In the few weeks leading up to harvest, take some time to assess this year's IPM program. Once harvest gets underway, neither you nor your picking crew will have the time to make these important notes.

To evaluate pest damage, look at a random selection of apples from the tops, sides and bottoms of trees. Anything causing 2–5% damage is of concern.

Good pictures and descriptions of damage that you might encounter can be found online at CropIPM and in Publication 310, Integrated Pest Management in Apples. Look for Appendix H on page 215 in the publication for a harvest assessment page to copy for recording your results.

Which block should you do? To get the best idea of what's happening in your orchard, assess all blocks. If time is limited, give yourself an hour or so per block and select representative areas of the orchard. If you assess the same block every year, you can compare your results and notice trends over time.

How should you do it? Choose at least 10 (large trees) to 20 (dwarf trees) healthy trees randomly throughout the block. Select 200–400 apples, turning each to see all sides of the fruit without removing it. Choose fruit from different positions on the trees: upper, inner and outer part of the canopy. The key is to choose randomly and write it down!

Also make notes of damage to leaves such as scab, tentiform leaf mines, powdery mildew, apple leaf curling midges, mites and other feeding. This information will be important when planning your IPM program next year.

Early harvest assessments done already this year have indicated an overall successful year for pest management. There were some orchards that struggled with early season caterpillar damage, causing both foliar and fruit damage. As well, some blocks experienced higher pressures of leafcurling midge or mites, resulting in leaf curl or bronzing, respectively. Despite high mullein bug tap numbers, damage was not as extensive as expected in many orchards. Some codling moth fruit damage can be found. In the east, damage from European apple sawfly was relatively low. Fire blight was a major issue in most regions of the province with blossom and shoot blight present. In a few orchards where fungicide programs failed or residues were no longer present, powdery mildew and scab was observed, as well as flyspeck/sooty blotch, black rot and bitter rot.