Wild Blueberry Newsletter June 2025 Hello Everyone, Phenology Update This week is peak green fruit, and as long as we continue getting some rain, they should ripen and fill out nicely. Below you will see this week’s phenology table, which is also available online. Date Visited Locations Pin Head Green Fruit Color Change Fruit Blue Fruit […]
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Join UMaine’s Wild Blueberry Team for a series of free summer events on wild blueberry field management. Highlights include sprayer calibration sessions, discussions on pest and pollinator management, and our annual Field Day at Blueberry Hill Research Farm in Jonesboro. Visit our Upcoming Events Page to view the full schedule and register. For questions, contact […]
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The Calderwood Lab has released a new fact sheet, Considerations for Solar on Wild Blueberry Land in Maine, detailing research on the feasibility of dual-use solar installations (or agrivoltaics) over Maine wild blueberry fields. While wild blueberry plants recovered well after solar installation, excessive shading significantly reduced yield, making dual-use solar unprofitable under standard industry […]
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Cold temperatures that would cause damage to flowers and pinheads occurred in Aurora area and possibly in Hope and in the barrens. In the Hope area on May 31st, temperatures were close to 30F for about 1 hour. In the barrens, temperatures were about 28F for about 1 hr in the early morning of May […]
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There were cold temperatures recorded again at Aurora and fields in the barrens. At the Aurora weather station, temperatures were below 28 F from 2am to 5:30am and the lowest temperature was 24 bF for 1 1/2 hours in that time period. In the barrens, temperatures were below 32 F for about two hours and […]
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There were temperatures below 28F overnight from May 22nd midnight to 6am. Temperatures below 28F can injure or kill open flowers. What flower damage occurs to a field depends upon the blueberry plants genetics, if the plants are in dip in the ground and how cold and for how long there are cold temperatures. Weather […]
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When: Saturday, June 6, 2026Time: 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.Location: Brodis Blueberries, 87 Jones Hill Rd, Off of Route 235, can not come from the town of Appleton, Jones Hill Rd, Hope, ME 04847Cost: Free Join us for a morning filled with hands-on information for organic and conventional growers! You can receive 1 pesticide credit by attending this event. 9:00-10:00 Pest […]
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Dried up mummy berry cups were found on the barrens so I expect they are drying up in many locations. With the warm dry weather we are getting over the next three days until Tuesday May 19th, I expect even later fields will have their cups drying up.
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There were conditions for a Monilinia infection period starting on May 13th about 2 to 5pm in all fields monitored by weather stations from the midcoast, Hancock and throughout the barrens. If you still had mummy berry cups, then you may have had an infection period. If you applied fungicide later then May 3 to […]
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May 10th to 11th had conditions for another Monilinia infection period which started about 5 to 6pm in Waldoboro, Hope, West Rockport and Ellsworth, and later in the evening in Aurora, Blue hill and Jonesboro fields. Some fields in the barrens had wet conditions that continued through May 10th from the start of the rain […]
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There were conditions for Monilinia infection from May 9 to 10th in all fields monitored with a weather station. In the Waldoboro, West Rockport, Hope, Ellsworth and Blue Hill weather station locations, the rain started about 3pm and in Washington county about 5 to 7pm as the rain moved farther east. Some fields may have […]
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Midcoast area There were suitable conditions for Monilinia infection from May 6 to May 7 in the fields with weather stations. The rain started around 3 to 4pm on Wednesday May 6. If you applied fungicides after April 26 to 29 (10 to 7 days from this past infection period, respectively), there is a good […]
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Wild Blueberry Newsletter May 2026 Wild Blueberry Plant Development Bud stage T2 has arrived and some producers have begun spraying for mummy berry. There is a possible infection window approaching on Sunday with the rain forecasted. This is a critical stage to observe in your field because at this stage the bud has opened enough for […]
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