Spotted Wing Drosophila, a well-known pest that infests ripe, ready-to-eat fruit, poses a significant threat to farmers because it is very difficult to control with standard pesticides. A new approach to tackling this pest involves manipulating the behavior of these insects by disguising healthy fruit as if it were infected with an unappealing pathogen.
By studying the specific odors emitted by infected fruit, researchers have identified the chemicals that repel the flies when applied to healthy fruit and are developing a slow-release device to disperse these fruity odors in the field, ensuring that they do not come into direct contact with the fruit. This method provides a new tool to help farmers protect their crops without relying exclusively on insecticides.
Source: USDA
Image: USDA
26 Jun 2024
Of all the unusual names for cherries, few have raised as many questions as the Black Republican. The story of the Black Republican cherry begins with Henderson Lewelling, the eldest son of a Quaker family who ran a successful nursery in Iowa in the late 1830s.
24 May 2024
Water availability influences cherry tree growth, yield and quality. The application of biostimulants results in the activation/regulation of metabolic pathways that influence processes that can improve production in both quantity and quality.
20 Aug 2026
U.S. tart cherry production is forecast at 91 million pounds in 2026, down 36% year on year. Spring freezes hit Michigan and Utah, cutting the crop and increasing pressure on inventories, processors, product availability and grower prices across the domestic market now.
20 Aug 2026
A study on sweet cherry dormancy combines plant physiology, metabolomics and NDVI/FAPAR vegetation indices from Sentinel and Landsat imagery, highlighting scalable tools to monitor canopy senescence, physiological activity and orchard phenology across the seasonal cycle.
