BOTECTOR BEATS BOTRYTIS WITH BIOLOGY
MEET THE TASMAN & MARLBOROUGH HORTICULTURE TEAM
SQUALL® THE NEW GENERATION - DRIFT REDUCING ADJUVANT
Farmlands is committed to being the go-to for everyone connected to our land, including you as our important horticulture customers. We understand that growers have been dealing with difficult times, with plenty of uncertainty still to face in 2023.
We know it’s super-important to do our very best to support the productivity and profitability of our farmers and growers right now. We must be easy for you to do business with.
With this in mind, we’re busy growing our already strong base of technical expertise and support teams, to ensure we have the right resources and people available to you when you need them. Our new Chief Sales Officer Blair Robinson, is joining us in late January and he will be focused on driving this important work. Our Technical Advisors will always be there to listen to you, understand your needs and support your business. They will continue to work collaboratively with the broader Farmlands business on a daily basis to source and deliver the products, solutions and advice that support the best horticultural outcomes for you.
Our Technical Advisors are also supported by Technical Leaders in the fields of viticulture, subtropicals, pip, stonefruit and organics. We are committed to maintaining and growing real depth of knowledge that you can rely on.
In the previous Growing Success, we showcased our Bay of Plenty Technical Advisors and in this edition, we’ll be introducing you to our Tasman/Marlborough team.
We also discuss a selection of advanced solutions for growers, including Botector for botrytis, Belanty®, a new generation demethylation inhibitor (DMI) fungicide, Advance Gold®, an alternative bud breaker for Gold 3 Kiwifruit and the importance of post-harvest nutrition. As well as other products such as Fylloton, with its impressive results.
Farmlands wishes you every success in the year ahead.
Growers across all crop types have certainly been facing some adverse circumstances. The wild weather in January following a frost event that hit the wider North Island in October, has meant that orchardists have been experiencing some challenging conditions. For Kiwifruit growers in particular, it’s led to some anxiety about the impacts on their cashflows and crops.
As always, the Farmlands team has been on hand to listen, understand and act. Using the combined long-term experience of the whole team, we took to orchards and helped formulate a strategy to aid the quickest recovery to the best levels we could find.
The feedback from the industry highlights to us just how valuable our team can be and how critical good relationships are. In the coming months, we’ll continue to show how committed we are to horticulture and our growers.
Farmlands has built a reputable team in the Tasman and Marlborough horticulture advisory and service sector to support our shareholders in these key regions.
The team has been developed and refocused to ensure shareholders, particularly in the viticulture, apple and kiwifruit sectors are well serviced.
The Marlborough viticulture team, based at the Blenheim branch collectively has 90 years of industry experience.
Daniel MacDonald is the Senior Technical Advisor in our Marlborough team, with 15 years’ experience in the viticulture sector, including the last 9 years as a technical advisor based in Blenheim.
Technical Advisor Robert Blathwayt has 20 years’ experience in the viticulture sector including vineyard management and most recently, managing vineyard development in the corporate sector. Rob also works very closely with Organic grape growers.
Simon Bowers heads up our winery supply operations for the region. “With 30 years viticulture experience, Simon has spent 20 years making wine and 10 years as a viticulturist.”
Mart Verstappen, Viticulture Technical Leader, supports our Marlborough team and shareholders with
all things technical. With over 35 years’ experience in the viticulture sector, including the last 5 years at Farmlands, Mart has a wealth of knowledge and is always willing to work with shareholders on their crop management and nutrition programmes.
Mart has developed several projects which support Farmlands shareholders’ endeavours to improve their vineyard operations. Examples include the Innovation Vineyard, set up in collaboration with Marlborough Grape Growers Co-Op and the introduction of grapevine plant sap nutrition analysis.
In the Tasman region, Dominic Missen joined the team this year to manage the pip fruit, kiwifruit and viticulture portfolios across the Motueka and Richmond regions. Dominic brings great technical knowledge with 10 years’ experience in horticulture, working in a number of local orcharding and horticulture businesses including corporate apple growing. Dominic also has experience working in the kiwifruit sector in Te Puke.
Along with Dominic we welcome Reilly Allen to our Motueka/Richmond TA team. Reilly has spent the last 10 years working in pip fruit for the Riwaka area and will be using this experience to service our many pip fruit shareholders in the Tasman area.
Daniel MacDonald
Senior Technical Advisor, Tasman 027 836 2542
Simon Bowers
Technical Advisor, Blenheim 021 446 993
Dominic Missen
Technical Advisor, Richmond 027 254 8385
Robert Blathwayt
Technical Advisor, Blenheim 027 272 9242
Mart Verstappen
Vitculture Technical Leader, Tasman 027 570 8300
Reilly Allen
Technical Advisor, Richmond 027 396 8510
If you would like to find out how our Tasman & Marlborough team can help with your growing success, please contact:
Botector (Aureobasidium pullulans) is a yeast-based biofungicide for effective, reliable control of botrytis in grapes.
The first product of its type to be registered in New Zealand for grapes, it leaves no residue, does not affect fermentation or wine quality and is harmless to bees and beneficial insects, with excellent crop safety.
Nufarm Technical Specialist Andy Davis says Botector is BioGro approved for use in organic production in NZ and can be used right up until one day prior to harvest, when other options are limited.
Containing two strains of Aureobasidium pullulans, a fungus commonly found in nature, Botector works through the principle of competitive exclusion.
“In other words, it gets in first, colonising potential infection sites, such as micro-scratches on the fruit surface, immediately after application,” Andy explains.
“It then proliferates so rapidly that botrytis pathogens can’t access the living space and nutrients they need to colonise the site themselves.”
As a biofungicide, Botector aligns well with the New Zealand wine industry’s move towards a nil residue approach to botrytis control, he says.
Importantly, its unique mode of action, which creates a physical barrier to disease, means it also gives growers an alternative option to delay or prevent build-up of resistance to commonly used conventional fungicides in wine grapes.
Nufarm has evaluated Botector on its own and in combination with a standard programme during three years of NZ trial work1 on vineyards in Nelson, Marlborough, Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay.
Results of this work have been positive, Andy says.
“The data showed five applications of Botector at key timings throughout crop development, from 10 percent flowering to pre-harvest, could perform as well as a conventional four spray programme.
“In one trial2, it performed better in disease severity assessments than an alternative biofungicide programme.”
To get the best results from Botector, Andy says it’s important to remember it’s a living organism, so it needs to be stored at or below 20°C.
“Standard spraying equipment can be used. Spray tanks should be cleaned before preparing Botector for application and water should be below 25°C.”
Once mixed, Botector needs to be used within eight hours and applied when temperatures are below 25°C, preferably in the evening, he adds. “We are often asked about the compatibility of its active ingredient, Aureobasidium pullulans.
“It has excellent compatibility with a broad range of commonly used insecticides, fungicides and additives but it is wise to confirm compatibility before mixing it with anything else.”
The global manufacturer San Agro provides a comprehensive list of other plant protection products, fertilizers and additives3 that can be mixed with Botector. Nufarm Territory Managers can also provide a detailed compatibility guide for New Zealand wine growers.
For more advice, please contact your Farmlands Technical Advisor.
1 12016-18 Nufarm trials in Hawke’s Bay, Gisborne, Marlborough and Nelson.
2 2018 trial by Peak Research in Hawke’s Bay, NUNZ1841.
3 https://bio-ferm.com/fileadmin/user_upload/221020_SAN_Compatibility_of_A. pullulans__1_.pdf
Article supplied by Nufarm.
During post-harvest, nutrients are taken into plants from leaves prior to leaf drop.
Therefore post-harvest is a critical time to apply soil based and foliar nutrition as vines actively translocate nutrients to the buds, canes, trunk and roots, to store these elements and carbohydrates for the next season. There is also an active period of root growth post-harvest throughout autumn until 2 weeks before dormancy.
Post-harvest is a critical time to apply fertilisers to the soil as the roots are actively growing and therefore have the capacity for uptake and convert to carbohydrate storage.
The greatest loss of yield potential occurs when postharvest applications are missed. This is a golden opportunity that has the single biggest impact on next year’s crop potential.
Our observations from plant Sap Analysis results, show a high number of vineyards start the season in negative nutrition balance because of this missed opportunity.
Post-harvest is also a critical time to correct any deficiencies noted leading up to or during harvest.
Results from Plant Sap Analysis from that period can help manage deficiencies.
This is a good time to have a look at the elements required for optimising flowering and fruit development. It is important to have sufficient levels of these elements in the buds prior to budbreak.
Not only is nutrition important but irrigation management is also critical. Dry soils after harvest inhibit the second flush of root growth and cause early leaf drop, limiting the build-up of carbohydrates and nutritional reserves in the vine.
Grapevines rely entirely on stored nutrient from budburst until the 5-6 leaf shoot stage.
Post-harvest is also a perfect time to start soil testing and compare the results with the previous year’s Sap Analysis results. It will allow for sufficient time to apply fertiliser before the mad rush in late winter and early spring.
Soil or foliar application - or both?
Fertigation can be used directly to the wetted area and active root system of the vines. Depending on the vine canopy’s health post-harvest, foliar applications can be beneficial. Certain elements are best applied as a foliar due to the reduced availability of these elements through the soils.
Summary
Post-harvest Nutrition is often overlooked but it is a golden opportunity to ensure the plant has access to the correct nutrition to have the biggest impact on next year’s yield. Understanding application of the correct nutrients postharvest and managing with plant sap analysis and soil test results, is critical to improve yield, fruit quality and vine health. A balance of soil and foliar applications of nutrients is possibly the best approach at the end of the season when making product selections.
Your next season’s nutrition management program starts now!
Discuss your post-harvest nutrition requirements with your Farmlands Technical Advisor. They can advise on the availability of options and solutions.
Mart Verstappen Technical Leader - ViticultureBelanty®, the new generation demethylation inhibitor (DMI) fungicide from BASF, has now been through its second season of use with New Zealand apples and pears.
Like all DMI fungicides, Belanty brought protective and curative action to wrest control from black spot and powdery mildew. Belanty’s superior formulation means the active ingredient, mefentrifluconazole, rapidly moves into the wax layers of treated fruitlets and foliage where it is protected from wash-off (rainfast once dry) and UV breakdown. Belanty’s active ingredient then slowly and steadily metres out of these ‘reservoirs’ (acropetal and translaminar movement in leaves) to give prolonged protection. Note that Belanty doesn’t move from treated leaves into leaves that weren’t sprayed, or leaves which emerged after application. These must be protected by other fungicide applications.
The curative activity of Belanty, if applied within 96 hours of an infection starting, effectively helps to control any black spot fungi that may have germinated and started to infect apples. Growers have the option to partner a super-protectant fungicide, e.g. Sercadis* in front of forecast black spot infection events to provide forward cover into the event and then Belanty after the event to reachback (up to 96 hours) to provide cover back into the event.
Applications of single site fungicides such as Sercadis and Belanty should be tank-mixed with fungicides from other mode of action groups, e.g. Polyram® DF and Delan®, to help prevent resistance developing to single-site fungicides.
Growers who have used Belanty over the past two seasons report that it has fitted well as the DMI of choice early in the season to meet exporter requirements. Ed Whyte, an orchardist in Clive, says it has performed well in his Envy, a variety that can be prone to powdery mildew and russet. Good control was achieved with a tight programme and Belanty delivered the desired results.
Belanty comes in a handy 10L Ecopak (which has 20% less plastic than a standard plastic drum) and can be recycled, along with its cap, through Agrecovery.
ACVM Approval No. Belanty P009798, Sercadis P008977, Polyram P002062 and Delan P003507 ® registered trademarks of BASFIn the last edition of Growing Success, orchardists were introduced to Fylloton, in an article about biostimulants. These can help growers improve crop management, when dealing with approaching environmental conditions.
Since then, the spring and early summer of 2022/2023 have proven no exception to the rule of unpredictability. Growers have faced more challenges with heavy rainfall, cold stress and a frost event. While it’s difficult to measure the impact of these conditions on the plant’s ability to function, we do know that the level of rainfall this Spring during application of fertiliser side dressings, likely leached the majority of nitrate beyond the rootzone. Low soil oxygen levels restricted the nitrification process in the soil, reducing the available nitrogen for plant uptake. In addition, temperatures sub 12°C restrict the plant’s ability to utilise inorganic nitrogen to drive growth.
What’s important when faced with these challenges? Questions around N utilization efficiency and promotion of the plant’s metabolic process come to mind, normally followed by what do I use? Here, Fylloton comes into its own. Fylloton delivers a high level of Organic N in the form of free amino acids, particularly Tryptophan. This helps growers to maneuver their crop growth through abiotic stress conditions, which result in stalling vegetative development. Fylloton is also ideal for vegetative recovery from chemical growth arrest (causing phytotoxicity) and physical growth arrest after partial frost damage. However, Fylloton is best used when applied in a programme anticipating abiotic stress as part of normal spring growing conditions. This provides the plant with the ability to cope with abiotic stress events and promotes quicker recovery with a reduction in growth arrest.
Fylloton applications were monitored by Farmlands Advisors after the spring frost event and following cold snap.
In the words of Te Puke Technical Advisor Dean Gower: “I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it! I have a client who wanted to develop his canopy earlier in the season, he has good flower numbers but due to the orchard altitude he struggles to establish good leaf canopy prior to flowering. He applied Fylloton on the Monday prior to the Thursday frost; he was not severely frosted with occasional minimal leaf damage.”
“I’m impressed at how the growth continued through the chill period; leaf colour remained good. Often when a chill is experienced Kiwifruit vines struggle, have a growth check and it takes about a week of fine / warm weather before they get going again, in this instance they just kept on pushing – with no growth check. The canopy did not stall due to the cold, it continued to extend, shoot size evened up with great leaf canopy development prior to flowering.”
Talk to your Farmlands Technical Advisor today about the options and solutions available to get more from your crop.For over 35 years Cosio have provided quality agricultural, horticultural and geotextile products to combat New Zealand’s diverse climatic conditions. Windbreak, shade cloth, frost protection and more, Cosio has growers' needs covered.
For a custom Cosio solution for your property at competitive prices, talk to your Farmlands Technical Advisor or visit your local Farmlands store.
Advance Gold® is an alternative mode of action bud breaker for Gold Kiwifruit that provides growers with a proven alternative to hydrogen cyanamide. Advance Gold has been developed by Arxada limited (formerly Lonza), with eight years of commercial trials and six years of commercial use across the key growing regions of Northland, Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Hawkes Bay and Motueka. The timing of Advance Gold can be further optimised (additional to label information), with the use of the Hazel TrexTM Gold 3 gene test, in conjunction with Zespri’s ‘Budbreak Date Predictor’ tool, plus any historical data around natural budbreak for the site.
Hydrogen Cyanamide has been well established over the years as an effective tool for increasing budbreak and flowering. However, it can also increase unwanted lateral flowers and star triples, significantly increasing thinning costs for growers. Over several years, Zespri has supported Arxada with investment into alternative budbreakers for Gold 3 Kiwifruit. The additional benefits of; reductions in lateral flowers and a favourable short re-entry interval of ‘when fully dry’, makes Advance Gold an effective and safer alternative to existing budbreak technology in Gold 3 Kiwifruit.
With A.I nozzles and a Drift Reducing Adjuvant mandated by Zespri for applications of hydrogen cyanamide, Squall®, a specific Drift Reducing Adjuvant, is a very effective solution. Squall has been tested infield with hydrogen cyanamide (and other pre-flower sprays, including bactericides) and has proven to be both highly effective, tank mix compatible and crop safe. Squall is also compatible with Advance Gold, although not mandated to be included by Zespri, it can
be beneficial to further mitigate drift, enhance deposition and improve rainfastness.
Advance Gold was commercially launched in April 2017 by Arxada. It is an EPA approved and ACVM registered product, that is approved by Zespri in the Crop Protection Standard. Advance Gold is a two-part mix of salicylic acid and a nitrogen activator, with an in-built adjuvant system, providing a different mode of action budbreaker for Gold 3 Kiwifruit. Advance Gold plus Advance Gold Activator, when applied between a Hazel Trex index of 5.0 - 6.0 or 35 days before natural budbreak, will deliver enhanced and uniform budbreak, condensed flowering, with an increase in flower numbers and fewer lateral (double and triple) and tightly clustered (star triple) flowers. These reductions in lateral flowers bring significant cost savings to growers by reducing labour input and speeding up the thinning process.
Natural budbreak can be very site specific for orchards. Even properties close to one another can have a large date range of when natural budbreak occurs. Applications of Advance Gold more than 7 days before or after the 35-days before natural budbreak window can reduce the effects of Advance Gold. The investments Zespri have made in the Hazel Trex gene test and the budbreak predictor tool can further optimise application timing. These tools are site specific and have proven to be much more reliable than just using the calendar, or area weather stations alone to determine optimal timing of your budbreak enhancer.
Contact your Farmlands horticultural Technical Advisor for more information on how Advance Gold® and Squall® can benefit your growing operation.
Article supplied by Arxada
Spray drift can be caused and exacerbated by various factors including application speed, operating pressure, nozzle selection, boom height, proximity to crop, weather conditions and also by what is mixed into the spray tank. There are many reasons to mitigate spray drift, including applications near sensitive areas (e.g. public), to avoid potential offtarget residues, crop effects (e.g. phytotoxicity) or potential contamination (e.g. water ways) and legal or industry mandated requirements - to ensure the active is on the target for optimal efficacy.
Squall® is a specific Drift Reducing Adjuvant, made from 100% biodegradable polymers. Squall® minimises driftable fines by producing a larger median droplet size. It also improves deposition, delivering more spray onto the target by reducing spray droplet bounce off the crop, with enhanced rain/irrigation fastness.
The polymers in Squall® increase the viscosity of the spray solution, to minimise the potential for smaller droplets to form as the spray solution exits the nozzle under pressure, in the presence of typical spray application conditions. Squall® also counteracts the negative effects that some products and tank-mixtures can have, which can lead to the production of small (driftable fine) droplets. The enhanced deposition onto the crop is particularly beneficial for harder to wet crops (e.g brassicas, onions etc.) combined with the improved rainfastness – further advancing results in-field.
Squall® can be used in all situations for the application of crop protection products to assist with drift mitigation, adherence to buffer zones, including those where the addition of a drift reducing adjuvant is a mandatory requirement. It can also be used for all application methods, irrespective of sprayer setups or nozzle types (including TeeJet and Air Inclusion, etc.). The use rate for Squall®, using high volume ground-based spray applications, is 0.5% (500 ml / 100 litres).
100μ). 191μ median droplet size
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Changing climatic conditions in New Zealand are indicating more drought-like conditions for the future, which means farms and orchards are facing new issues around dust control from a health and safety, environmental and crop safety point of view. Mining & forestry industries, as well as regional municipalities have been using dust suppressant technologies for over 25 years to effectively control dust.
Biolchim New Zealand is now providing a solution to the “Anitdust” issue. It’s a cost-effective dust control product which can maintain road surfaces, headlands and farm tracks from deterioration. Untreated road surfaces require more frequent repairs of potholes, washboard, and rutting. Dust suppressants like Antidust help to compact road surfaces which essentially can help reduce time consuming and expensive road repairs, prevent accidents caused by poor visibility and help reduce health problems related to airborne dust particles.
Other advantages of dust control are:
• Minimising excessive dust during harvest, which can be a nuisance to workers, neighbours and the community at large.
• During drier seasons, harvest activities will likely result in increased dust due to lack of rainfall and to compound the issue, a reduced tree canopy will filter less dust.
• They can prevent dust particles from entering streams and waterways where they can contribute to sediment levels which can be dangerous to aquatic life.
• Antidust usually has 2-3 applications, distanced by 15-20 days, to ensure effectiveness throughout summer.
• Wet evenly with 40-50L of solution (15-20L of product) every 100m2 of surface.
• Depending on conditions and climate, rates and level of application can vary for your property.
• Antidust is a safe and cost-effective solution to dust control on your property.
For further information, contact your Farmlands
Technical Field Officer or the friendly team at your local Farmlands store.
Article supplied by Biolchim
