Welcome to “the Cherry Pit”with news and views at the heart of the BC Cherry industry.

 Spotted Wing Drosophila Communications (Charlotte Leaming, OKTFC)

Susanna Acheampong at the Ministry of Agriculture is disseminating all information via email.  She sends out weekly updates on Thursdays.  Susanna’s email list consists of OKTF field men (OKTF redistributes to growers via their own email list), Christine Dendy (updates OKCGA website), Linda Edwards (forwards to Organic growers), Connie Bielert (to table grape growers), Hans Buchler (wine grape growers), and independent growers who have given their email addresses for this purpose.

Traps are checked weekly by monitors hired by OKTF.  Trap captures will be reported by small geographic area.  With the first captures of the season individual growers will be contacted directly by the field person in their region (Molly or Charlotte).  We will continue to do this unless/until the trap captures become so widespread that area wide recommendations are more appropriate.

In order to be as flexible as possible the working group of Molly Thurston, Charlotte Leaming, Duane Holder, Susanna Acheampong and Howard Thistlewood are holding weekly conference calls on Wednesdays to go over the weeks results and set plans for the coming weeks activities.

(note: OKCGA has requested OKCGA growers be emailed directly during the harvest to ensure communication is not delayed. If you are not getting reports, please call Dr. Susanna Acheampong (250) 861 7230 or email susanna.acheampong@gov.bc.ca to be added to the list).

Please note that possible identification of SWD in our orchards is not like an STD! It is, no way, a reflection of any producer's horticultural practices. It is likely to be arriving in shopping bags from your grocery store, lunch kits, fruitstand purchases from outside the valley, and other sources of fruit, and hatching in compost piles, garbage bins, and dumpsters.  We do need awareness and we need grower and public support to learn how to reduce its entry to the BC Interior and control its spread.  SWD is a new pest we are having to learn about rapidly; it travels into the region in all manner of routes, including fruit transported into the valley from US or Lower Mainland BC for sale in fruit stands here. If we find it, it is important to the monitors, the professionals, and our fellow growers to share this information so we can learn about its spread, notify growers, and help in its control. Think about your orchard from a different perspective and consider how to control SWD in household waste and compost, employee camps, packing houses, fruit stands, disposal areas for cull fruit, dumpsters and garbage containers. Early control should help reduce build up of populations and pressure in the orchard and in the packing house.