Fruits

MBG hires new CEO

MBG Marketing, a Grand Junction, Mich., based blueberry marketing cooperative, announced that Robert E. Hawk has been selected as its new CEO/President, effective August 1. Previously, Hawk has worked in a variety of production and... more »

Cornell looking for names for two new grape varieties

Cornell scientists are asking the public for names for two new wine grape varieties that will be released from their breeding program in 2013.The two latest varieties from grape breeder Bruce Reischinclude a cold-hardy white... more »

Washington tree fruit sustains significant damage in hail storm

Thunderstorm-driven hail on July 17 damaged apples and pears in commercial orchards on Manastash Ridge southeast of Ellensburg, throwing most of the fruit out of the running for the fresh market.“This is just devastating, very... more »

California registers Double Nickel

The California Department of Pesticide Regulation has issued a certificate of registration allowing state farmers the use of Double Nickel 55 fungicide. A product from Certis USA, Double Nickel is a new generation of bacterial... more »

Minnesota ag report shows profitability of specialty crops

he Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) released a new report detailing the financial performance of nine types of specialty crops in Minnesota.The report Minnesota Specialty Crop Farm Performance 2008-2011 includes enterprise data for apples, blueberries,... more »

Michigan blueberry farmer struggles to find enough pickers

Antonio Leduc doesn’t understand why Michigan is offering emergency housing assistance to migrant farm workers this summer.He has plenty of work available picking blueberries at his farm in Paw Paw, yet the state is offering... more »

Biotech apples seek approval

The U.S. government is now seeking public input on Arctic Golden and Arctic Granny apples, two non-browning varieties that have been produced through biotechnology by Okanagan Specialty Fruits Inc. (OSF), based in British Columbia, Canada.USDA’s... more »

New label helps Michigan blueberry growers fight SWD

On July 10, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Resource Development released a Section 18 label for Gowan’s Malathion 8F for use against spotted wing drosophila in blueberries.The label provides a use rate up to... more »