Tote bagger

Graybill Machines, Inc., of Lititz, Pennsylvania, which specializes in designing and building automated machinery, has introduced the Graybill Apple Bagger, a packing-house machine that gently handles and fills 1,000 half-peck (five-pound) tote bags per hour. It is a compact, self-contained unit made of ­stainless steel and aluminum.

For more information, check the Web site www. graybillmachines. com.

MRL for FujiMite

Taiwan has established a maximum residue limit of 0.4 parts per million for FujiMite (fenpyroximate) on apples and pears—the same as the U.S. tolerance, according to information from the manufacturer Nichino America, Inc. Growers are now able to use the contact miticide to control mites on pome fruit that will be exported to Taiwan.
FujiMite belongs to the METI (Mitochondrial Electron Transport Inhibitor) class of compounds, which are in IRAC (Insecticide Resistance Action Committee) group 21A. The active ingredient works by blocking cellular respiration and is effective on all motile stages of spider mites and rust mites. It also affects secondary pests, including psylla and leafhoppers, but is considered nontoxic to most beneficial insects, the company reports in a press release.

The product has a reentry interval of 12 hours and a preharvest interval of 14 days.

Fireblight product approval pending

Westbridge Agricultural Products of Vista, California, is the exclusive U.S. distributor of Blossom Protect, a biological product designed to help control fireblight in apples, pears, and quinces. Approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the product is pending.

Blossom Protect contains the yeast Aureobasidium pullulans, which blocks the fireblight pathogen from colonizing blossoms by competing for space and nutrients. There is no risk of the pathogen developing resistance even with frequent applications, according to a press release from Westbridge.

The product was developed by ­Bio-ferm of Tulln, ­Austria.

For more information, call (800) 876-2767 or check the Web site www.west bridge.com.

Repel deer humanely

Bird Gard, a company that supplies electronic bird control devices, has introduced an electronic deer repellent. Deer Shield uses a deer’s own language and natural instincts to repel them from crops, orchards, and vineyards. Digital recordings of alarmed, hostile, and territorial deer are broadcast through high-fidelity, weather-resistant speakers to trigger a primal fear-and-flee response. Deer soon relocate to where they can feed without feeling threatened. Deer foraging in orchards and vineyards cause large crop losses, and fecal contamination from deer presents a serious public health risk.

Deer Shield is based on research and development of humane animal control systems at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln.

Two models of Deer Shield are available. Deer Shield Pro is motion activated and designed to protect up to 1.5 acres. Deer Shield Super Pro can protect up to 6 acres. For information, check the Web site www.deershield tech.com or call Rick Willis at (503) 449-4829.

Potent codling moth virus

Certis USA has introduced a high-potency codling moth virus that will be commercially available to apple and pear growers in some U.S. states this season. Cyd-X HP bioinsecticide contains a highly potent formulation of the naturally occurring Cydia pomonella granulovirus and can be used at rates as low as 0.5 ounces per acre.
Cyd-X HP can be tank mixed with most other insecticides, fungicides, and fertilizers, and used with mating disruption programs. It is approved by the National Organics Program. It has a four-hour reentry period and can be used up to the day of harvest.

Cheminova will market Sovran

BASF Corporation has granted Cheminova, Inc., the exclusive U.S. distribution rights for Sovran ­(kresoxim-methyl) fungicide. Sovran is used to control powdery mildew, botrytis, and other diseases on grapes, pome fruits, and other crops.

BASF will no longer sell the product and will focus on newer products containing the active ingredients kixor (herbicides) and xemium (fungicides).

New fungicide to be developed

Dow AgroSciences and Gowan announced a new development and marketing license agreement that will allow Gowan to license the new and first-in-its-class fungicide meptyldinocap. Gowan will develop the fungicide for use in fruits and vines in the United States and Canada.

Meptyldinocap represents a new mode of action. While no products are yet registered for use in the United States, it is used in other countries for control of powdery mildew in grapes and a number of fruit and vegetable crops.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, meptyldinocap is a new dinitrophenol fungicide and is one of six isomers found in the older fungicide dinocap. It has been placed in Fungicide Resistance Action Committee (FRAC) group 29.