June 2026 | Volume 17, Issue 5
Inside this issue:
-
Vegetable Production Guide Mid-Atlantic Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations (EB-236)
Vegetable Production Guide Mid-Atlantic Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations (EB-236) -
Spray Program for Multi-Small Fruit Plantings
Spray Program for Multi-Small Fruit Plantings -
Common Fruit Herbicides*
Common Fruit Herbicides*
Growing Degree Days - Weather Update- June 2026
Update will be posted soon.
The weather information contained in this chart is compiled using the data collected using the Online
Phenology and Degree-Day Models site (https://uspest.org/cgi-bin/ddmodel.us ). The Drought Map is from
U.S. Drought Monitor (https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/ ) Information is available for free for all to use.
| Location | Base 40°F | Base 50°F |
|---|---|---|
| Annapolis (MD029) | ||
| Baltimore, MD (KBWI) | ||
| Hagerstown (C1323MD) | ||
| Chestertown (016 MD) | ||
| College Park (KCGS) | ||
| Frederick (KFDK) | ||
| Greater Cumberland Reg (KCBE) | ||
| Elkton | ||
| Ridgely (005MD) | ||
| Pocomoke City (MD070) | ||
| Vienna (MD038) | ||
| Salisbury/Ocean City (KSBY) | ||
| Waldorf | ||
| Westminster (KDMW) |
Upcoming UME Events!
Blueberry Blackberry Twilight Tour at Wye REC
Date: June 24, 2026 | Wednesday
Time: 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. | Cost: This event is free, but registration is requested.
Location: Wye Research and Education Center, 124 Wye Narrows Dr. Queenstown, MD 21658
Description: Join University of Maryland Extension educators and specialists at the Wye Research & Education Center to learn about current blueberry and blackberry research and production practices. Participants will have the opportunity to taste fruit from our cultivar trials and compare varieties that may be suitable for commercial production or home plantings. Dr. Kelly Hamby will discuss insect pest management strategies, including spotted wing drosophila management, and Dr. Mengjun Hu will provide updates on disease prevention and management in blueberries and blackberries. The berry tasting will begin at 5:00 p.m., followed by the tour and presentations from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m.
Register to attend the Blueberry and Blackberry Twilight Tour
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IPM Webinar Series:
The series meets on the third Thursday of every month from 12 to 1 pm. For more details and registration, visit https://go.umd.edu/ipmwebinar. Maryland Pesticide Credits are available. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in this event, please contact Hayden Schug at 301-226-7502.
- June 25, 2026: Spotted Wing Drosophila: Management in Berries and Small Fruits - Dr. Kelly Hamby, Associate Professor, Department of Entomology, University of Maryland
- IPM Webinar Series:
The series meets on the third Thursday of every month from 12 to 1 pm. For more details and registration, visit https://go.umd.edu/ipmwebinar. Maryland Pesticide Credits are available. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in this event, please contact Hayden Schug at 301-226-7502. - June 25, 2026: Spotted Wing Drosophila: Management in Berries and Small Fruits - Dr. Kelly Hamby, Associate Professor, Department of Entomology, University of Maryland
July 16, 2026: Pesticide selection and spray considerations - Hayden Schug, University of Maryland Extension
Aug 20, 2026: Common Diseases Right Now and How to Manage Them - Dr. Ana Cristina Fulladolsa, Plant Diagnostician, University of Maryland Plant Diagnostic Lab
Sep 17, 2026: Root-Knot Nematode Management in Vegetable Crops - Ben Beale, University of Maryland Extension
Oct 15, 2026: Precision herbicide application - Dr. Travis Ford, University of Maryland Extension
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Event: Maryland Crop Scouting School at WYE
Date: June 25, 2026 | Thursday
Time: 9:00 am to 2:45 pm | Cost: $10
Location: Wye Research and Education Center, 124 Wye Narrows Drive, Queenstown, MD 21658
Description: Join us for a hands-on Crop Scouting School focused on building practical skills for identifying and managing pests, diseases, and crop issues in the field. Participants will learn how to scout effectively, recognize key problems, and make informed management decisions using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) principles. This program is designed for farmers, crop consultants, and ag service providers looking to improve their field diagnostics and decision-making. This event covers common pests in row crop and vegetable production systems.
Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/maryland-crop-scouting-school-at-wye-tickets-1988090629591?aff=oddtdtcreator
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Lower Shore Vegetable & Small Fruit Twilight Tour
Date: June 25, 2026 | Thursday
Time: 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. | Cost: This event is free, but registration is requested for a dinner count. Dinner is at 5:00 pm, with the tour starts at 5:45 pm.
Location: Lower Eastern Shore Research & Education Center is located at 27664 Nanticoke Road, Salisbury, MD.
Description: Come listen to extension educators and specialists from UMD, UDel and IR4 speak about and taste their research on blueberries, blackberries, sweet corn, watermelon, cantaloup, peppers, and biodegradable plastic. Maryland Pesticide Credits available for 1A, Core and PVT. If you have questions about the program, please contact Haley Sater at hsater@umd.edu or (301)226-7718.
Register to attend the Lower Shore & Small Fruit Twilight Tour
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Anne Arundel County Urban Farm Tour and Ice Cream Social
Date: July 23, 2026 | Thursday
Time: 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. | Cost: Free, but registration is required.
Description: You are invited to the Anne Arundel County Urban Farm Research Clinic (AAUFRC) Urban Farm Tour and Ice Cream Social at the Anne Arundel Extension Office located at 97 Dairy Lane, Gambrills, MD on Thursday, July 23, 2026, from 5:00 to 7:30pm. Ice cream will be served at 5:00pm followed by a walking farm tour that begins at 6:00pm. This year the AAUFRC will highlight hops, wine grapes, apples, peaches, blackberries, sweet corn and flour corn varieties, pumpkins, gourds, high tunnel vegetables and herbs, cut flowers, market gardening, and bee keeping.
This event is free. If you need special assistance to participate, please contact the Anne Arundel County Extension office at 301-226-7470 by July 22nd.
Registration for Urban Farm Tour and Ice Cream Social is on-line at Eventbrite.
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Crops Twilight, Barbecue & Ice Cream Social
Date: August 4, 2026 | Tuesday
Time: 4:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. | Cost: Free, but registration is required.
Description: You are invited to a Fields Crops Research Twilight, Barbecue and Ice Cream Social at the Central Maryland Research and Education Center (CMREC), 2005 Largo Road, Upper Marlboro, Maryland on Tuesday, August 4, 2026, from 4:00 to 9 PM. A barbecue dinner will be served at 4:00 pm followed by homemade ice cream prior to the evening tour. University of Maryland Extension Educators and Specialists will showcase their field crop, vegetable and fruit research plots. Barbeque begins at 4:00 PM, Ice cream Served at 5:15 PM, Crops Twilight at 6:00 PM.
Please arrive on time as the wagon tour will start promptly at 6:00 PM.
This event is free. However, a reserved meal ticket is required. If you need special assistance to participate, please contact the Anne Arundel County Extension office at 301-226-7470 by August 3rd.
Registration for Crops Twilight is on-line at Eventbrite.
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Event: Maryland Crop Scouting School at CMREC (Clarksville)
Date: September 24, 2026 | Thursday
Time: 9:00 am to 2:45 pm | Cost: $10
Location: Central Maryland Research and Education Center, 4240 Folly Quarter Road, Ellicott City, MD 21042
Description: Join us for a hands-on Crop Scouting School focused on building practical skills for identifying and managing pests, diseases, and crop issues in the field. Participants will learn how to scout effectively, recognize key problems, and make informed management decisions using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) principles. This program is designed for farmers, crop consultants, and ag service providers looking to improve their field diagnostics and decision-making. This event covers common pests in row crop and vegetable production systems.
Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/maryland-crop-scouting-school-at-wye-tickets-1988090629591?aff=oddtdtcreator
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Hiring and Retaining Farm Employees – What you Need to Know and Do
Are you trying to find, hire and keep great employees? Is it a bit confusing and time-consuming? Do you know where to start and who to involve? Are you worried about the legal considerations when having non-family members employed? This course will help you sort through all these questions and concerns. Navigating this process doesn’t have to be difficult as this course will share with you. Through the four modules of this course, you’ll get important information and resources you can adapt for your own operation. For more information, go to https://agrisk.umd.edu/grant-proposals/hiring-and-retaining-farm-employees
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Discover more upcoming events from University of Maryland Extension!
Browse our full calendar and find programs near you!
Maryland has a network of weather stations (Maryland Mesonet) that is administered by the University of Maryland's Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science, in partnership with the MD Department of Emergency Management. Each mesonet site measures air temperature, atmospheric pressure, relative humidity, wind speed and direction, solar radiation, rainfall, snow depth, and soil moisture and temperature at five depths, most at 1-minute intervals. The measurements are available to Maryland citizens from the Mesonet website (https://mesonet.umd.edu/index.html).
Extensión en Español Check out Extensión en Español, a Spanish language blog by two UMD professors, Anahí Espíndola (Entomology) and Macarena Farcuh (Plant Sciences & Landscape Architecture). https://extensionesp.umd.edu/
They cover a range of topics, including fruit, pollinators, pests, soils, and pesticides.
Vegetable & Fruit News is a research-based publication for the commercial vegetable and fruit industry available electronically from April through October. Published by the University of Maryland Extension Agriculture and Food Systems team.
Subscribe to Fruit and Vegetable News
EDITOR
Emily Zobel University of Maryland Extension Agent - Dorchester County
501 Court Lane, Room 208
Cambridge, MD 21613
Phone: (410) 410-228-8800
Email: ezobel@umd.edu
Note: Registered Trade Mark® Products, Manufacturers, or Companies mentioned within this newsletter are not to be considered as sole endorsements. The information has been provided for educational purposes only.