Fire blight is the most important disease of apple and pear in Kentucky. Symptoms may now be visible; however, initial infections occured at bloom. The pathogen survives winter in dead, dying, and diseased wood and in cankers. Removal of these…

Cane blight occasionally impacts homegrown and commercial raspberries and blackberries in Kentucky. The disease causes lesions to develop on both primocanes (current-year canes) and floricanes (second-year or fruiting canes) and can result in reduced yield and cane death. Fungicides are…

The publication An IPM Scouting Guide for Common Problems of Strawberry in Kentucky was first introduced in 2016 as an online/paper version. In order to improve access to this important scouting guide, a mobile website was developed. The Strawberry Scout…

Black rot is a common disease of grapes in Kentucky. Due to the prevalence of this disease, it is also one of the most economically important diseases of grapes.  Black rot can affect all young, developing, above ground plant tissues.…

While I have not received reports yet of woolly apple aphid activity on apple trees, there were several commercial orchards last year with serious infestations. In some years, this can be attributed to wounds caused by periodical cicada, but it…

In Kentucky, pest management in home orchards can be challenging, and fungicide and insecticide applications are often necessary for management of certain pests. Fruit bagging, however, can eliminate certain sprays by physically protecting fruit during development.  This method can be…