Hello Wisconsin Fruit News subscribers, and welcome back to Notes from The Field: A Grower’s Perspective. This week Steve Louis (Oakwood Fruit Farm) and I had our eleventh and final chat for the 2022 growing season.

Oakwood Fruit Farm continues with harvest as we enter October with another full month to go. Steve is keeping a close eye on the weather as this can affect any late season fungicides for later varieties. Once harvest is complete, post-harvest operations will get underway. These tasks will include mowing the grass in the orchard rows to eliminate any habitat for mice and rabbits. Rodent control employed now is an important practice to protect the trees in the fall and winter months. Another important post-harvest practice at Oakwood is flail mowing leaves on the orchard floor to disturb them and promote a quick breakdown of these tissues as they may harbor fungal pathogens such as apple scab. Steve also uses this time of year to consider soil applications of fertilizer, he evaluates the nutrient needs after conducting a soil test. The fall is also a great time to manage weeds. Herbicide applications post-harvest can be very effective and due to lower temperatures, the herbicides do not degrade as quickly so rain or melting snow can move herbicides into the soil where they will be active once weeds germinate in the spring.

To read more about post-harvest disease management tasks, check out this article.

That’s all for this season! We hope you enjoyed learning from Steve Louis this growing season (I know I did!) and that you were able to take away some helpful information and seasonal reminders for your own operations.

BIG THANKS to Steve Louis at Oakwood Fruit Farm for his insight, knowledge, and time this season!

Happy harvesting!

Missed the notes from any of my previous chats with Steve? Check them all out here!

The mention of a product is NOT an endorsement. This article series is NOT intended to provide recommendations; simply to hear from other growers about in-season tasks on their farm. Always follow the instructions on product labels and consult weather stations (ex. NEWA) in your area for current weather forecast and disease prediction models.

This article was posted in Notes from the Field and tagged Leslie Holland, Notes from the Field, Steve Louis.