Organic Seed Finder Webinar: August 21, 2012

There's still time to register for  the next eOrganic webinar on August 21st: Sourcing Organic Seed Just Got Easier: An Introduction to Organic Seed Finder.

This webinar will be presented at 2PM Eastern Time (1PM Central, 12PM Mountain, 11AM Pacific Time).

Join Chet Boruff of the Association of Official Seed Certifying Agencies and Kristina Hubbard of the Organic Seed Alliance as they introduce the new Organic Seed Finder database, which will serve as a valuable tool for the organic community by providing reliable organic seed availability information. The webinar is free and open to the public. Advance registration is required. Find out more and register at http://www.extension.org/pages/64782

Biopesticides and Resistance Management Webinar

This looks like a great webinar and one that I am sure many of you will find useful.

Biopesticides and Resistance Management

Used in partnership with traditional chemicals in an IPM program, biopesticides can prolong the efficacy of important crop protection products. Because of their unique modes of action, it is difficult for pests and pathogens to develop resistance to most biopesticides. Including biopesticides in the rotation of crop protection products can prevent or delay the development of resistance to all the products used.

When: April 26, 2012
2:00 - 3:00 pm EST

Speakers include:

Margaret Tuttle McGrath
Department of Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology
Cornell University
Long Island Horticultural Research & Extension Center

Frank Sances
Founder and Director
Pacific Ag Research

Dr. Lerry Lacey
(Retired) USDA, ARS, Yakima Agricultural Research Laboratory
Wapato, WA

To register for the webinar go to: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/711422897

Organic Apple Webinar This Thursday

Lorraine Berkett and Terence Bradshaw of the University of Vermont will be presenting a webinar through eOrganic on their Current Research on Organic Production of Ginger Gold, Honeycrisp, Zestar!, Macoun, and Liberty Apples.

The webinar is free and begins at 2 pm Eastern time.

About the webinar:

Presenters: Lorraine P. Berkett, Ph.D., Dept. of Plant & Soil Science, University of Vermont, OrganicA Project Coordinator and Researcher; and Terence L. Bradshaw, M.S., Dept. of Plant & Soil Science, University of Vermont, Orchard Manager and Researcher.

After extensive grower input, the multi-state, multi-disciplinary OrganicA Project was initiated in 2006 through a USDA OREI grant to holistically examine the opportunities and challenges of organic production within two major orchard systems growers are using to change to new cultivars and with five of the top apple cultivars that growers identified as important to the future of the industry in New England. Growers want to know what the potential is for sustainable and profitable organic production with the newer apple cultivars that are being planted in the region. The orchard systems are: (i) a new orchard planted with young trees purchased from a nursery and (ii) a “top-grafted” orchard, i.e., an established, older orchard onto which new cultivars are grafted. Research results will be presented.

See all eOrganic upcoming and archived webinars at http://www.extension.org/pages/25242

For more information: http://www.extension.org/pages/61985/the-organica-project-webinar

Microbial Food Safety and Organic Sanitizers Webinar

Join eOrganic for a webinar on Microbial Food Safety Issues of Organic Foods on December 6, 2011 at 12PM Eastern Time (11AM Central, 10AM Mountain, 9AM Pacific Time). Space is limited and advance registration is required. Register now at http://www.extension.org/pages/61477

In this webinar, Dr. Francisco Diez-Gonzalez will discuss some of the major concerns related to contamination of organic foods with pathogenic bacteria such as those stemming from the use of manure as fertilizers and the lack of effective organic sanitizers for disinfection of processing equipment. He will discuss some of the current epidemiological and scientific evidence related to those concerns, and offer an update on his research using bacteriophages as potential organic sanitizers

Francisco Diez is a Food Microbiologist and Professor at the Department of Food Science and Nutrition of the University of Minnesota where he conducts research on control of foodborne pathogens and teaches courses on Food Safety and Microbiology. He has been investigating the safety of organic foods for more than 10 years.

Find all eOrganic upcoming and recorded webinars at http://www.extension.org/pages/25242/webinars-by-eorganic

Spotted Wing Drosophila Survey

See below note from NCSU Small Fruit and Specialty Crops Entomologist, Dr. Hannah Burrack:

As many of you are aware, we had significant issues with spotted wing drosophila (SWD) in raspberries, blackberries, and other (persimmons, kiwi, etc) crops in North Carolina this year. My lab has received funding for 2012 from the North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund Commission and the USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant Program. These funds will allow us to conduct management (chemical, non-chemical, and post harvest) research & extension as well continue our monitoring efforts for next year.


There's more work needed on SWD than we can do in a year. In order to secure funding for the future, I am working with a group of scientists in the eastern US to submit a USDA Specialty Crop Research Initiative proposal to study SWD. To make sure that our proposal is addressing the right questions, we are seeking input from stakeholders affected or potentially affected by SWD, including you!


If you have experience with an concerns about SWD, please consider filling out the stakeholder survey here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?hl=en_US&formkey=dG8xM2Y4RXFSLW9kTEhSRmplUlc4Smc6MQ#gid=0


Please also feel free to share this survey with others. I'd like to receive responses back by December 1.

On a related note, I will be presenting an update on SWD status and our 2011 research findings on December 8 at 10am. You can link to the webinar here: http://elluminate.wolfware.ncsu.edu/join_meeting.html?meetingId=1261510164761

You can read more about SWD in North Carolina here: http://ncsmallfruitsipm.blogspot.com/search/label/SWD

Webinars: Marketing Organic Produce, Transplants, Food Safety and Hops Production

Join eOrganic and Michigan SARE for a series of 4 free webinars on marketing organic produce, organic transplants, food safety, and hops production in October and November! All webinars are open to the public, and advance registration is required.

Save the dates and register now at for the following webinars at http://www.extension.org/pages/25242 or at the links below.

Plan for Marketing Your Organic Products, by Susan Smalley, Michigan State University: October 25, 2011 at 2PM Eastern Time. Register at http://www.extension.org/pages/60942

Root Media and Fertility for Organic Transplants, by John Biernbaum, Michigan State University: November 1, 2011 at 2PM Eastern Time. Register at http://www.extension.org/pages/60943

Tracking Your Produce—For Your Business and Health, by Colleen Collier Bess, Michigan Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources: November 8, 2011 at 2PM Eastern Time. Register at http://www.extension.org/pages/60944

Starting Up Small-Scale Organic Hops Production, Rob Sirrine, Michigan State University and Brian Tennis, Michigan Hop Alliance: November 15, 2011 at 2PM Eastern Time. Register at http://www.extension.org/pages/60945

Find the updated eOrganic webinar schedule and listen to recordings of past presentations at http://www.extension.org/pages/25242

Food Safety Webinar Recording

On January 26 the NC Fresh Produce Safety Task Force presented a webinar on S 510 Food Safety Modernization Act. This was an excellent presentation by Debbie Hamrick of the NC Farm Bureau and moderated by Diane Ducharme.

The webinar was recorded and you can view it at your convenience.
You can get the recording here. Just enter your email address and name and a download of the webinar will start shortly.

NC Fresh Produce Safety Task Force - Food Safety Modernization Act Update

NC Fresh Produce Safety Task Force invites you to attend a free webinar to learn more about the recent Food Safety Modernization Act.

The webinar will take place on Wednesday January 26th at 3 pm.

The webinar will be presented by Debbie Hamrick with NC Farm Bureau Federation, who is a co-chair of NC Fresh Produce Safety Task Force's Working Group 3: Industry and Policy. The webinar will be moderated by Diane Ducharme, a co-chair of the NC Fresh Produce Safety Task Force, with NC MarketReady at NC State University.

There will be opportunities during the presentation to interact with the presenters and ask questions regarding the content of the Food Safety Modernization Act.

For more information about this webinar, contact Diane Ducharme, GAPs Coordinator at diane_ducharme@ncsu.edu.

Instructions to join the webinar:
Join session: http://elluminate.wolfware.ncsu.edu:80/join_meeting.html?meetingId=1261499985538

If this is the first time you will be using Elluminate, you may be prompted to download some software which may take anywhere from 2 to 20 minutes depending upon your internet connection speed. You can pre-cnfigure your system with the required software by going to the support page located at: http://www.elluminate.com/Support/
Please make sure your computer has a microphone and speakers to be able to talk and hear while you are in the Elluminate session. You may join the session 15 minutes prior to the start time. This session will be recorded for viewing at a late date.

Webinar 7/1: Late Blight Management on Organic Farms

There is still time to register for tomorrow's 2010 eOrganic Late Blight Webinar!

Are you an organic producer who battled with late blight last year? Late blight hasn't been found in NC, yet, but if you want some tips and to learn management options for late blight control, this webinar is just for you.

What: Late Blight Management on Organic Farms 2010

When: July 1, 2010 at 8 PM Eastern Time (7 PM Central, 6 PM Mountain, 5 PM Pacific)

Space is limited.

Click here to register
http://www.extension.org/article/28346

Late blight reached epidemic proportions on U.S. farms in 2009. Join eOrganic presenters Dr. Sally Miller of Ohio State University and Dr. Meg McGrath of Cornell University for a free Webinar to hear an update on late blight in 2010. Learn about the late blight disease cycle, how to scout and diagnose the disease, and how to manage late blight on organic farms.

Thank you and hope you can make it!