May 2021 - 12

Tree fruit group targets Michigan growers' concerns
By Dean Peterson
FGN Correspondent
Laboratory upgrades to assist
with spotted wing drosophila
(SWD) research and help fund a
walk-in environmental chamber
to maintain insect populations for
testing resistance were key projects
funded by the Michigan Tree Fruit
Commission (MTFC) in 2021.
The $151,000 laboratory
upgrades are at Michigan State
University's (MSU) Northwest
Michigan Horticultural Research
Center at Traverse City, Michigan.
The laboratory upgrades are an
enlargement of lab space because of
the volume of research being done on
SWD, said Jim Nugent, a fruit grower
from Suttons Bay, Michigan, and
MTFC chair. The Northwest location
also received $10,000 for 2021 station
operations from the MTFC.
The walk-in environmental
chamber replaces an old chamber
at MSU's Trevor Nichols Research
Center (TNRC) at Fennville,
Michigan. The chamber is essential
to maintain insect colonies used in
bioassays and field trials.
" We need to have a susceptible
population to compare to populations
that growers may believe have
resistance, " said John Wise, MSU
entomology professor and TNRC
research and Extension coordinator.
Susceptible populations of SWD,
obliquebanded leafroller, codling
moth and two-spotted spider mite
are being maintained at the TNRC.
" We do a lot of work in the orchards,
but having these colonies available is
important, " Wise said.
The chamber is a $71,000 project
with $20,000 contributed by MSU
and up to $51,000 contributed by the
tree fruit commission, depending
Jim Nugent, a fruit grower from Suttons Bay, Michigan, is chairman of the Michigan
Tree Fruit Commission. Photo: Dean Peterson
upon the amount of industry
support. The TNRC also received
from the commission $15,000 for
contract pruning, $5,000 for orchard
maintenance chemicals, $1,493 for
equipment and $10,000 for station
operations.
The newest MSU research station is
the West Central Michigan Research
and Extension Center at Hart,
Michigan, and is receiving $75,000
from the tree fruit commission to
continue developing the facility.
" The buildings are essentially
complete, " said Doug Buhler, MSU
director of AgBioResearch and
assistant vice president for research
and innovation.
The new funding will support
continued development of the
West Central location and ground
preparation for major tree planting
in 2022. The tree fruit commission
will also contribute $10,000 to
support station operations in 2021
and provide additional funding over
the next two years to help install an
irrigation system.
At MSU's Southwest Michigan
Research and Extension Center
(SWMREC) at Benton Harbor,
Michigan, the commission funded
$10,392 of a $13,856 standby
generator and $8,369 of the $11,158
spent on improvements to the
pesticide building. The balance of
the funding for each project was
contributed by MSU. SWMREC also
received $10,400 for scouting and data
collection assistance over the summer,
$19,191 for a no-till drill, $4,300
for other equipment and $10,000 to
support station operations.
The Clarksville Research Center
also received $5,250 for equipment
and $10,000 for operations from
MTFC in 2021. The commission
also contributed $12,000 to support
MSU's Enviroweather system.
MTFC also provided $23,595
for research projects on tree fruit
diseases and insect pests, $25,000
for plot fees, and $50,000 for the
MTFC's mini-grant program which
is designed to respond to quickly
emerging needs.
The Michigan Tree Fruit
Commission was established by a
producer referendum to collect an
assessment on the state's apples,
cherries, peaches and plums to
support tree fruit research.
All assessments collected by
MTFC go to supporting research
and Extension, Nugent said. The
commission has no employees and no
overhead costs. The minor expenses
MTFC does incur are paid for by
commodity groups in Michigan's tree
fruit industry. FGN
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May 2021

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