Developing Damage and Economic Thresholds for Foliar Disease Management in Perennial Plantings of Strawberry

Leaf spot, leaf blight, and leaf scorch are foliar diseases of strawberry found commonly in perennial plantings throughout North America. The effect of these diseases on strawberry production is suspected to range from reduced yields to shortened production life. A three-year study was implemented to determine to what extent these diseases impact yield and the production life of a planting, and to define when it is economically feasible to manage these diseases. The second year of the study focused on: 1) Gathering return yield, crown count, biomass, pre- and post-renovation foliar disease data in an established ‘Jewel’ plot in Ithaca, NY; 2) Gathering baseline yield data, crown count, biomass, pre- and post-renovation foliar disease data in new ‘Kent’ and ‘Jewel’ plots in Geneva, NY; and 3) Continuing to refine experimental procedures to look at the effects of disease under experimental conditions