Being a good cherry-growing neighbor

Once again summer is approaching which means so is the 2012 cherry season. The 2011 cherry season was a good one for growers. Cherries were big and the market was favorable for the producers. With an excellent year behind us and a new one at hand, we still have pest management issues to address.

One example of this was a commercial grower I worked with last year who was hit hard at harvest time. This grower has a neighbor with about eight cherry trees located about fifty feet from his orchard. The neighbor had neglected his trees and made no effort to control pests for the previous three years. Even if a grower is controlling pests within his orchard, pests from neighboring properties can still invade his space and infect his fruit.

Once again summer is approaching which means so is the 2012 cherry season. The 2011 cherry season was a good one for growers. Cherries were big and the market was favorable for the producers. With an excellent year behind us and a new one at hand, we still have pest management issues to address.

One example of this was a commercial grower I worked with last year who was hit hard at harvest time. This grower has a neighbor with about eight cherry trees located about fifty feet from his orchard. The neighbor had neglected his trees and made no effort to control pests for the previous three years. Even if a grower is controlling pests within his orchard, pests from neighboring properties can still invade his space and infect his fruit.

During the first week of harvest last year, the commercial grower picked and shipped an initial load of cherries to the packing plant. These were big, bold-flavored, sweet cherries. The best crop this grower had seen in twenty years of producing. At the packing plant it was discovered that there was one worm in one cherry in that load. The commercial market has zero tolerance for worms/flies in fruit. Thus, the grower was unable to ship any more fruit to the packing plant. Had the worm been found later in the shipping process, for example prior to export, it could have caused the entire packing plant to be shut down for the year as well as the recall of shipments already en route.

In this case, not only were the first 1,000 pounds of this grower's fruit rejected for sale, but the fruit buyer would not accept any other fruit from this grower. This turned out to be a very significant loss of income for this producer;  20 thousand pounds that he could not sell ! It was too late to control the fruit flies/worms in the neighbors trees.

This neighbor did have his trees sprayed but the damage was already done. Crop insurance does not cover this type of loss. In my conversations with the non-compliant cherry tree owner he said, he was sorry, would spray next year. I hear that alot from non-compliant property owners with cherry trees. “Getting to it next year”, does not work! For commercial growers, their livelihoods are at risk.

Cherries are an agricultural commodity under the Montana Department of Agriculture. Montana Code Annotated Part 23 (MCA 23) requires that all property owners control insect pests of horticulture crops. Specifically in our area, the western cherry fruit fly is our concern. There are both conventional and organic means of controlling these pests. You may contact your local county extension agent, local pesticide dealers, commercial sprayers or me to get more information. Emergence of the western cherry fruit fly from dormancy begins by around June 15th. If you have cherry trees, please begin your control program by that date. Control must continue until late August to be successful.

So please be a good neighbor! The Flathead Cherry Growers greatly appreciate your cooperation and support. If you have questions, please call me, Chris Beason-Field Rep. for Lake-Flathead Counties Cherry Pest Management Area @ 406-214-5425.