Please see the attached fact sheets for information on USDA crop insurance for apples and pears in Vermont for the 2015 crop.
Crop insurance fact sheets for apples and peaches
Grape Industry Advisory Meeting Announcement – Final
October 14, 2014
North Country Grape Industry
Advisory Meeting
With Dinner and Tour
Thursday, November 6, 2014
Willsboro & Keeseville, NY
You’re invited on a tour of on-going research projects and a meeting to advise the future of the cold-hardy wine grape industry in the North Country.
Cornell Cooperative Extension needs your input for determining the future of the grape industry in northern New York and Vermont! We invite you to participate in a tour of our grape variety trial at the Cornell Willsboro Research Farm followed by an advisory meeting. This meeting is open to wineries and current or prospective grape growers, interested in growing cold-hardy grape varieties.
Your input will be used to guide the future of the wine grape variety trial at the Willsboro Research Farm and Cornell Cooperative Extension’s involvement in the industry.
We are trying to capture everyone from licensed wineries and amateur and potential growers/winemakers. Participants should complete page #2 of the attached registration form and return it with their $10 registration fee to the address listed.
For more information, contact:
Anna Wallis
CCE Extension Associate – Fruit Specialist
Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program
6064 State Route 22 Suite 5
Plattsburgh, NY 12901
Cell: 443.421.7970
Fax: 518.561.0183
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UVM ‘Cider apple’ research earns USDA grant
UVM Food Systems Faculty awarded USDA Federal State Market Improvement Program grant to study apple production systems to support hard cider industry.
Hard cider is big business in Vermont and across the U.S., with average annual growth of over 50% nationwide for the past five years. However, little research has been conducted in the U.S. on costs of production for apples grown for hard cider production, opportunities to reduce inputs and change management practices in cider apple orchards, or economic impact of cider apple production systems. University of Vermont faculty Terence Bradshaw, Tree Fruit and Viticulture Specialist, and David Conner, Agricultural Economist, were awarded a multi-year, $75,000 USDA grant (“Orchard Economic Assessment to Support Vermont Hard Cider Production”) to conduct that research through collaborations with commercial apple growers and cideries in Vermont. Supporting partners providing matching funds include Vermont Hard Cider Company and Vermont Tree Fruit Growers Association. Specific objectives of the project include: an evaluation of production costs to grow apples specifically for processing into hard cider; quantification of per-acre yield and fruit quality of cider-grown fruit in diverse orchard systems; identification of orchard management practices that may be modified to enhance profitability of cider apple production systems, and; calculation of economic impact on the cidery industry using different scenarios based on the results of the above objectives. The project builds on work presently being conducted by the investigators through a complementary project, “Apple Market Optimization and Expansion through Value-Added Hard Cider Production”, funded by the Vermont Working Lands Enterprise Initiative. More information on the recent USDA awards can be found here and a list of FSMIP project awards is available here.
Northern Grapes Project: October News You Can Use: Wine Deacidification
News You Can Use
Wine Deacidification
The effectiveness of seed crystals to reduce acidity is being evaluated in La Crescent, Frontenac, and Frontenac gris in a study at Cornell University.
photo: Chris Gerling
One of the challenges in making wine from cold-hardy cultivars is the high acid levels in the grapes. Therefore, one of the objectives for the Northern Grapes Project Enology Team is to optimize deacidification methods for these cultivars, which has been a focal point in their research projects and outreach activities.
As harvest is either underway or complete in most of the cold-climate states, now is a good time to review deacidification strategies. Two Northern Grapes Project webinars (Managing Acidity in the Wineryand Malolactic Fermentation) and two newsletter articles (Necessary Evil: Chemical Deacidification for High Acid Wineand Using Selected Yeast Strains to Reduce Wine Total Acidity) have focused on this topic.
Additional Resources:
Practical Considerations for Managing Wine Acidity by Ellen Butz.
Managing High Acidity in Grape Must and Wine by Jim Harbertson and Thomas Henick-Kling.
September Issue of Northern Grapes News
Cider Apple Survey: Please respond by September 1
August 25, 2014
As part of the Vermont Working Lands Enterprise Initiative-funded project “Apple Market Optimization and Expansion through Value-Added Hard Cider Production,” we are conducting a survey of orchards and commercial hard cider makers to assess demands and production capacity for apples that may be destined for the hard cider market. There are two surveys, please complete the one most appropriate for your business. If you both grow fruit and make hard cider as separate or related businesses, please feel free to complete both surveys. Wineries that produce apple-based products are also invited to participate.
Even if you don’t make cider or sell fruit to cideries, it is important to complete the survey in order to assess Vermont’s capacity to continue to serve a leading role in this growing market.
Orchard survey:
https://survey.uvm.edu/index.php/635332/lang-en
Cidery survey:
https://survey.uvm.edu/index.php/957663/lang-en
Please complete these short surveys before September 1.
The hard cider industry is growing at a rapid pace, with annual sales growth of over 50% for each of the past five years. Through this project we will: identify production capacity and needs for market expansion; identify orchard production system and varieties suited for hard cider; and conduct economic analysis to determine price points for cider apples. This survey will provide important baseline data that will inform this and future apple research that will support increased market expansion for Vermont-grown fruit.
Terence Bradshaw, UVM Tree Fruit and Viticulture Specialist
Where trade names or commercial products are used for identification, no discrimination is intended and no endorsement is implied.
Always read the label before using any pesticide.
The label is the legal document for the product use.
Disregard any information in this newsletter if it is in conflict with the label.
The UVM Tree Fruit and Viticulture Program is supported by the University of Vermont Agriculture Experiment Station, a USDA NIFA E-IPM Grant, and USDA Risk Management Agency Funds.
Vermont producers complete institutional and wholesale market survey by 9/15
This is a forwarded request from the Vermont Agency of Ag to complete a survey to assess opportunities for produce growers to sell to local wholesale and institutional markets. TB.
DISASTER ASSISTANCE FOR 2012 FRUIT CROP LOSSES ANNOUNCED
August 7, 2014
From Pam Smith at UVM Extension Risk Management:
DISASTER ASSISTANCE FOR 2012 FRUIT CROP LOSSES ANNOUNCED
Enrollment Began July 22
Producers who experienced losses to bush or tree fruit crops due to frost, freeze or other weather-related conditions during the 2012 crop year may be eligible for assistance through the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP). The program, authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill, provides supplemental NAP payments to eligible producers.
Farmers who did not have access to crop insurance and are in primary and adjacent counties that received a Secretarial disaster designation because of frost or freeze in 2012 are eligible for NAP assistance. Losses due to weather damage or other adverse natural occurrences may also qualify for program assistance.
Vermont counties eligible for 2012 NAP fruit crop assistance are Addison, Bennington and Rutland Counties.
NAP enrollment begins July 22, 2014. Applications must be submitted to FSA county offices by Sept. 22, 2014.
To expedite applications, producers who experienced losses are encouraged to collect records documenting these losses in preparation for sign-up. Producers also are encouraged to contact their FSA county office to schedule an appointment. Limited resource, socially disadvantaged, and beginning producers are eligible for premium reductions and also may be eligible for fee reductions.
Interested producers can view the 2012 NAP Coverage for Frost, Freeze or Weather Related Fruit Losses Fact Sheet at http://go.usa.gov/5kSQ, or visit a local FSA office. To find out if land is located in an eligible frost/freeze county, visit http://go.usa.gov/53rz.
Terence Bradshaw, UVM Tree Fruit and Viticulture Specialist
Where trade names or commercial products are used for identification, no discrimination is intended and no endorsement is implied.
Always read the label before using any pesticide.
The label is the legal document for the product use.
Disregard any information in this newsletter if it is in conflict with the label.
The UVM Tree Fruit and Viticulture Program is supported by the University of Vermont Agriculture Experiment Station, a USDA NIFA E-IPM Grant, and USDA Risk Management Agency Funds.
Northern Grapes Project August News You Can Use: Grape Berry Ripening
This is
also on the Northern Grapes Website at http://northerngrapesproject.org/?page_id=802
News You Can Use
Grape Berry Ripening
Marquette clusters during veraison at Parley Lake Winery in Waconia, MN.
photo: Seth Reid
As we head into August, veraison will commence, and along with it, thoughts of when to harvest. A great deal of research has been conducted to characterize the ripening profiles of Vitis vinifera cultivars, which helps growers make informed decisions regarding harvest. However, little is known about the changes in chemical composition during ripening of the cold hardy cultivars.
Recent work at the University of Minnesota tracked changes in fruit composition of 11 cultivars, including seven cold hardy cultivars. The results are a good start to understanding more about the changes that occur in fruit chemistry as berries ripen. Included in this months’ News You Can Use are two publications that summarize this work; the first is “Understanding the Ripening Chemistry of Cold-Hardy Wine Grapes to Predict Optimal Harvest Time,” an article originally published in the August 2012 issue of Northern Grapes News. The second is “Fruit Ripening Profiles of Cold Climate Wine Grape Cultivars,” a research report that was written as part of the Year 2 Northern Grapes Progress Report.
Additional Resources:
Fruit Maturity Evaluation of Wine Grapes for Harvest Planning (http://www.extension.org/pages/33152/fruit-maturity-evaluation-of-wine-grapes-for-harvest-planning#.U9Kx2PldWJc)
Collecting Berry Samples to Assess Grape Maturity
(http://www.extension.org/pages/33154/collecting-berry-samples-to-assess-grape-maturity#.U9Kz7vldWJc)
Using a Refractometer to Measure the Sugar Concentration of Sap and Syrup (http://maple.dnr.cornell.edu/kids/refractometer.htm)
Chrislyn A. Particka, PhD
Extension Support Specialist
Cornell University
Department of Horticultural Sciences
630 W. North Street
Geneva, NY 14456
cap297
315-787-2449 (desk)
315-787-2216 (fax)
Michigan State: Post-Infection Disease Management in Vineyards
August 4, 2014
Dr. Annemiek Schilder summarizes options for post-infection disease management in vineyards in a recent post:
http://msue.anr.msu.edu/news/what_to_do_when_you_start_seeing_disease_in_the_vineyard_post_infection_tre?utm_source=Pest+Management+-+MSU+Extension+News+-+8-4-14&utm_campaign=Pest+Management+8-4-14&utm_medium=email
Terence Bradshaw, UVM Tree Fruit and Viticulture Specialist
Where trade names or commercial products are used for identification, no discrimination is intended and no endorsement is implied.
Always read the label before using any pesticide.
The label is the legal document for the product use.
Disregard any information in this newsletter if it is in conflict with the label.
The UVM Tree Fruit and Viticulture Program is supported by the University of Vermont Agriculture Experiment Station, a USDA NIFA E-IPM Grant, and USDA Risk Management Agency Funds.