Tree Fruit IPM Weekly Meetings

April 16 - July 2, 2025

12 - 1 p.m.
April 30 session ONLY 4:30 - 7 p.m.

This webinar/in-person series will be offered weekly from April 16 - June 25, 2025 for those in the West Central, Southwest and Southeast Michigan areas and from April 16 - July 2, 2025 for the Northwest area.  The hour-long meeting format will have region-specific introductions (~30 minutes) that will cover regional weather, trap counts, disease pressure, and other topics that are relevant to that specific area.  The regional reports will be conducted through a feature on ZOOM that will direct participants to their regions to "join a room".  Through this feature, regional reports will be available in Northwest (NW), Southwest/Southeast (SW/SE) and West Central (WC and Grand Rapids area).  We will provide information on how to access regional information through local newsletters and MSUE News, making it a easy as possible for participants.

For the second 30 minutes of the meeting, we have a Michigan State University specialist lined up to address a key pest, disease, or horticulture topic that is important at that time in the season.   Participants will learn the latest research and information about pests, diseases, and horticultural strategies that are pertinent at different times of the season.   We will cover both apple and cherry topics.  Meetings will be recorded and made available for those unable to attend at the scheduled time. Participation options include:

                Virtual via Zoom - participants will receive the link and instructions on how to join prior to the weekly meetings

                 In-person - West Central Area/Grand Rapids Area - West Central Michigan Research and Extension Center, 5185 N. Oceana Dr. Hart, MI  49420

                 In-person  - Northwest Area/Traverse City - Northwest Michigan Horticulture Research Center, 6686 S. Center Highway, Traverse City, MI  49684

There are no scheduled in-person locations for the Southwest or Southeast regions.  Registration is required for both virtual and in-person meetings.  This will allow communication for zoom connection information and accurate lunch counts for in-person meetings   

For questions, please reach out to the appropriate educator for your region:

Southeast Region - Derek Plotkowski, plotkow5@msu.edu or 586-337-5615

Southwest Region - Cheyenne Sloan, sloanche@msu.edu or 269-657-8213

West Central Region - Emily Lavely, lavelyem@msu.edu or 231-873-2129

Northwest Region - Nikki Rothwell, rothwel3@msu.edu or 231-946-1510

Weekly Topics/Speakers:

•  April 16th -Dr. Jeff Andresen -An overview of the weather from last year and predictions for this year.  Dr. Andresen will also discuss how the weather has changed over the past few decades.  He will also provide a quick overview of the Climate Resiliency grant led by Dr. Julianna Wilson.
• April 23rd - Dr. Keith Mason A review and introduction to using Enviroweather to manage insects and diseases in tree fruit.
  • Ana Heck and Dr. Meghan Milbrath - Update on honeybees and pollination services for 2025
• April 30th - IPM Kick-Off Meeting at NWMHRC and on Zoom from 4:30 p.m. -7:00 p.m.  Note: No 12 noon - 1 p.m. weekly meeting this day
  • Live and via Zoom
    • Dr. George Sundin - quick review of apple scab and CLS efficacy
    • Faith Fredrickson, NOAA Weather Service - weather update
    • Dr. Nikki Rothwell - Label changes/updates
    • Dr. Nikki Rothwell - Overview of CM, SJS, BSB & SWD
    • Cheyenne Sloan - How to use Bulletin Live 2 (preparing your farm to comply with Endangered Species Act)
    • Cheyenne Sloan - Hands-on time for developing plans for 2025
• May 7th - Dr. George Sundin - In-depth dive into apple scab management programs for 2025.
• May 14th - Dr. Todd Einhorn -Thinning strategies to optimize yields.
• May 21st - Dr. Julianna Wilson - Apple pest management programs: San Jose scale, Black stem borer and codling moth
• May 28th - Chayce Griffith - Best practices for managing bitterpit in Honeycrisp
• June 4th - Dr. John Wise - Understanding chlorpyrifos use and managing the borer complex for stone fruit.  Endangered Species Act Requirements for Michigan growers. 
• June 11th - Heather Leach - Cherry pest management programs: OBLR, plum curculio and San Jose scale.
• June 18th - Dr. George Sundin - Managing American brown rot in stone fruit.
• June 25th - Dr. Julianna Wilson, Managing SWD in sweet and tart cherry.  (concludes West Central, Southwest and Southeast region weekly meetings)
• July 2nd - Northwest Region and Zoom only - Dr. Todd Einhorn/Amy Irish Brown - Best management practices for PGR use in apples. 

Each meeting has been awarded 1 Restricted Use Pesticide credit for private core, commercial core or category 1C.