Apothecia were still active this morning at the monitoring sites from Waterville and Aylesford.
Warm temperatures and rain are forecast for mid week and this weekend so development and Monilinia infection may advance quickly.
Many growers sprayed last week ahead of precipitation received on the weekend. Growers are urged to reapply either before Wednesday's rain (using any fungicide group with good activity on Monilinia Blight) or directly after, using the back action of the group 3's to give protection for Wednesday's forecasted infection event. The residual control will provide control for the weekend's forecasted infection period as rain is also forecast for the weekend.
Current bud development taken May 6th:
Early varieties (Duke) - 90% F2 stage or beyond
Mid-season Varieties (Draper, Bluegold)- 60-70% F2 stage or beyond
Late Varieties (Burlington, Liberty) - 30%-40 F2 stage
Spray timings for Monilinia Blight should target 40% of buds at F2 stage with active apothecia to give fungicide coverage through periods of free moisture.
