{"id":9544,"date":"2019-10-29T16:45:17","date_gmt":"2019-10-29T16:45:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hvfarmhub.org\/?p=9544"},"modified":"2021-08-13T13:34:44","modified_gmt":"2021-08-13T13:34:44","slug":"combating-allium-leafminer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hvfarmhub.org\/es\/combating-allium-leafminer\/","title":{"rendered":"Combating Allium Leafminer\/ Combatir el minador de las hojas de la cebolla"},"content":{"rendered":"

(Spanish translation to follow\/traducci\u00f3n en espa\u00f1ol abajo)<\/i><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Researchers share tactics on saving onion and garlic<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

S<\/span>ince detected in 2015 in the northeast region, the Allium Leafminer has posed considerable challenges to onion and garlic growers.  By laying eggs inside leaf tissue, the pest leaves the plant vulnerable to damage, laying its claim with the oviposition mark, a trail of white dots where female insects have deposited their eggs. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ethan Grundberg shows infected leeks from the Farm Hub.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Allium Leafminer (also known as ALM) has been found in 14 counties in New York State. Researchers say it is making its way into Massachusetts and Vermont. The ALM maggots often lead to rot inside the crops, deeming them unmarketable. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Growers who follow organic practices face an added challenge –  the limited number of insecticides they can use to battle the invasive pest. Over the past four years, Teresa Rusinek and Ethan Grundberg, researchers from <\/span>Cornell Cooperative Extention Eastern New York Commercial Horticulture<\/span><\/a>, have been studying the impact of ALM with the goal of finding solutions to help farmers. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The research, \u201can envisioned multi-year process,\u201d includes identifying which cultural strategies and insecticides work and \u201cfiguring out how we can reduce the number of insecticide applications and then can we develop more integrated programs,\u201d Grundberg says. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Leeks damaged by ALM. (Photo Credit: Cornell University)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

A large part of the work is sharing what they have learned with regional growers including at conferences. In October,  Rusinek and Grundberg presented key findings from their latest research on ALM at the Allium Leafminer Twilight Meeting held at the Hudson Valley Farm Hub. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since 2018 the Farm Hub has served as the organic farming test site for the research project, while Migliorelli Farm in Red Hook has been the test site for both conventional and organic farming.  The fall 2018 trial at the Farm Hub focused on leeks and scallions and examined management methods, from the timing of sprays to the use of reflective mulch to the combination of various methods. This past spring the research was extended to test garlic. The biannual trials are critical since ALM has two flights a year, once in the fall and once in the spring. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sharing knowledge <\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the twilight meeting, Rusinek and Grundberg shared the following key takeaways from the fall and spring trials: <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n