Suggested Blueberry Management Items for Summer and Early Fall
The table below lists suggested blueberry management items for summer and early fall. Suggested management items for the entire calendar year are available in an EDIS publication, Calendar for Southern Highbush Blueberry Management in Florida (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1363). Specific disease, insect, and weed controls are listed in the 2022 Florida Blueberry IPM Guide (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS380), as well as in subject-specific publications referenced below. Also, a list of all UF EDIS blueberry publications can be found at www.blueberrybreeding.com/blog, along with a summary description and link to each.
Remember to take a look at the UF/IFAS Blueberry Growers Guide phone app for field scouting tools, a monthly management calendar, information on all of the UF southern highbush blueberry cultivars, and a pesticides quick reference module (https://tosto.re/blueberryuf).
CREDIT
DOUG PHILLIPS,
UF Blueberry Extension Coordinator
July – September
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Disease |
Scout for algal stem blotch. See UF EDIS Publication PP344, Algal Stem Blotch in Southern Highbush Blueberry in Florida (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/PP344). Monitor and manage leaf diseases. See UF EDIS Publication PP348, Florida Blueberry Leaf Disease Guide (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/PP348). On farms managing bacterial wilt, continue monthly through-irrigation or banded bed applications of a phosphorous acid product. See UF EDIS Publication PP332, Bacterial Wilt of Southern Highbush Blueberry Caused by Ralstonia solanacearum (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/PP332). |
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Insect Pests |
Scout for flea beetles, larval citrus root weevil (by pulling out dead or dying plants and examining the roots and surrounding soil/bark), larval flatheaded borer, chilli thrips, and southern red mites and apply suggested control measures if present. See UF EDIS Publications ENY999, Diaprepes Root Weevil on Southern Highbush Blueberry in Florida (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/IN1241), ENY2053, Chilli Thrips on Blueberries in Florida (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/IN1298), and ENY1006, Mite Pests of Southern Highbush Blueberry in Florida (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/IN1284). |
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Leaf Tissue Samples |
July – Leaves should be collected for tissue nutrient analysis if not done during June. Select samples from fully expanded leaves in the middle of a recent summer growth flush. |
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Weeds |
July – Apply post-emergence herbicide if weeds are at densities that hinder bush growth. August - apply pre-emergence herbicide if summer rainfall has been heavy. September - apply a pre-emergence herbicide for cool season weeds (tank mix with a post-emergence herbicide if weeds are at a density that hinders bush growth). |
