To receive a notification through the Remind text messaging system when a Tangi-Washington Grower Update is posted, please contact Mary Helen Ferguson. Click here for links to previous Tangi-Washington Grower Updates.

This Update primarily contains information of interest to strawberry growers, but I also wanted to let you know about a couple of upcoming events.

Strawberry Update 1: Plant Testing

As discussed at the Strawberry Grower Meeting in August, we’ve received a USDA Specialty Crops Block Grant through the LA Department of Agriculture and Forestry to do several things related to better managing Neopestalotiopsis disease. One of those things is testing plants free of charge prior to planting. The plan is for one of the LSU AgCenter employees involved in the project to meet growers each time a truck comes from one of the nurseries. Each grower will have the option of having us collect plants from their order to test. We need to know to what location each nursery will deliver and when they will arrive, so that someone can be there to meet them. If you would like your plants tested, please let us know.

Strawberry Update 2: Budget Tools

The updated strawberry budget tools that Dr. Michael Deliberto of the LSU Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness recently developed are available here: Strawberry Enterprise Budget and Field Activity Costs.

Strawberry Update 3: Updated Fungicide Summary

I’ve revised the strawberry fungicide summary page (previously focused only on products for Botrytis/gray mold and anthracnose fruit rot) to include products and efficacy ratings for Neopestalotiopsis, along with some other updates. The PDF can be downloaded from this page. Please be sure to read footnotes on the table, as they contain important information.

Strawberry Update 4: Fungicide Resistance Testing in Botrytis

We will have the opportunity during the upcoming season to send a limited number of additional samples to test for fungicide resistance in the Botrytis (gray mold) pathogen in Louisiana fields. If you would like for us to collect a sample from your field(s), please let me or your Extension agent (if that’s not me) know.

Advanced Organic Farming Workshop – September 27 (Baton Rouge)

Click here for more information and to register.

2025 Louisiana Farm to School Conference – October 8 (Baton Rouge)

Click here for more information and to register.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Contact Mary Helen Ferguson, Ph.D.

The LSU AgCenter and LSU provide equal opportunities in programs and employment.