Save the date: Nursery Growers Short Course on February 7th, 2024

It’s official, the much anticipated Nursery Growers Short Course will be held on Wednesday, February 7, 2024 and will take place at the University of Guelph Arboretum Centre.

This year’s short course will feature presentations on topics such as automation, soil health, container media, as well as the return of grower talks! Hear from local (and guest) growers on success, challenges and innovations at their nurseries at this knowledge sharing and networking event.

Registration and a detailed list of speakers and topics will be available soon through Landscape Ontario’s webpage.

Job Opportunity: Summer Student – Research Assistant

There are a number of opportunities available this summer to work with OMAFRA field specialists throughout Ontario as a summer research assistant.

For those interested in working specifically with nursery and landscape plants, there is one position available based out of Guelph, Ontario: “Summer Research Assistant – Nursery Crops (1 located in Guelph)”

You can view the details and requirements of the positions available at the link below. The deadline to apply is Tuesday, January 9th 2024!

Click here for the FULL job posting and how to apply: Ontario Public Service Careers – Job Preview (gov.on.ca)

Recent Spotted Lanternfly Sightings in Ontario

Many of you may have heard rumblings or seen posts on social media about spotted lanternfly (SLF) being sighted in Ontario recently. There have been NO detections of SLF in Canada. A detection is defined as a live spotted lanternfly confirmed by the CFIA in the Canadian environment. If there is a confirmed detection, an update will be posted on the CFIA website: Canada.ca/spotted-lanternfly. 

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) continues to receive reports, directly and indirectly, of SLF sightings in various locations. You can see some of these findings on public records such as iNaturalist. The CFIA also recently released a website detailing the different SLF observations in Canada to date: https://inspection.canada.ca/plant-health/invasive-species/insects/spotted-lanternfly/observations/eng/1704906112038/1704906614226#wb-auto-4

Funding opportunity for nursery growers – Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (SCAP)

A new program under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (SCAP) called the Biosecurity Enhancement Initiative, was launched yesterday. Applications for the Biosecurity Enhancement Initiative will be accepted as of September 19, 2023 with applications reviewed on an ongoing basis and subject to funding availability. More details below:

ALTUS® insecticide registered for Emergency Use to control spotted lanternfly on outdoor nursery and landscape ornamental plants in Canada

By Josh Mosiondz, Minor Use Coordinator, OMAFRA

The Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) recently announced the approval of a emergency use registration for ALTUS^® insecticide for control of spotted lanternfly on ornamental nursery and landscape ornamentals in Canada. Note: Spotted Lanternfly has NOT been detected in Canada at this time. This submission was reviewed submitted to, and review by PMRA in the event a pest population is detected.

KOPA® insecticidal soap expanded via Minor Use Program to help manage spotted lanternfly nymphs on ornamentals

By Josh Mosiondz, Minor Use Coordinator, OMAFRA

The Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) recently announced the approval of a minor use label expansion registration for KOPA^® insecticidal soap for suppression of spotted lanternfly nymphs on ornamental and shade trees, and outdoor flowering, foliage, and bedding plants in Canada. Note: Spotted Lanternfly has not been detected in Canada at this time. This submission was reviewed submitted to, and review by PMRA in the event a pest population is detected in an agricultural field.

August 10: Pest Update

Well the summer feels like it’s flown by and somehow we are already into the second week of August. I saw that a garden center the other day had out a crop of early flowering chrysanthemums and that was quite a jolt to reality that fall is around the corner…

In this Update:

1. Growing Conditions
2. Issues with Overwatering
3. Japanese Beetles
4. Two Spotted Spider Mites
5. Fall Webworm
6. Red Headed Flea Beetles
7. Box Tree Moth
8. Magnolia Scale
9. Spotted Lanternfly Update

Box Tree Moth Pheromone Lures: time to replace?

If you’re using pheromone traps to monitor for box tree moth this season, it might be time to change your lures.

If you are using the gel/syringe lures that last 3 months and you set the traps up the first week of May like we recommend, NOW is the time to change your lures out.

Box Tree Moth: Time to start treating the second generation

Early instar box tree moth larvae have started to be found on boxwood shrubs in Ontario; mainly in the GTA and Niagara region. This is the start of the second generation.

Now is the time to inspect your boxwoods again and look for signs of box tree moth larvae (caterpillars) and feeding damage to determine if action is needed. Larvae present now will be feeding over the next few weeks which is the perfect time for management.

1. What to look for (photos!)
2. Management in the landscape
3. Management for nurseries

Pest Update: July 13

In this post:

1. Japanese Beetles
2. Potato Leafhopper
3. Black Vine & Strawberry Root Weevil
4. Powdery Mildew
5. Box Tree Moth Updates

The planet saw its hottest day on record already this month, and experts say we could set more records.

On Monday July 3^rd, the average global temperature reached 17.01˚C. On Tuesday the 4^th, the average global temperature reached 17.18˚C and remained at this record-high on Wednesday. The previous record of 16.92˚C was set in August 2016. Experts warn that we could hit more record highs this year.

That said, we are trending close to historical 10 year average temperatures with the majority of Southern Ontario currently in the 500-700 GDD range (base 10˚C). Based on your regional GDD calculations, OMAFRA Publication 841 has tables for each of the ranges to help inform your scouting and management of pests in the nursery and landscape: Click here to view the PDF.