Raspberry Crop Stage Wise IPM

Pre-sowing/ planting

Common cultural practices:

• Collect and destroy diseased and insect infected plant parts.
• Provide irrigation at critical stages of the crop
• Avoid water stagnation.
• Enhance parasitic activity by avoiding chemical spray, when 1-2 larval parasitoids are observed

Common mechanical practices:

• Collection and destruction of eggs and early stage larvae
• Handpick the older larvae during early stages
• The infested leaves and branches may be collected and destroyed
• Handpick the caterpillars and the pupae which are found on leaves and destroy them in kerosene mixed water.
• Use yellow sticky traps for aphids @ 4-5 trap/acre.
• Use light trap @ 1/acre and operate between 6 pm and 10 pm
• Install pheromone traps @ 4-5/acre for monitoring adult moths activity (replace the lures with fresh lures after every 2-3 weeks)
• Erecting of bird perches @ 20/acre for encouraging predatory birds such as King crow, common mynah etc.
• Set up bonfire during evening hours at 7-8 pm

Common biological practices:

• Conserve natural enemies through ecological engineering
• Augmentative release of natural enemies

• For raspberry cultivation, site should contain sufficient organic matter.
• To increase organic matter statues, apply 10 to 20 tonnes/ acre farmyard manure at the time of field preparation.
• Grow green manure crop to improve organic matter content in soil.
• Apply recommended dose of fertilizers

• The soil is ploughed during summer with a soil turning plough to eliminate weeds problem.

• Give optimum irrigation

Sowing / planting

• Apply fertilizers based on the soil test report and recommendation for particular zone. Generally, 30 kg each of P and K per acre should be applied at the time of planting.

• Keep the berry rows weed free during the first season by harrowing & ploughing. Plough the field at the time of planting.
• Tips should be pinched to facilitate branching when vines reached the trellies
• Pruning should be restricted to the lower parts of vine hanging on the ground, during winter when vines are dormant

Vegetative stage

Common cultural practices:

• Collect and destroy crop debris
• Provide irrigation at the critical stages of the crop
• Avoid water logging
• Avoid water stress during flowering stage
• Follow judicious use of fertilizers
• Enhance parasitic activity by avoiding chemical pesticide spray, when 1-2 larval parasitoids are observed in the crops field.

Common mechanical practices:

• Collect and destroy disease infected and insect infested plant parts
• Collect and destroy eggs and early stage larvae
• Handpick the older larvae during early stages
• Use yellow sticky traps @ 4-5 trap/acre
• Use light trap @ 1/acre and operate between 6 pm and 10 pm
• Install pheromone traps @ 4-5/acre for monitoring adult moths activity (replace the lures with fresh lures after every 2-3 weeks)
• Erecting of bird perches @ 20/acre for encouraging predatory birds such as King crow, common mynah etc.

Common biological practices:

• Conserve natural enemies through ecological engineering
• Augmentative release of natural enemies

• In case of slow growth of plants, nitrogen @ 30 kg per acre may be applied in soil around the plants. First half dose is given one month after planting and second half dose is given at the time of flowering.
• Apply fertilizers as a band on each side of the row in the early spring before growth begins.
• Foliar applications of liquid fertilizers (containing 0.5% N, 0.2% P₂O₅ and 0.5% K₂O) during August to February are also beneficial for all raspberry growing areas.
• Adjust the amount of fertilizer applied depending on plant growth and yield

• Use straw or plastic mulch to suppress the weeds between the rows. or
• Keep the rows weed-free by inter-row ploughing or machine tool weeding or hoeing.
• Cover crops such as Oats, Rye or Rye grass may be sown between the rows when plants are set

Cultural control:

• Remove and destroy all the infected leaves, twigs and fruits to prevent further spread of pests

Mechanical control:

• Deep ploughing is likely to kill the diapausing pupae.
• Hand picking of the caterpillar and pupae during the early stages of infestation reduces the pest damage
• Remove the damaged and punctured fruits by caterpillars and grubs because these are source of pathogen infection

Biological control:

• Conservation and augmentation of natural predators like coccinellids, Chrysoperla, spiders, dragon flies must be followed
• Augmentation of biocontrol agents like Trichogramma brasiliensis, T. chilonis and T. pretiosum should be carried out

Cultural control:

• Remove and destroy all the infected leaves, twigs and fruits to prevent further spread of pests
• Deep summer ploughing to expose soil inhabiting or resting stage of various stages of insect pests
• In summer, keep the vines open, avoid crowding and excessive shading of vines
• Plant the crop in well prepared, fertile land, but do avoid applying nitrogenous fertilizer, as this will promote new growth, which makes the plants juicy and attractive to aphids

Mechanical control:

• Collect and destroy different developmental stages of insect pests

Biological control:

• Conserve predators such as ladybird beetle, syrphids, coccinellids, chrysopids, wasp, surface bugs, spiders, different species of parasitic wasps and predatory mites through ecological engineering

Cultural control:

• Cultural practices can have a significant impact on spider mites. Dusty conditions often lead to mite outbreaks.
• Apply water to pathways and other dusty areas at regular intervals. Water stressed trees and plants are less tolerant of spider mite damage.
• Be sure to provide adequate irrigation. Mid season washing of trees and vines with water to remove dust may help prevent serious late-season mite infestations.

Biological control:

• Some of the most important are the predatory mites, including the western predatorymite, Galendromus (formerly Metaseiulus) occidentalis, and Phytoseiulus mite species.
• Various other insects are also important predators—six spotted thrips (Scolothrips sexmaculatus), the larvae and adults of the spider mite destroyer lady beetle (Stethorus picipes), the larvae of certain flies including the cecidomyid Feltiella acarivora and various general predators such as minute pirate bugs, bigeyed bugs, and lacewing larvae.

Cultural control

• Thrips species that feed on many different plant species often move into gardens and landscapes when plants in weedy areas or grasslands begin to dry in spring or summer.
• Avoid planting susceptible plants next to these areas, and control nearby weeds that are alternate hosts of pest thrips. Grow plants that are well adapted to conditions at that site.
• For example, plants adapted to grow in full sun can be stressed when planted in shady conditions and may be more susceptible to thrips damage.
• Provide appropriate cultural care to keep plants vigorous and increase their tolerance to thrips damage. Keep plants well irrigated, and avoid excessive applications of nitrogen fertilizer, which may promote higher populations of thrips.
• Old, spent flowers can harbor thrips, so their removal and disposal is sometimes recommended. However, the general benefit of this practice in landscapes is unknown; and old blossoms also commonly shelter beneficial predators of thrips.

Biological control

• Predatory thrips, green lacewings, minute pirate bugs, mites, and certain parasitic wasps help to control plant-feeding thrips.
• To conserve and encourage naturally occurring populations of these beneficials, avoid creating dust and consider periodically rinsing dust off of small plants, avoid persistent pesticides, and grow a diversity of plant species.

Mechanical control:

• Avoid plant damage either by the cultural practices or mechanical injury, or insect infestation
• Avoid successive contact of diseased and healthy plants carrying out cultural practices in the field.
• Maintain proper air circulation by pruning and cutting and maintain good water drainage
• Avoid pruning or tipping when plants are wet or just before a rain
• Maintain wind break to reduce damage to canes by wind
• Use disease free material
• Remove old canes at ground and destroy them.

Cultural control:

• Remove diseased material in fall and destroy
• Maintain proper row spacing and plant canopy aeration

Cultural control:

• Maintain proper plant canopy aeration
• Harden plants for winter properly

Cultural control:

• Maintain well drained soil
• Use certified and disease free stocks
• Do not follow strawberries, potatoes, tomatoes or raspberries in the rotation
• Remove and destroy infected plants

Cultural control:

• Avoid the sites where tomato has been grown in previous season
• Control insect pests i.e vector (Aphids)

Mechanical control:

• Diseased plants should be rogued out and destroyed

Cultural control:

• Avoid dense planting
• Increase air circulation, rigorous pruning, efficient weed control, avoid high applications of nitrogen
• Harvest regularly and sell as soon as picked
• Pick directly into shallow containers for market

Cultural control:

• Plant only certified, disease-free nursery stock, and take care not to wound the plants, especially the root systems, at planting time.
• Try to plant only in sites with no history of the diseases
• Remove and burn the diseased roots and tops

Cultural control:

• To minimize this disease, choose a planting site with no known history of this problem.
• Avoid land recently planted with tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, peppers, strawberries, raspberries, or stone fruits; and land infested with horse nettle, ground cherry, red-root pigweed, and lamb's-quarter

Cultural control:

• Keep rows narrow and weeds controlled to improve drying of the plants in the row

• Follow common cultural, mechanical and biological practices

Cultural control:

• Planting stock that is free of tomato ringspot virus

Reproductive stage

• Left over weeds should be removed from the field before seed shattering to avoid further spread of weed seeds
• Continue the straw or plastic mulch to suppress the weeds between the rows.

Mechanical control:

• Collect and destroy different such as infected fruits fallen on ground developmental stages of insect pests
• Collection and destruction of eggs and early stage larvae
• Handpick the older larvae during early stages
• The infested leaves and branches may be collected and destroyed

Biological control:

• Make the release of different laboratory reared bioagents when necessary
• Conservation and augmentation of natural enemies such as ladybird beetle, syrphids, coccinellids, chrysopids, wasp, surface bugs, spiders, different species of parasitic wasps and predatory mites

Cultural control:

• Plants should be trained with the help of supporting wires to form a roof like structure to protect fruit from sun burn and bird damage.

Mechanical control:

• Fruits are frequently damaged by birds if these are allowed to overripe in the field. Therefore, over ripening of the fruits may be avoided to minimize the damage

Cultural control:

• Staking of plant to avoid direct contact of fruits with soil borne pathogen.
• Avoid dense planting
• Increase air circulation, rigorous pruning, efficient weed control, avoid high applications of nitrogen
• Harvest regularly and sell as soon as picked
• Pick directly into shallow containers for market
• Cool fruit as quickly as possible

• Follow common cultural, mechanical and biological practices