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#ausmacadamias 
MacAlert July 2024
2024 | Grieve E, Kojetin L | Manual/guide
Key messages this month include: The prolonged wet weather over the harvest period favours the growth and infection of Phytophthora causing root rot, trunk cankers and tree decline. With harvest coming to an end, focus shifts to crop production and protection, with each underpinned by monitoring. Pest consultants will be monitoring for lace bug as well as flower diseases. Watch out for the three common fungal flower blights - grey mould, green mould and dry flower. In some seasons, these can cause massive crop failure. Ensure regular rat baiting continues in the orchard. This month may be your last chance to order your organic inputs for application post-harvest. Discuss with your nutrition consultant if any soil amendments are required for your orchard. With post-harvest late fruit spotting bug and/or leptocoris being present in orchards, it is time to check your mechanical equipment for crop protection activities. Following harvest, ensure shed equipment and vehicles are thoroughly cleaned and conduct and audit of your chemical store.
MacAlert June 2024
2024 | Kojetin L | Manual/guide
We are heading into the peak pest and disease monitoring and control period. Book your pest consultant to monitor for critical pests and diseases in July and begin discussing the season ahead. Ensure you have completed the assessments to compile the new season's nutrition program. Mulch is important to increase water holding capacity, mediate soil temperatures during spring growth and improve soil/orchard condition. Make sure you are prepared for frost risks if you are in an area that is impacted heavily. The BOM has handy weather tools to help you plan ahead. Are you ready for spraying? Calibrate and service your spray equipment, conduct coverage tests, choose appropriate nozzles and ensure weather monitoring tools are ready. In NSW, the Environmental Protection Agency has had macadamia spray management under scrutiny. Ensure you have adequate spray records, chemical storage/handling protocols, spray drift management, weather monitoring protocols, neighbour engagement and farm pesticide management plans in place. Are you managing nuts with increased field moisture adequately? On farm post-harvest storage conditions are critical in seasons that are wetter than usual. Contact a professional beekeeper to bring managed hives to the orchard. Save the dates for the July/August MacGroup events in your region.
AMS News Bulletin Winter 2024
2024 | Ellis K, Moosberger P, Kojetin L, Bond D, Hamilton-Bate C, Bright J, Kaddatz B, Akinsanmi F, Maddox C, Andreoli S, Bryen L, Dunn E, Maier B, Fuller C, Price J, Shephard C, AMS, Grieve E, Yandall E, Anderson J, Xu X, Rincon-Florez V, Yonow T, Kriticos D, Amat Gomez C, Mensah T, Dhakal Poudel P | News Bulletin
CEO's report
Marketing update and news
Industry insights (IDM report)
Brisbane City Council teams with MCT to save Brisbane's rare macadamias
New industry development officer joins AMS
Macadamia production in Brazil
Pest and disease management roundup
Crop protection: more than calibration
Scolytid beetle activity on the rise again
Managing macadamia lace bugs in orchards: where the research is at
Bee Friendly Farming at MFM
Netting macadamia benefits
Spatially enabling the horticulture tree crop industry in Australia
New tree planting year prediction application
New insights into macadamia rachis tip dieback
Modelling for macadamia pest management
Towards predicting husk rot severity in macadamia
Genetic insights into rootstocks for vigour control
Drying macadamias for quality: some observations from my time in the industry
Nuts for Life update
New macadamia crumb a masterclass in versatility
Australian macadamia minor use and emergency permits
MacAlert May 2024
2024 | Kojetin L, Australian Macadamia Society | Manual/guide
Assess and monitor phytophthora levels in your orchard after months of above average rainfall. Plan your crop inputs for the season ahead to to replenish nutrients, build soil fertility and support tree/crop development. Considerations to make when using ethephon and the best weather conditions to apply. Prepare for frost risk and ensure your orchard is protected. Rules of thumb to ensure your kernel quality is maintained during times of wet weather. Should you consider tree shaking for your orchard? Start thinking about when you will be conducting any pruning and orchard floor repair.
Macadamia Nutrition Guidelines
- | AMS | Fact Sheet
Macadamia nutrition guidelines - an excerpt from the Macadamia Grower's Toolkit.
New Flower Blight control option registered
2024 | Kojetin L | Article
The group 7 and 11 fungicide Merivon, which is used for the control of husk spot, has now also been registered for the control of flower blight complex.
Macadamia flower blight control
2024 | Kojetin L | Fact Sheet
Fact sheet providing monitoring and control options for macadamia flower blight. Updated April 2024.
MacAlert April 2024
2024 | Kojetin L, Australian Macadamia Society | Manual/guide
Key messages this month include: • Tips for the harvest period. Wet weather has made harvest a challenge. Ensure harvest gear is maintained and follow actions to maximize kernel quality. • Soil and leaf sampling. How and when to take samples of your orchard, and how to get the most out of your results. • Organic inputs. Now is the time to determine organic amendments you will be applying directly after harvest. • Rats, cockatoos and feral pigs. Controlling vertebrate pests during nut drop is essential. Read about management practices you can implement to mitigate these pests. • On-farm crop loss. Understanding where loss is coming from can be invaluable. • Frost mitigation. Consider management practices if you are in frost-risk areas, especially if you have younger trees which are highly susceptible.
Gut contents analysis of macadamia predators: Who eats what and when
2024 | Islam S, Whitehouse M, Mainali B, Beach S, Tay A, Hossain Biswas J, Mottakina Akter M, Zulfiqar Rizvi S | Research report/Update
Predators play an important role in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) without cost to the grower. However, to make the most of this free labour requires understanding which predators consume which pest. Here we undertook the initial analysis to identify the pests consumed by predators in Macadamia using molecular analyses. First, we confirmed the species identifications of the predators, and then we undertook a metagenomic analysis of the gut contents of predators to establish which predators were consuming which pests in the macadamia ecosystem. This is the first of these types of analyses that we plan to undertake.
MacAlert March 2024
2024 | Australian Macadamia Society | Manual/guide
Key messages this month: • Rats. Wet weather has made ideal conditions for rats and mice. • Thrip and Mite damage. Thrip and mite flare ups are often the direct impact from too frequent use of disruptive chemicals. • Kernel Grub. Check storage bins for pests attracted to the odour from broken shells, like kernel grub. • Phytophthora. Phytophthora root rot and trunk canker have a significant impact on production following wet weather. Now is a good time to asses its prevalence. • Nutrition. Long term productivity relies on consistent nutrition which usually includes organic material. You may need to monitor closely more mobile elements such as nitrogen. • Orchard floor preparation is not the only clean up required prior to harvest. Cleaning and checking for any contaminants are essential for food safety as well as a supply requirement with your processor. • There are major benefits to completing a crop loss assessment on all loads coming into the shed. • Are there ways to reduce your harvest period and set the orchard up for the following season sooner?
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