Monilinia Blight Post # 7 May 20

From observations in the Annapolis Valley Tuesday May 19, apothecia have dried up and are no longer releasing spores, eliminating infection risk. If you have a later site, apothecia could still be active, and you should continue monitoring the forecast for infection periods. However, the current forecast shows no rain and sunny warm conditions for the remainder of the week. This will be the last Monilinia Blight blog post for this year.

There were several extended Monilinia infection periods this season. It is important to monitor infections and secondary infections, as the season progresses.  This will allow growers to evaluate the effectiveness of their spray program, and adjust if needed in following seasons.  

Monilinia Blight Post #6 May 13

From observations today, May 13, in the Annapolis Valley, mature apothecia cups are still active (Figure 1) and blueberry varieties are entering the tight cluster stage of development (Figure 2). Based on the rain forecast for the night of Friday May 15, we will likely have another infection period. If you have not sprayed for Monilinia earlier this week, you are encouraged to spray for it before the rain. After Friday, conditions are becoming more favourable with warm and dry conditions forecasted through the weekend and early next week.      

Figure 1. Mature apothecia observed May 13

Figure 2. Blueberry in tight cluster stage observed May 13.   
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