07/29/1996

Fruit and Vegetable Growers Attend Field Day in Clanton

CLANTON, Ala.--More than 100 home gardeners and commercial fruit and vegetable growers recently toured research plots and visited with scientists from Auburn University during a Fruit and Vegetable Field Day held at the Chilton Area Horticulture Substation here.

Chilton County is among a few major sweet potato-growing counties in Alabama. One of the worst pests of sweet potatoes in the state is the white fringe beetle, which have gradually made their way into Alabama from Florida. For several years growers tried to combat them with soil-applied insecticides--a practice that Auburn University researcher Geoff Zehnder said is ineffective.

"By the time soil-applied insecticides are used, much of the damage already has been done by white fringe beetles. Our research indicates scouting for the moths that produce the beetles and using foliar applied insecticides to kill these moths is a much better approach to controlling white fringe beetles," the Auburn entomologist said.

Zehnder noted that growers can look for a distinctive feeding pattern on the outside of leaves. When this is spotted, growers will have still have time to apply insecticides and control the moths before they lay their eggs, said Zehnder, who conducts research in the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station (AAES).

Visitors to the field day saw 50 of the top apple varieties being tested by the AAES for their adaptability to Alabama growing conditions. "Only about 10 of these are named varieties, and they come from all over the world," noted Auburn Extension Horticulturist Arlie Powell. Some of the most promising varieties in the test are Ginger Gold from the United States, Arleta from New Zealand and Hokuta and Sayaka from Japan, Powell explained.

Billy Dozier, head of AU's Horticulture Department, showed the visitors several varieties of Asian pears. "These pears have many of the characteristics of the domestic pears we have grown in Alabama for years, but most varieties bloom after the threat of freezes. Late freezes knock out our domestic crop every few years," Dozier said.

Of the Asian pears in the Auburn tests, Hosui and Shinko have consistently produced high yields of high quality fruit and the trees seem to be more tolerant of fire blight than other varieties, added Dozier.

The peach crop in Chilton County was devastated by a series of freezes last year, but Auburn researchers are testing an ice-nucleating bacteria that may significantly reduce future threats from cold weather. "This is a naturally-occurring bacteria that can be grown on peach blossoms, making the peach blossom less sensitive to freeze. It can lower by five or six degrees the temperature at which peach blossoms are damaged by frost or freeze," noted Auburn researcher Lee Campbell.

Visitors to the field day saw some non-traditional work, in addition to on-going Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station research. John Neighbors, a commercial fruit and vegetable grower in Coosa County, showed the group some Louisiana red crayfish that he grows. Neighbors noted that the crayfish feed on rice stubble planted in shallow lakes. If additional feed is needed, they also will thrive on most hay crops. Neighbors produces about 1,500 pounds of crayfish on 1.5 acres. He noted the biggest concern is keeping fish out of the ponds, because they feed on the immature crayfish early in the growing cycle.

A food preservation workshop, a melon carving exhibit, sweet corn testing and a tour of the All American Vegetable Garden were also featured during the meeting. "We added some new things to the program this year and people seemed to enjoy it. As long as we can get this kind of turnout, we will keep having field days," noted Jim Pitts, superintendent of the Chilton Area Horticulture Substation.

"Field days give people an opportunity to see first hand some of the work we are doing and the events also provide us with better insights into some of the problems that home gardeners and commercial producers are facing, giving us a better idea of how to structure future research projects," Pitts concluded.

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News from:

Office of Ag Communications & Marketing

Auburn University College of Agriculture
Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station
3 Comer Hall, Auburn University
Auburn, AL 36849
334-844-4877 (PHONE) 334-844-5892 (FAX)

Contact Jamie Creamer, 334-844-2783 or jcreamer@auburn.edu
Contact Katie Jackson, 334-844-5886 or smithcl@auburn.edu

07/29/96