Blueberry Management
The table below lists suggested blueberry management items for November. Suggested management items for the entire calendar year are available in an EDIS publication, Calendar for Southern Highbush Blueberry Management in Florida (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1363). Specific disease, insect, and weed controls are listed in the 2022 Florida Blueberry IPM Guide (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS380), as well as in subject-specific publications referenced below. Also, a list of all UF EDIS blueberry publications can be found at www.blueberrybreeding.com/blog, along with a summary description and link to each. Remember to take a look at the UF/IFAS Blueberry Growers Guide phone app (available in both English and Spanish) for field scouting tools, as well as information on all of the UF southern highbush blueberry cultivars (https://tosto.re/blueberryuf).
Disease
Monitor and manage leaf diseases, particularly in evergreen systems. See UF EDIS Publication PP348, Florida Blueberry Leaf Disease Guide (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/PP348).
Insect Pests
Begin monitoring for blueberry gall midge using bucket traps (3-5 per acre) or sticky panel traps (1-
3 per acre), and spray suggested insecticides when adults are observed. If traps are not used, spray
right before floral bud break, with a second spray approximately ten days after the first application,
following label directions. See UF EDIS Publication ENY-997 Blueberry Gall Midge on Southern
Highbush Blueberry in Florida (https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/IN1239). Continue monitoring
for southern red mites and flat mites, and spray miticides and insecticides with efficacy on mites.
See UF EDIS Publication ENY-1006, Mite Pests of Southern Highbush Blueberry in Florida
(https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in1284).
Weeds
Apply post-emergence herbicide if weeds are at densities that hinder bush growth. See UF EDIS Publication HS90, Weed Management in Blueberry (http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/WG/WG01600.pdf)
This Month's Blog Post
What To Do After a Hurricane
Doug Phillips
Blueberry Extension Coordinator, UF/IFAS
