This year is a Botrytis year

 

Dear all,

Botrytis gray mold (Figure 1) is flaring up all over the state, due to the weather in combination with extensive row-cover use early on. There are several points to consider to effectively control Botrytis gray mold in a strawberry field.

General Management

Sanitation (remvoing infected tissue from the field) and monitoring the field for symptoms is imortant this year. Fungicides play a key role in Botrytis management. If symptoms become visible, early preventative fungicide applications in conjunction with sanitation and continous monitoring are key elements that will to manage Bortytis gray mold. Botrytis is in the field all year long, can come in with planting material and often remains undetected until bloom and fruiting.There are MANY VERY GOOD resources out that will help you to manage Botrytis gray mold through the season:

1. The Southeast Regional Strawberry Integrated Pest Management Guide Helps you to generate a management and spray schedule for strawberries through the entire season. VERY GOOD RESOURCE. Everyone should have one!
2. The NCSU AgChem Manual Comrehensive manual of pesticide application guidelines for a wide variety of crops grown in NC, including strawberries.
3. MyIPM App. The myIPM App is a cellphone app that will help you to identify and manage strawberry diseases and pests. You can download it in the Apple App Store or at Google Play. Again, everyone should have it!

 This year, we encounter the right conditions for Botrytis to flare up, with early blooms, humid and warm periods of weahter and more than usual row cover/sprinkler use.

Fungicide Resistance Management 2023

Botrytis regulalry develops resistance against certain FRAC codes, which can render fungicides ineffective. Rotating FRAC codes with every spray is essential to minimize the risk of building up resistance. It is extremely important to understand whether or not you have fungicide resistant Bortytirs populations in your field.

You should submit samples to Clemson University, following these guildines. Fees are $100 per sample, turn-around time is about 7 business days.

Please download the following information to ship the sample

Fungicide resistance sampling and shipping guidelines

Fungicide resistance sample form

 

Botrytis and Anthracnose Risk Prediction

Disease outbreaks often correlate strongly with predicted weather patterns. To be aware of when to use preventative fungicide applications in NC, we highly recommend to use the the Risk Prediction Map. We further will inform you through our AWIS Weather advisories if disease risks are high in NC areas.