This workshop is designed for new crop consultants, vineyard managers or anyone who would like a beginner refresher course on the principles to designing a disease management program.

Preregistration is required:  https://2020framewashington.brownpapertickets.com

Registration will be limited to 40 people, and will close February 17, 2020.

There will be 4 WSDA Pesticide Applicator Recertification credits available for this workshop.

Agenda

8:00-8:15 AM      Registration / Check-in

8:15-9:00 AM      Powdery Mildew Biology and Management (Dr. Michelle Moyer, WSU)

In order to effectively manage a pest, we have to know their biology. This talk will cover key environmental factors that influence how the powdery mildew fungus develops, as well as cover basic mildew management principles, including when to do cultural and chemical intervention, and why timing is so important for disease control.

9:00-9:45 AM     Fungicide Stewardship & Application Best Practices (Dr. Charlotte Oliver, WSU)

Fungicides are the primary tool in grape powdery mildew management. However, if they are misused, they can become ineffective. This talk will cover the basics on how fungicide resistance can become an issue in production viticulture, how to approach designing a fungicide spray program that optimizes both disease control while maintaining the longevity of currently available products, and how sprayer operation and spray application influences both fungicide stewardship efforts and efficacy of a disease management program.

9:45-10:00 AM     Break

10:00-11:00 AM   Build a Base Powdery Mildew Management Spray Program …. (Dr. Michelle Moyer, WSU)

This hands-on activity will divide workshop participants into teams. Each team will be tasked with designing a powdery mildew fungicide program. First, teams will be asked to read a series of fungicide labels (provided to them) and develop their “fungicide inventory list”. This process will teach participants how to read a label, and information is important to record when designing a management program. Teams will then design a generic fungicide program for powdery mildew based on historical average dates or key developmental stages for wine grapes in eastern Washington.

11:00-11:45 AM    … Adjust that Program for High and Low Pressure Years (Dr. Michelle Moyer, WSU)

After building their base program, teams will then be asked to adjust their programs based on high-pressure (high disease), and low-pressure (low disease) environmental scenarios.  This process will help emphasize biological information and fungicide stewardship practices presented in the first part of the morning.

11:45-12:30 AM    … Then Defend Your Programs (Dr. Michelle Moyer, WSU)

Teams will then present their base program, and their adjusted programs, highlighting why they made the management decisions they did, and how high and low-pressure scenarios altered their base program decisions. This part of the activity is designed to promote critical thinking associated with decision making.

12:30 – 1:00 PM    Conclusions and Surveys

Financial Support

Additional costs of this workshop are offset with support from:

• USDA-NIFA–SCRI Award No. 2018-03375 titled “FRAME: Fungicide Resistance Assessment, Mitigation and Extension Network for Wine, Table, and Raisin Grapes”
• USDA-CPPM-EIPM Award titled: “Washington State IPM Extension Implementation Program 2017-2020“

Anyone attending this program who requires auxiliary aids or services, please contact Michelle Moyer at 509-786-9234 or michelle.moyer@wsu.edu . Extension programs and employment are available to all without discrimination. Evidence of noncompliance may be reported through your local Extension office.