<p> The Northern New York Agricultural Development Program (NNYADP) has granted funds to Cornell University entomologist Elson Shields to evaluate the use of alfalfa snout beetle-controlling nematodes to manage two strawberry crop pests.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> These two pests – Strawberry root weevils and black vine weevils – can damage commercial cane berry crops, such as raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries. Shields estimates weevil damage at the farm was causing $20,000 to $30,000 worth of economic loss due to the loss of fruit and plants and the cost of reestablishing the strawberry planting. Although these weevils are difficult to control with conventional pesticides, they are susceptible to attack by the biocontrol nematodes, Shields claims.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> In the fall of 2013, with assistance from the Shields’ research and extension team, Rulfs Orchards applied biocontrol nematodes to most of a 12-acre strawberry field at the Peru, NY, farm business, according to a press release. These untreated areas will serve as a control for evaluating the true effectiveness of the nematode treatment.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> To reduce any pesticide residue required, a crop sprayer already on the Rulfs’ farm was properly cleaned and equipped with a new nozzle to apply the nematodes.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> In October, researchers will collect soil samples to be analyzed at the Shields Lab at the Cornell University campus in Ithaca, NY, to confirm the presence of the nematodes. The soil sampling will be repeated in May 2014 to confirm the successful overwintering of the nematodes that will become active to continue their attack on the remaining weevil larvae as the soil warms.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> Overall, Shields expects the 2014 data from the strawberry trial will be significant on the success side. Updates can be found on the NNYADP website, linked below. </p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://www.nnyagdev.org" target="_new"> Northern New York Agricultural Development Program </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
