Orchard Outlook Newsletter Vol. 25, No 12

Wednesday, July 2, 2025

Today's newsletter begins with a return to weather and degree day updates! Plus, the start of July signals that the fruit cuticle is protected enough to consider Folpan/Follow as a fungicide. Be mindful of maintaining fungicide protection to prevent summer diseases. Information is shared on apple maggot that is an upcoming concern following codling moth management. Also, keep in mind that this heat and dry weather creates ideal conditions for mite populations to double in 7-10 days. Plus, recent field visits have led to interesting field observations that I am sharing for your general knowledge.

The Orchard Outlook Committee met for the final time this spring/summer and will reconvene in a few weeks' time for preharvest discussions. *** Please note that this will be the last weekly issue of Orchard Outlook for the summer. Orchard Outlook will continue to be published occasionally for the remainder of the season. ***

Weather

2025 Degree Day Accumulations

The cumulative degree days are ahead of the 5- and 10-year averages (Figure 1). Jeff Franklin notes that, "The extreme events are 'pulling up the average' in terms of temperature. The average temperature for June was 17.2 °C compared to the 25-year average of 16.3 °C. The 3-month and 30-day seasonal forecasts from Environment and Climate Change Canada suggest that warmer than average temperatures will continue for the rest of the summer."

Figure 1: Heating degree day accumulations for plant (above 5°C) and insect (above 10°C) development from March 1 to July 1 for the past 17 seasons. Provided by Jeff Franklin (AAFC Plant Physiology).

Approximately 4% more plant development heat units compared to the 5-year average, and 11% more compared to the 10-year average.
Approximately 1% less plant development heat units compared to 2024, and 16% more compared with 2023.
Approximately 1% more insect development heat units compared to the 5-year average, and 11% more compared to the 10-year average.

2025 Precipitation Update

Jeff Franklin summarizes that, "The total precipitation for June was 50.5 mm, compared to the 25-year mean of 98.9 mm. Most of the total precipitation for the month was received on June 7/8 when we received 37.9 mm. This has left us with very little rain to compensate for the hot dry weather at the end of the month."

Diseases

Apple – Scab

Where primary lesions are present, secondary infections have been occurring and will continue during wetting events of sufficient duration. The minimum wetting required for secondary infections is 3 hours less than the wetting required for primary infections.

Recommendations:

Please note that fungicide residues are washed off by a cumulative total of 50 to 60 mm of rain (2 to 2.5 inches). Summer diseases are a risk if spray programs are stretched to the limit.
If adopting a lengthened spray interval, once the 10-day interval has been reached it is better to re-apply fungicide protection prior to rainfall/possible infection rather than after.
Folpan/Follow becomes a good option at this time of the year for scab control and protection from summer diseases. Note the REI of 12 hrs for general activities and 6 days for hand thinning. Folpan/Follow is considered a cousin to Captan and is similarly a hot product that has the potential to cause fruit russetting. Do not use Folpan close to oil sprays or products containing surfactants. Also, be wary of tank mixes with liquid nutrients that are formulated to maximize uptake.
Be aware of the re-entry periods on products for hand thinning. Captan has an REI of 15 days for high density plantings and 24 days for low-density plantings. Alternatively, the product Allegro is a quick re-entry product at only 24 hours but note the 28-day preharvest interval.

Apple – Powdery Mildew

Powdery mildew infections can be expected when conditions are warm (10-25°C), humid and dry.

Recommendations:

Conditions in June were conducive to powdery mildew infections on newly developing tissue. These ongoing hot, humid, and dry conditions continue to be conducive to new infections during active shoot growth.
Trees are susceptible to powdery mildew infections for as long as new leaves are forming on growing shoots (until terminal bud set).

Protection may continue on young plantings because severe infections can reduce shoot growth, which is most concerning for young, non-bearing orchards. Continuing protection this season will prevent infection of next year's buds (to protect next year's growth), and result in less carryover of inoculum to next year. Pay particular attention to susceptible and high-value varieties such as Honeycrisp and Gala. Product reapplication intervals can vary from 7-14 days.
On large and mature bearing apple trees, the main economical concern is in protecting fruit against infection. Fruit infection causes stunting and russeting. However, fruit are only susceptible to infection during and shortly after bloom. The russet stretches as the fruit expands. Fruit are no longer at risk of infection.

There is industry resistance to group 11 products such as Flint so it should not be used for powdery mildew management.
To avoid resistance development, do not use any products with powdery mildew activity more than two times consecutively (without rotating to another chemical group with powdery mildew activity).

Apple – Fire Blight Blossom Blight

Current and Forecast Blossom Blight Risk

As far as I'm aware, the new plantings have finished flowering and I will stop industry-wide email alerts.
If you have a situation with blossoms still present please contact me directly for blossom blight updates on an as-needed basis. The current prediction is for the heat this week to continue to cause rapid bacterial growth on open blossoms and any wetting would trigger infection.

Fire Blight - Infection Management

Blossom blight infections are being reported in apples and pears.

Recommendations:

Monitor for shoot blight on suckers that can infect the rootstock.
Cut out infections when a period of 2 dry days are in the forecast. Leave prunings in orchard laneways to let dry thoroughly for several weeks. If cutting a whole tree consider letting it dry while attached to the trellis. Don’t make piles that will prevent the wood from drying. Do not work in trees when they are wet from dew.
As soon as you find fire blight infections, use an application of Apogee/Kudos (prohexadione calcium). Use a lower rate if trees have not filled their space or the full rate if tree growth is not an issue. The benefits of Apogee/Kudos:

Helps suppress the progression of infection to buy you time for cutting it out.
Builds protection in nearby trees that may not yet be infected so that if infection were to occur, the spread would be already slowed. Where infections are numerous, apply prohexadione calcium to the entire block considering that ooze can infect at a distance of at least 0.8 km away.
Reportedly has the potential to reduce or prevent canker incidence on perennial wood.

To save time, it is not necessary to sterilize the tools often as long as all of your cuts are in fire blight areas and during dry weather. Several research studies have concluded a lack of benefit from sanitizing tools. Where there is a tradeoff because of limited labour, it is best to work quickly rather than to sanitize tools.
Do not break off branches with fire blight infections as you navigate the orchard. Research shows that the bacteria becomes systemic in the tree because branches are not adequately removed. There are then a high number of new infections and significantly more canker tissue and cankers on structural wood.
Prune out fire blight infections on young trees in the current year, don't wait for winter.
Remove fire blight strikes at least 2-4 ft below active infections to remove the leading edge of the bacteria. The younger the tree, the deeper the cut. Being aggressive at the first sign of symptoms will help prevent the re-occurrence of symptoms and the need for continuous cutting back. Repeat tree inspections.
If you feel confident that you can monitor the formation of a canker on a stub cut for later removal, then a stub cut may be appropriate. A 4-inch stub cut causes a canker to form on the stub before reaching structural wood like the leader of the tree. However, do not forget to remove the stub because otherwise the canker will serve as a source of bacteria. Mark the tree for revisiting.

Apple – Black Rot

Recommendations:

Based on our limited knowledge, the highest risk of infections is theoretically between petal fall and 4-6 weeks later.

A 10 hr wetting period at 16°C to 32°C allows infection.
The optimum temperature for infection is 20°C to 24°C.
There are few management options to cover such a long risk period. Captan has activity but note the REI for orchard activities. Merivon has activity but this group 7 + 11 product should not be used more than 4 times each year. Folpan has activity but should not be applied until 30 days after petal fall to avoid russet. We do not have a model for black rot infection but protection would need to be targeted prior to wetting and ideal weather conditions.

The fruit cuticle is sensitive to damage at this stage and if damaged can allow entry of the black rot fungus. Be cautious with spray mixtures (calcium, foliar nutrients) that could create an entry point for the pathogen.

Apple - Brooks Spot

Brooks spot is caused by a fungus that creates sunken, dark green lesions on the fruit. It is a minor disease that has been an issue on Honeycrisp in the past. The symptoms of Brooks Spot can resemble lenticel breakdown and bitter pit which are also common on Honeycrisp. Include a product for cover sprays that is labelled for brooks spot such as Inspire Super, Aprovia Top, or Folpan/Follow.

Apple - Flyspeck and Sooty Blotch

These summer diseases develop on the surface of the fruit in midsummer until harvest. They are caused by fungi that overwinter in dead twigs and the fungi tend to cause more infections under conditions of moderate temperature, high humidity and rainfall. Include a product for cover sprays that is labelled for flyspeck and sooty blotch such as Captan, Folpan/Follow, Maestro, Inspire Super, Aprovia Top, Cevya, Allegro, Pristine, and Merivon. Summer diseases such as flyspeck are a risk if spray spray programs are stretched beyond the limit. Adequate fungicide coverage can stop flyspeck colony growth during periods of leaf wetting and may prevent the appearance of symptoms altogether.

Insects

Apple and Pear: Codling Moth

All treatment timing predictions have been met.

Recommendations:

If trap captures are below the treatment threshold but continue to build over time then treatment should be applied once a threshold is reached. When the time for apple maggot treatments arrives, many chemistries will also treat late codling moth.
Notes about using Imidan:

All hand thinning activities must be completed prior to application. No hand thinning can occur on trees after they are treated with Imidan. Also, a maximum of two applications may be used each year.
The product does not penetrate leaf tissue so it is a surface material that is susceptible to wash off under rainy conditions.
Approximately a week after application of Imidan, clean out the trap and start monitoring the trap. The capture of an additional 10 or more moths would indicate that a second treatment is required.

Apple Maggot

The Apple Efficacy Guide may be used to compare the products that are registered for control or suppression of codling moth and/or apple maggot. Note that high label rates are often needed for activity on apple maggot.
Please note this is the final year to use on-farm inventory of Calypso product because it is being cancelled.
Dr. Suzanne Blatt reports apple maggot trap captures beginning on July 2 at the Kentville Research Station. In blocks that are being treated for codling moth, the control is extended to early maggot flies.
The economic threshold is 1 maggot fly per orchard on a yellow sticky board.

Apply a conventional treatment 7-10 days after the first fly is captured on a yellow sticky board or immediately after a female is captured on a red sphere.
In organic orchards, Surround can be used to deter egg laying and GF 120 fruit fly bait can be used for suppression of adult flies. Both Surround and GF 120 should begin to be applied as soon as flies are present in the orchard.
Clean maggot traps 7 to 10 days after treating a block for maggot and monitor for new trap captures. Retreat if new maggot flies are caught.
Significant rainfall will wash off insecticide residues that are needed to ward off apple maggot flies. Re-treatment is required after 10-14 days or cumulative rainfall of 12.5-25 mm (0.5-1 inch). Insecticide residue should be maintained through to the end of August.

Chemical groups 5 and 28 target adult flies to prevents stings. Chemical groups 1 and 4 have activity on adults, eggs, and larvae meaning that they prevent stings and if an egg is laid the products also prevent survival of the larvae.
Sanitation through removing wild apple trees can help to prevent the buildup of populations that will migrate into orchards from the orchard perimeter.

Apple - Sucking Insects

Aphids: Monitor for aphids in young trees and nursery plantings where feeding can disrupt shoot growth. If leaves are curling, high water volumes are needed for effectiveness. Green aphid will move back into orchards that were treated previously so continue to monitor. Assail and Calypso also have activity on codling moth, apple maggot and leafhoppers. Be cognizant of REIs if installing trellis.

Mites: European red mite, two spotted spider mite and apple rust mite are the prominent species that affect apple trees. Although not directly damaging to the fruit, these mites in their motile life stages can drain the nutrients from the trees and dramatically degrade fruit quality.

Scout your orchards or check your scouting reports to see if there is a treatable population. Those growers with a consultant will receive the most accurate information because mite counts are done using a specialized machine for brushing and beneficial predators are noted as well.
In a hot and dry year, mite populations can double in 7-10 days. Keep this in mind given current weather conditions.
Mites have many generations per year and therefore have a high potential to develop resistance. For resistance management, it is critical to rotate miticide classes.

Good spray coverage is critical.
July is the time of year to control rust mite before foliage becomes bronzed in mid to late August.
All miticides are effective on European red mite and two-spotted spider mite but only products Nexter, Envidor, and Magister provide control of rust mite.

Potato leafhopper: Feeds on the young leaves of terminal shoots leading to yellowing at leaf edges, and cupping that will eventually turn brown. Adults are pale yellow-green and walk sideways whereas the white apple leafhopper is white and moves forward and back. Monitor your scouting reports or updates.

Potato leafhoppers can transmit fire blight. Their presence in young plantings and nurseries is concerning, especially in areas of active fire blight infections. Insecticides labelled for leafhoppers are the group 4 products and they include Assail/Aceta, Calypso/Theme, Cormoran, and Sivanto Prime.

Scale Crawlers

If you had scale last year at the packout then they should still be monitored even if an oil application was used in spring.
The scale that are under a waxy coating at this time of year are the adults that are about to give birth to live young. Those live young are the crawlers that leave the waxy coating and become susceptible to insecticides. Typically the crawlers are active in July at about 4-6 weeks post-bloom and with the heat this year they could be on the move early.
Monitor for activity by using traps that are made by using black electrical tape (with adhesive side out) around the scaffold limbs of trees, in areas with known infestations. Crawlers yellow bodies will be caught on the tape when they become active.
When the crawlers are active, Movento with a surfactant is one of the most effective products. The neonicotinoid products Assail/Aceta and Closer may also affect crawlers.

Obliquebanded Leafroller

Monitor or check scouting reports for larval populations. The caterpillar feeds on terminal shoot growth and also on apples, leaving a scar.

Stone Fruit - Spotted Wing Drosophila (SWD)

Spotted wing drosophila lay eggs in ripening tender fruit, and larvae may be present at harvest. If monitoring indicates treatment is required, use insecticides weekly. These products rely on contact with spotted wing drosophila adults.
Products registered for control of SWD in peach/nectarine, plum, and cherry are listed in the Stone Fruit Management Guide. PHI varies widely:

Longer PHIs for Danitol, Harvanta, Imidan, Up-cyde (peach/nectarine) and Malathion (peach/nectarine)
Shorter PHIs for Malathion (cherry and plum), Delegate, Exirel, Entrust, Up-cyde (cherry)
Rotate insecticide groups to prevent resistance development.

Note that for cherries the label rate for Malathion 85E was increased to provide control at 855-2500 mL/ha instead of only suppression at the old rate. The maximum number of applications is 2 while maintaining the same REI and 3-day PHI.
Field sanitation is critical to control of spotted wing drosophila. Remove and dispose of infested ripe, overripe and rotten fruit which serve as source of food for larvae to complete development. Seal cull fruit in plastic bags or cover cull piles with plastic and allow to heat in the sun for a week or place culls in bins or half bins lined with bin liners and seal for at least 5 days before disposal. Alternatively, mowing the orchard floor immediately after harvest to destroy fruit on the ground may help.
Do not bury infested fruit because SWD can survive being buried as deep as 18 inches.
Control will require a minimum 7-day spray interval under dry conditions with tighter intervals following a rain.
Sprays need excellent coverage. Use full row covers instead of alternate row sprays, reduce tractor speeds, and calibrate sprayers with adequate spray volume to get into fruit clusters.

Field Observations

Leaf Spotting on Ambrosia

The leaf spotting looks similar to the symptoms of frog eye leaf spot but new thinking suggests that frog eye leaf spot might not be the primary cause. I'm aware of the issue and I'm exploring a promising theory but I don't want to speak too soon, so stay tuned for details.

Are you seeing leaf spotting in Ambrosia too as shown in Figure 2? Here's what we know:

The occurrence of leaf spotting on Ambrosia is widespread throughout our growing region, and it has been noted in other growing regions like Massachusetts as well.
The leaf spotting is showing up predominantly in Ambrosia but in a handful of other varieties as well.
Severe leaf spotting can result in leaf drop.
The last time we had notable leaf spotting in Ambrosia was the year 2023.
Mature leaves in the mid shoot regions are affected first, and the youngest leaves on growing terminals are not affected.

Figure 2: Symptoms of leaf spot on Ambrosia. Photos taken on June 23 and June 27.

Scion Rooting as Rescue Option for Weak Plantings

For whatever reason, sometimes a planting can be weak and fail to fill its space. Maybe trees have been exposed to environmental stressors or maybe the dwarfing rootstock was too small to begin with. I recently observed a planting where frost heaving had exposed much of the shank and weakened the trees. It was, however, interesting to note that the trees in the planting that had scion rooted were generally the healthiest (Figure 3).

Figure 3: Scion rooted trees can be vigorous where dwarfing rootstocks struggle to succeed. A scion rooted tree without frost heaving (left) and a tree that scion rooted and then maintained its scion root after heaving (right).

Past local experience has shown that scion rooting can be a management option for weak plantings that fail to fill their space or struggle to thrive. Where scion rooting was used in the past on a weak block, the grower says they wouldn't hesitate to do it again.

For some there might be the concern of too much vigour from scion rooting. After covering the graft union, it took the trees about 5 years to set strong scion roots to become vigorous. Given the short lifespan of orchards there isn't much concern about trees in this situation getting too big. If to much vigour result, then management practices like summer pruning, apogee, and root pruning can keep the vigour in check.

Nurseries and T-Budding

Challenges with Vigorous Geneva Rootstocks

The vigorous Geneva rootstocks can fail to accept tbuds, and other propagation approaches like chip budding and bench grafting are recommended. In several situations now, tbudding G969 has resulted in failed bud unions. What appears to happen is that the Geneva rootstock overwhelms the tbud with excessive callus formation (Figure 4).

Figure 4: Two different on-farm nursery situations where tbudding Honeycrisp on G969 has failed due to excessive callus formation and an overly vigorous rootstock.

Challenges with Loose Connections

Several on-farm nurseries are also reporting that some shoots extending from tbuds have collapsed (Figure 5). This collapse is not caused by fireblight. Interestingly, the collapsed shoots still have green vascular tissue and new leaves are growing. The vascular connection is likely healing but the situation points to an already weakened tbud union. The tbud union appears to be loose, possibly resulting from wind damage. Removing the shoot reveals browning on the inside (Figure 6).

Figure 5: Several on-farm nurseries have experienced collapse of shoots extending from tbuds (left). The vascular tissue is healthy and green (middle). New leaves are growing (right).

Figure 6: The base of the shoot extending from the tbud is brown and appears to have a loose connection (left). A healthy shoot with all green tissue in the tbud is shown for comparison (right).

Horticulture

Tree Health

Check the height of the graft union above the soil line. If frost heaving has occurred it is recommended that you hill soil to cover exposed roots and an overexposed rootstock shank. An overexposed rootstock shank may be more susceptible to winter injury during fluctuating warm winter temperatures. Exposed roots are susceptible to herbicide sprays.
Suckers become more prevalent when there are exposed roots due to frost heaving. Try to hill the soil to cover the roots.

Solstice Reminders

Top dressing is not recommended after the end of June. Late release and uptake will prevent trees from hardening off before the winter.
Around July the trees are storing reserves in the roots for next year’s growth. When they are storing reserves, late glyphosate applications can be damaging if taken up by root suckers and transported to the root system. Avoid the risk by avoiding glyphosate applications after the end of June.

Nutrition

Calcium:

The goal of foliar Ca sprays is to increase the concentration of Ca in the fruit and reduce the incidence of bitter bit. Begin calcium applications at 4 to 6 weeks after petal fall when fruit have reached the golfball stage at around 35 mm. Calcium applied at two-week intervals is better than occasional, high-rate applications.
Ca has very low movement within the tree and needs to be applied directly to the fruit surface to be absorbed. Therefore, thorough coverage is important to cover developing fruit.
The recommended rate is 4.5 to 15.5 kg elemental calcium per ha (4 to 14 lbs of elemental calcium per acre) over an entire season spread over six to eight cover sprays.

Low rates will not cause leaf burn but will likely lead to only minor control of bitter pit and likely will not enhance storage life of the fruit.
High rates may lead to some leaf burn, give good control of bitter pit, and may also enhance storage life of the fruit.
Determine how much elemental calcium you would like to apply over a season and then work backwards to determine the required number of sprays.

Calcium chloride flake (77% CaCl2) is the most economical Ca material to use but also the highest risk for foliar burn. Calcium chloride flake has a low risk of leaf burn when applied at the standard rate of 4.5 kg per 1000 L of water/ha (4 lbs/100 gal/ac).

Calcium chloride flake is 77% calcium chloride which is composed of one calcium and two chloride molecules. According to the weight of the molecules the calcium portion represents about 28% of the total weight. Therefore, our calcium chloride flake contains 28% elemental calcium.
For each spray at the standard rate of 4.5 kg per 1000 L/ha, the 28% portion that is elemental calcium is 1.3 kg/ha (1.1 lbs elemental calcium per acre).
The risk of leaf or fruit damage from calcium is highest in hot weather. Susceptible varieties can develop lenticel spotting if damaged. Target fast drying conditions for applications.

Risk of leaf injury may be enhanced by Captan. Incompatibility has been observed with Epsom salts, and liquid or emulsifiable pesticide formulations in some cases. Do not apply calcium with Apogee/Kudos. Note that nutrient product formulations with calcium may contain boron that would interact poorly with water soluble packaging.

Mowing

As grass becomes long the extra surface area increases transpiration. Keep grass mowed to conserve moisture.
Keeping the orchard floor cover mowed pre-bloom will minimize dandelion flowers that attract bees, which increases the safety of insecticide applications.
Mowing and herbicide strips help to prevent issues with two-spotted spider mite (John Michael Hardman).

Pruning and Training

Select strong terminals on young trees and remove competing terminals to single the tops if there are no re-entry intervals active.
Pruning and training practices should be done on dry and sunny days, especially in blocks with high risk of fire blight. Wounds can take about 2 days to heal. Do not work in trees when they are wet from dew.
Ensure that deer fencing is installed as soon as possible to protect new growth on young trees. Prior to deer fencing, the product Bobbex may be used as a deer repellent but it requires frequent application to new growth and after rainfall.
Newly planted trees should be pruned for tree structure and supported as early as possible after planting. Prioritize trees that are known to be brittle at the union, including many of the new Geneva rootstocks (G.11, G.41, G.16 etc).

Cover Crops

Perennia has a series of videos about cover crops by Sonny Murray and Rosalie Gillis-Madden that can be accessed from our website.
Summer grasses such as pearl millet and sorghum-sudangrass that have been growing in popularity lately can be planted from mid-June until early August.
For August and September plantings of cover crops, check out the factsheet about Fall Cover Crop Species Selection and Management that was written by Sonny Murray and Caitlin Congdon.

Summer Hedging/Pruning

A local study by Perennia in 2013 evaluated the regrowth on summer hedging using Ambrosia on M.9 and Gala. Results indicate that the last week of June = 6 to 21 cm of regrowth, first week of July = 4 to 12 cm of regrowth, and second week of July = 2 to 3 cm of regrowth. No regrowth is expected after terminal bud set around the first week of August although it was not included in the trial.
On vigorous trees, delay summer pruning until terminal buds have been set on vegetative shoots. Pruning prior to this on vigorous trees can promote bud break and weak shoot growth.
In cases with a lot of shoot growth, summer pruning could be a good opportunity to expose the fruit to light and improve fruit colour. Remove vigorous shoots in the entire canopy but especially at the top.
If there is fire blight in a block then there is a greater risk of spreading it by summer pruning than dormant pruning.

Nursery Trees

Scion leaders need support. Stakes should be placed on the side opposite from the bud so it pulls the bud toward the rootstock rather than away.
Monitor for green aphids.
Remember the importance of weed control in nurseries. Management practices now will impact the outcome of the final tree. Encourage the growing point to be successful!
Budding

As August approaches, find a source of bud wood that does not have a history of fire blight strikes. Trees that have shown signs of fire blight strikes or that are situated near fire blight infections should be eliminated as a source of bud wood. Cut bud wood fresh every morning if possible.
Occasionally sanitize all tools used for bud wood collection, storage, and budding by washing in detergent and water and disinfecting with sodium hypochlorite bleach. During bud wood collection and budding, frequently spray hand tools with fresh sodium hypochlorite bleach solution, diluted one part to nine of water.

Events and Notices

NSDA Programs Update

Department of Agriculture 2025-26 Program Guidelines and Application forms are available. Please visit www.novascotia.ca/programs for more information. Please contact your NSDA rep for support with applications. Some programs that are still open for application include:

On-Farm Climate Action Fund for Nova Scotia is Open

The On-Farm Climate Action Fund (OFCAF) is part of the Government of Canada's Agricultural Climate Solutions, a multi-stream program to help farmers tackle climate change.

Farmers can access up to $100,000 in funding to implement Beneficial Management Practices (BMPs) that will contribute to on-farm sequestration of carbon and reduce greenhouse gases. Eligible projects must focus on:
• Nitrogen management
• Cover cropping, or
• Rotational grazing

Perennia Food and Agriculture Corporation will be implementing the fund to help farmers adopt these practices in Nova Scotia. Training for farmers and agronomists will also be offered over the three-year program, which ends in March 2028.

Deadline for the first intake of applications is August 31, 2025.

The first step in applying is to complete a program pre-screening form, found on this page https://ofcaf.perennia.ca/funding/. Once the pre-screening is submitted and reviewed, a link to the on-line application form will be sent.

For more information on the program please visit ofcaf.perennia.ca.

Save the Date - NSFGA Summer Tour August 6

The 2025 NSFGA Summer Orchard tour will be held on Wednesday, August 6th, 2025. This year NSFGA is continuing to offer the evening portion of the tour and hosting a barbecue dinner, with families welcome to join for an evening meal! A bus will be provided, seats are limited.

Events like this are only possible through sponsorship! NSFGA has announced that sponsorship opportunities are now available.

Pest Management Guide

We offer printable PDFs of the guides from our website:

Online pest guides are also available without login (https://www.perennia.ca/pest-guides/) and with login on your Perennia account (https://www.farmdatatools.perennia.ca/). Using the online tool you can filter for organic and conventional options, search for key information, and sort based on information of interest.

This Orchard Outlook has been published with the input of the Orchard Outlook Committee including this week's participants: Joan Hebb, Danny Davison, Harrison Wright, Ian Willick, and Jeff Franklin.

Edited by Michelle Cortens, Tree Fruit Specialist
Perennia Food and Agriculture Corp.

Codling Moth: Degree Day and Treatment Timing Predictions (June 27 Update)

Friday, June 27, 2025

The codling moth biofix dates for this season are June 10 for early regions and June 14 for late regions determined by Erika Bent, APM.

Suzanne Blatt, AAFC, has run Jeff Franklin's calculations for the degree day model today according to the current forecast to predict when degree day thresholds will be met for treatments. The models were run yesterday with a degree day threshold of 10 degrees (C) using Kentville weather station data.

Codling Moth Treatment with Rimon
Timing: The treatment timing for Rimon is 80 degree days Celsius from biofix to target eggs before they hatch.

Prediction: Degree day thresholds met.

Codling Moth Treatment with Egg Hatch Products
Products: Assail, Delegate, Intrepid, Altacor, and Exirel
Timing: The treatment timing for egg hatch products is 100 degree days Celsius from biofix.

Prediction: Degree day thresholds met.

Codling Moth Treatment with Organophosphate
Product: Imidan

Caution: All hand thinning activities must be completed prior to application. No hand thinning can occur on trees treated with Imidan.
Timing: Control of codling moth with Imidan is typically slightly later at 140 degree days after biofix.

Prediction: Prediction: The 140 degree day threshold is forecast to occur in early regions today on Friday, June 27 and in late regions on Monday, June 30.

Orchard Outlook Newsletter Vol. 25, No 11

Tuesday, June 24, 2025

Today's newsletter reflects on scab and powdery mildew pressure and considers summer diseases now that you may be considering lengthening your fungicide spray intervals. Be careful because fungicide residues are washed off after 50 to 60 mm of rain and stretching spray programs beyond the limit allows summer diseases such as flyspeck to take hold. There are suggestions on how to approach fire blight infection management. Information is shared on codling moth treatment timings and summer miticides are discussed further. In these hot temperatures, this is a reminder that spraying is not recommended when ambient temperatures are above 25C to avoid fruit finish issues. Thanks to the ongoing commitment of the Orchard Outlook Committee members.