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Spray tables - learn more about these useful tools for safely cleaning your vegetable crops

Annalisa Hultberg, Extension Educator, food safety Not all produce needs to be washed at the farm, but some benefit from a rinse if there is visible soil. Things like fresh berries, tomatoes, zucchini, many herbs and some crops like peppers do not generally need washing until the consumer eats them. In fact, washing can significantly reduce the shelf life of many delicate crops and can lead to the produce rotting quickly.  Other crops, like salad greens, many onions and root crops almost always need to be rinsed or dunked to remove soil and remove field heat. One great option for many crops is spraying. Spraying works well because the water just washes the produce and falls away. In this way it is a "single pass", as opposed to recirculated water. Think of it as giving your produce a shower, not a bath, whenever you can.  Here are some options for spray tables that many farms have found work well. 1. Spray tables like this one from Webstaurantstore.com are sturdy, easy to...
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Fruit update – August 28, 2025

Article written by Madeline Wimmer - UMN Extension Educator, Fruit Production  Apples: Growth stage: Harvest season  Article: Late season fire blight with messages from Dr. Suzanne Slack and David Bedford Photo observations:  Wildlife damage on apples Apple leaf shading spots Apple agritourism:  Orchard pumpkins nearing ready for harvest season Apple resource card for customers Apples Growth stage: Harvest season  Images: A number of examples of apple varieties are coming into harvest season in SE Minnesota, along with an example shoot that is hardening off (becoming woody), and a Honeycrisp leaf showing mottled chlorosis. Photos taken at Sekapp Orchard in Rochester. In the past couple of weeks early-pick apples (green background color) have been popping up at the Rochester farmers market. Now that the Minnesota state fair is in season (a classic timely marker in Minnesota), a number of earlier varieties, like First Kiss® (aka MN55/Rave®) and Zestar! (not pict...
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Fire blight in Minnesota

  Article written by Madeline Wimmer, UMN Extension Education, Fruit Production Images: Different images of fire blight strikes found in a Minnesota orchard in early July.  When it comes to disease risk within an orchard, fungal disease like apple scab tend to be a top priority for Minnesota apple growers. During years with milder winters and warm spring temperatures however, one disease caused by a bacterial pathogen can become problematic—this disease being fire blight ( Erwinia amylovora ).  Fire blight can sometimes feel like an automatic death sentence for trees when growers who are new to learning about the disease. But growers and researchers who have witnessed fire blight in Minnesotan orchards often observe that it has a tendency to be less persistent than it is in warmer regions in the U.S.  Bacterial pathogens need easy ways to enter and infect a plant. Bacterial cells (i.e., inoculum) are often present in orchards, but it is the tree’s vulnerability that ...
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Weekly vegetable update - August 27, 2025

Natalie Hoidal & Marissa Schuh While the calendar says it is the end of August, it feels like late fall. But don’t be fooled! Warmer weather is on its way, and a long fall is likely.  Taking advantage of a long fall The NOAA predictions for September came out last week, and Minnesota is leaning towards having a warmer than average September. There may still be frosts at typical times, so investing in frost protection can help make the most of a potentially warm September.   A warm September ahead of us?  Methods for frost protection on sensitive crops include:  Row cover, with or without hoops: frost blankets can add a few degrees of protection to get your crops through a light to medium frost. The downside is that they are awkward to store - it’s important to dry them out well, keep them clean, and store them in a place where they won’t be eaten by mice over the winter. Irrigation. It sounds counterintuitive, but irrigating your crops during a light frost c...
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Fruit update – August 20, 2025

  Article written by Madeline Wimmer, Extension Educator - Fruit Production            Grapes: Growth stage update: Nearing harvest Article topic: Measuring fruit ripeness Nutrition: Magnesium deficiency Blueberries: Nutrition: Iron deficiency Plums: Mount Royal (European plum) at harvest Grapes Growth stage update: Nearing harvest Images: Itasca and Marquette, two UMN grape cultivars, along with Sabrevois, Swenson White, and Louise Swenson, cultivars bred by Elmer Swenson. Photos taken at Salem Glen Winery, located in Olmsted County (Zone 5a).  This week I stopped by Salem Glen Winery to check on their wine grape development. Salem Glen has been growing a wide variety of grapes since the early aughts, including a number of French-hybrid grapes (e.g. Foch), UMN bred grapes, as well as cultivars bred by Elmer Swenson and Tom Plocher (e.g. Petite Pearl, Crimson Pearl).  Many of these cultivars were measuring around 14 ° Brix out in the field, ...
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