
from blossom blast - we're learning as we go that the conversion to organic
is a long process and just when you think you got it right - pow something
new comes along.  But, that's the life of a farmer - not just organic.

Best regards,


Gord Hawkes
Log Cabin Orchard
www.logcabinorchard.com
Osgoode, Ontario
Canada, Eh?

-----Original Message-----
From: Thomas Olenio [mailto:tolenio@sentex.net]
Sent: Wednesday, June 06, 2001 8:25 AM
To: nafex@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [nafex] Modified Approach? apples


Hello All,

Does anyone have a modified program for protecting apples, which combines
the best of organic practices, with the lightest, most effective spray
program?

There must be a middle ground somewhere between the two techniques.  They
need not be polar extremes.

I would love to read some of these combinations, and the rational behind
them.

Regards,
Tom

--
Thomas Olenio
Ontario, Hardiness Zone 6a




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