Fruit and Vegetable News

Author: Natalie Hoidal . Originally published 2021, updated 2026. Over the past few days, much of Minnesota has been blanketed by unhealthy concentrations of wildfire smoke from fires burning in Canada and northern Minnesota. How does the smoke impact you, and how does it impact your crops?  First, it's worth acknowledging that wildfires have gotten worse in the US over the past few decades, which is attributed to historical forest management strategies and climate change.  Impacts to plant health When the sky is thick with smoke, it’s hard to imagine that there’s not an impact to crops. However, the impacts are a bit nuanced. Access to light  Wildfire smoke aerosols do create a shadier atmosphere, so you’d think that sunlight isn’t reaching plants as well. However, studies like Hemes et al. (2020) have found that wildfire smoke creates more diffuse radiation (aka light is scattered throughout the atmosphere), and plants can use this light more efficiently than direct so...

Authors: Natalie Hoidal & Marissa Schuh This is one of the busiest weeks of the summer and it’s hard to take breaks or slow down, but working in this heat and smoke is dangerous, both for your immediate and long term health. Take good care of yourselves and your people. What does it mean to work safely in this heat (and now smoke)? Farm workers are among the most at risk people for heat related deaths, and the numbers are likely under reported. The risks are exacerbated by smoke. We realize we’ve talked about heat a lot in this newsletter this summer, but that’s the reality we’re living with. We also realize telling farmers not to work is unrealistic, as there’s so much that needs to happen on the farm this time of year. So, let’s quickly break down the heat safety guidelines for the conditions we’re experiencing right now. Keep in mind that the following guidelines are for healthy people without underlying conditions. If you have asthma, diabetes, or other conditions that make y...

  Article written by Madeline Wimmer, UMN Extension Fruit Production Educator. Heat advisory for Minnesota growers Apples Identifying codling moth damage: Deep entry When should trunk guards be removed from apple trees? Check trellis wires, clips, and bands during the growing season (high density) Grapes Insect gall identification Kiwiberries Article: Kiwiberry production in Minnesota: What's the potential?  Heat advisory for Minnesota growers It’s a hot week in many parts of the state. Try your best to stay cool, work during the coolest parts of the day, take breaks, and know how to recognize signs of heat exhaustion for yourself and other workers.  To learn more about protecting yourself and others from extreme heat and air quality issues, visit our UMN Extension web page:  Develop a heat and air quality safety plan for your farm workers.  Identifying codling moth damage: Deep entry Images: An Gravenstein apple showing signs of damage classic to codling moth (...

Article written by Madeline Wimmer, UMN Extension Fruit Production Educator.    Images: Actinidia kolomikta (top left and right photos) has unique variegated leaves and is grown along with Actinidia arguta (bottom left and right photos) at the University of Minnesota HRC for fruit breeding.  Kiwiberries, sometimes referred to as hardy kiwis, are considered an emerging crop for commercial production in Minnesota and throughout the Upper Midwest. There is interest for growing this crop for both commercial, hobby, and backyard growers, but with this interest comes a number of considerations to determine the viability of the kiwiberry as an Upper Midwest fruit crop.  About kiwiberry plants  Kiwiberries are unique from other fruit crops in their growth and fruiting habits. They are technically bines, which means their stems wrap around to structures for support rather than using tendrils like a grapevine would do.  Kiwiberries also have imperfect flowers and are...