Serious Grower

Field Report for September 2: late blight alert for tomatoes!

A summary of what vegetable pest experts are talking about this week (the last field report for the season)...including risk of late blight infections in tomato, first re

Giant pumpkin growers, mic-ed up: genetics, vegetative growth stage, and setting fruit

Dr. Chris Hernandez is a geneticist and crop breeder at the University of New Hampshire. Steve Geddes is record-breaking giant pumpkin grower living and growing in New Ha

Field Report for August 26: cucurbit downy mildew alert!

A summary of what vegetable pest experts are talking about this week…its mostly diseases impacting cucumbers, pumpkins and squashes!   Seasonal reporting on CDM https:

Field Report for August 18: brassica clubroot management, boron issues, and avoiding phytotoxicity.

A quick summary of what the experts are talking about when it comes to managing late summer pests, diseases, and other vegetable crop maladies. More about clubroot manag

Kasi gets a robot vacuum: garlic irrigation, UV-C and other space technology on the farm

Kasi is a non-commercial farmer in Montana's Bitterroot Valley. In this wide ranging discussion, we discuss garlic irrigation strategies, right to repair laws, and all th

Field Report for August 12: alternaria leaf spot, pepper maggot, tomato pith necrosis

More information about alternaria leaf spot of brassicas https://www.vegetables.cornell.edu/pest-management/disease-factsheets/alternaria-leaf-spot-of-brassicas/   Mor

Field Report for August 5: southern blight, leek moth in storage onions, mustard biofumigation

The 2026 Cornell IPM Organic Production and IPM Guide for Vegetables is out and available online now!   More information about southern blight in tomatoes https://cont

Chuck is enthused about IPM: neonicotinoid alternatives and NH pesticide policy

Chuck is a commercial farmer in New Hampshire and an expert in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) for fruit and vegetable crops.  This episode touches on how the scientifi

Field Report for July 29: cucurbit downy and powdery mildew, sap beetle in sweet corn

I will be including brief field reports in the feed through the growing season, featuring real-time reports from extension specialists in New England, New York, and the m

Field Report for July 22: fall armyworm, corn rust, yellow vine decline

For more information about fall armyworm https://extension.psu.edu/fall-armyworm-as-a-pest-of-field-corn   For more information about corn rusts https://www.vegetable

Kasi is staging a death match: invasive species, compost tea, and comfrey chop and drop mulching

Kasi is a non-commercial farmer in Montana's Bitterroot Valley. In this wide ranging discussion, we touch on microbes, nitrogen amendments for growing flowers, invasive s

Field Report for July 15, 2026

I will be including brief field reports in the feed through the growing season, featuring real-time reports from extension specialists in New England, New York, and the m

Field Report for July 8, 2026

I will be including brief field reports in the feed through the growing season, featuring real-time reports from extension specialists in New England, New York, and the m

Jason is growing a biological wonderland: fruit trees, earwigs, and mail order pollinators

Jason wants to turn his lawn into an edible landscape and an amazing place for his family in Oregon. We’ll drop in throughout the year to hear how things are progressing.

Field Report for July 1, 2026

I will be including brief field reports in the feed through the growing season, featuring real-time reports from extension specialists in New England, New York, and the m

Tomato IPM Study Group: Covered Production

Do you want to know more about where your tomatoes come from and the experts who are supporting our vegetable farmers to grow us the freshest, tastiest tomatoes possible,

Field Report for June 24, 2026

I will be including brief field reports in the feed through the growing season, featuring real-time reports from extension specialists in New England, New York, and the m

Kasi gets experimental: tarping for no-till squash and a scientist's existential crisis

Kasi is a non-commercial farmer in Montana's Bitterroot Valley. We celebrate Birdhouse Day, discuss the ins and outs of cover cropping for a squash crop and for weed mana

Field Report for June 17, 2026

I will be including brief field reports in the feed through the growing season, featuring real-time reports from extension specialists in New England, New York, and the m

Elisabeth is serious about onions: experts get into the weeds about thrips

Fellow entomologist, Elisabeth Hodgdon, joins us for a deep dive into onion thrips management as she has been troubleshooting an unusual situation that is becoming more c