What's Killing My Kale?

Annie Klodd and Natalie Hoidal, UMN Extension

Kale To listen to an audio podcast, mouse over and click on the episode title. The podcasts are also available on iTunes and Stitcher.

In "What's Killing My Kale?", get research based solutions to pest issues affecting fruit and vegetable crops from University of MN Extension. Learn how to manage weeds, insects, diseases, and more. Each month we'll have a three part podcast exploring one main issue from three different perspectives.

Current Month Episodes

In our August episode on pollinator and beneficial insect conservation as part of IPM, we talk with Extension educator and native bee expert Elaine Evans, and Xerces society conservation planner Karin Jokela. We'll discuss some background on how pollinators and beneficial insects are faring in our current agricultural systems, how farmers can implement beneficial habitat, and some tips for managing pests without harming beneficial insects.

As always, please provide feedback so that we can improve our podcast!
If you'd like to do a farm consultation with Karin, reach out to your local NRCS office or email Karin at karin.jokela@xerces.org.

Pollinators and IPM part 11: Pesticides and pollinators with Karin Jokela (8/10/2018)
Pollinators and IPM part 10: Beneficial insect habitat with Karin Jokela (8/10/2018)
Pollinators and IPM part 9: Elaine Evans, native bee expert (8/10/2018)

July, 2018 Episodes

This month's episodes of "What's Killing My Kale?" is all about plant diseases. We start in part 1 with a trip to the plant disease clinic to learn about the services they provide to growers. In part 2, we talk with Michelle Grabowski about diseases in Brassica plants, and what growers should be thinking about in terms of scouting and management in the upcoming weeks. Finally, in part 3 we discuss a newly identified disease that's been impacting grapes across Minnesota.

Episode 8: Plant Disease Update part 3: Trunk disease in MN grapes (7/31/2018)
Episode 7: Plant Disease Update Part 2: Disease identification and management in Brassica plants (7/11/2018)
Episode 6: Plant Disease Update Part 1: University of Minnesota's Plant Disease Clinic (7/11/2018)

June, 2018 Episodes

This month's episodes of "What's Killing My Kale?" focus on Spotted Wing Drosophila. This invasive vinegar fly, now widespread in Minnesota, is a major concern for small fruit growers as it lays its eggs directly in the flesh of many high value fruits. This series of podcasts provides growers with top recommendations on managing SWD from Mary Rogers, Assistant Professor of Horticulture, Jim Riddle, long-time organic fruit grower and owner of Blue Fruit Farm, and Bill Hutchison, UMN Extension Entomologist. Additional information on SWD can be found at https://www.fruitedge.umn.edu/swd.

Episode 5: Spotted Wing Drosophila Part 2: A Chat with Jim Riddle of Blue Fruit Farm (6/18/2018)
Episode 4: Spotted Wing Drosophila Part 1: Dr. Mary Rogers on Keeping Out SWD 6/18/2018)

May, 2018 Episodes

This month on What's Killing my Kale we're talking about integrated weed management (IWM) with Annie Klodd and Charlie Rowher. In part 1, we talk about how integrated pest management applies to weeds and explore the four pillars of IWM. In part 2, we discuss different tools we've worked with for mechanical weed management. Annie shares her top 5 tools, and Charlie provides some insight on how flame weeders can be integrated into your weed management strategies. In part three, we explore specialty systems. Charlie shares his experiences with weed management in hops, Annie discusses considerations for perennial systems like grapes and apples, and we finish with some insight from Charlie on weeds in high tunnel systems.