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The annual Indiana Horticultural Conference and Expo (IHC) will take place Jan. 14-15 at the Hendricks County Fairgrounds in Danville. Current and aspiring vegetable and fruit growers, crop consultants, and allied industry members are invited to join Purdue Agriculture specialists for two days of educational sessions and networking with fellow Indiana and Midwestern farmers and vendors.

Scheduled educational session topics will cover fruit and vegetable production, food safety, controlled environment agriculture, high tunnel production and pest management, and business marketing. IHC’s annual event will also include an apple cider contest to judge the best tasting cider.

Location: Hendricks County Fairgrounds, 1900 E. Main St., Danville, IN 46122

Register at IndianaHortConference.com.

The Indiana State Department of Agriculture, The Nature Conservancy and the United States Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency have joined forces to implement the Cover Crop Premium Discount Program for the fifth year in a row.

Beginning Jan. 1, 2025, this program will provide farmers with a unique opportunity to receive financial incentives for implementing cover crops on their operation. Farmers who plant cover crops on owned or rented acres will receive a $5 per acre crop insurance premium discount. Farmers who planted cover crops in the fall of 2024 are eligible to apply. This program is eligible for 50 out of the 92 counties in Indiana.

Crop insurance is an integral part of the farm safety net that provides financial protection for farmers after bad weather impacts their crops. Cover crops can provide many benefits which include helping to prevent erosion, improving water quality and making soils more resilient to weather and climate impacts.

The Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA), The Nature Conservancy and partners throughout the state have worked with the USDA Risk Management Agency (RMA) to establish an initiative to increase cover crop usage in Indiana. Our focus for this program is to target first time cover crop users in an effort to expand awareness and the adoption of cover crops as a tool to improve farm resiliency.

This project will provide eligible participants with a $5/acre premium discount on the following year's crop insurance invoice for every acre of cover crop enrolled and verified in the program. Funding will be provided through RMA as an additional insurance premium discount through normal crop insurance processes. Only acres in cover crops (absent other state or federally incentivized cover crops) will be eligible for the premium discount. Confirmed applications will be forwarded to the USDA-RMA for processing premium discounts on crop insurance premium invoices for the 2024 cash crop. Applicants must certify that by signing up for this program, they give ISDA permission to share the information provided to the USDA-RMA for administering the benefit to the beneficiary as documented on the application. Applicants also convey permission to ISDA or SWCD representative(s) access to the property enrolled, if necessary, to verify cover crop establishment ISDA will verify applications and respective acreage. Being a first-time cover crop user is not a requirement but will be given priority for funding. ISDA may contact applicants for additional clarifying information.

Applicants must maintain documentation on cover crops that have been seeded (e.g. Seed Tags, Application Invoices) and utilize the Midwest Cover Crop Council - Cover Crop Tool or the NRCS Field Office Technical Guide recommendations. This includes seeding dates, appropriate seeding rates and seed mixes to ensure objectives of the cover crop are being met. A cover crop is considered: "a non-grain harvestable, non-insurable conservation/agronomic practice seeded in the fall to protect and improve soil and water quality." To ensure the practice achieves the desired results, no full width tillage/termination of the cover crop in the fall is allowed. Management/termination of the cover crops must be done in the spring in accordance with the most recent version of the USDA-NRCS Cover Crop Termination Guidelines. This guidance not only informs proper management of cover crops but must also be followed to maintain eligibility for federal crop insurance.

The Cover Crop Premium Discount Program is available in the following counties: Bartholomew, Boone, Brown, Clark, Crawford, Daviess, Dearborn, Decatur, Delaware, Dubois, Fayette, Floyd, Franklin, Gibson, Greene, Hamilton, Hancock, Harrison, Hendricks, Henry, Jackson, Jefferson, Jennings, Johnson, Knox, Lawrence, Madison, Marion, Martin, Monroe, Morgan, Ohio, Orange, Owen, Perry, Pike, Posey, Randolph, Ripley, Rush, Scott, Shelby, Spencer, Switzerland, Tipton, Union, Vanderburgh, Warrick, Washington and Wayne.

This informal report by the Division of Entomology & Plant Pathology is a commentary on insects, diseases, and curiosities division staff encounter on a week-to-week basis. Comments and questions about this report are welcome and can be sent to your respective Inspector.

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Eric Biddinger (Nursery Inspector & Compliance Officer) - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

From everyone here in the DEPP, we wish you all the best this holiday season! We have a few announcements and reminders to wrap up the year.

Nursery license renewals were sent out back in October. While most have been returned to us, we always have a few nurseries each year that we have to track down. Renewals should be returned by Dec. 31. If you have any questions or concerns about a nursery grower or dealer license, please reach out to your nursery inspector.

We are planning to treat for Spongy Moth in portions of Marshall, Jasper, Porter, and Starke counties in 2025. Virtual public meetings are scheduled for Jan. 27 and 28, 2025 at 1 p.m. ET (Noon CT) and 7 p.m. Eastern (6 p.m. CT) each day. Please visit our Spongy Moth website for treatment maps and more information.

I received a few more recommendations for webinars to catch up on this winter.

The Midwest Invasive Plant Network has webinars featuring emerging threats and management practices.
The Midwest Invasive Species Information Network based in Michigan has several invasive ID training modules. While they are free, you do have to create an account to access some of the material.
Clean Wisconsin hosted the Wisconsin Neonic Forum in October 2024 to discuss the environmental impact of neonicotinoid insecticides. The recordings are available on YouTube.

University of Minnesota’s David Tork has a fascinating presentation on creating a genetic test to distinguish North American and European highbush cranberry (Viburnum) cultivars.

Ren Hall (Nursery Inspector & Compliance Officer) – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

If you like to purchase real greenery for the holidays, be aware of the potential for pests that can be transported on Christmas trees, wreaths, planters, garlands, etc. Invasive insects and diseases such as spongy moth, spotted lanternfly, hemlock woolly adelgid, elongate hemlock scale, and boxwood blight can be moved around on holiday decor. The real greenery you find at big box stores is often brought in from other states, which is a potential pathway for invasive species to enter Indiana.

Carefully inspect holiday greenery before purchasing and contact Indiana DNR Division of Entomology & Plant Pathology at 1-866-NO-EXOTIC or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you notice anything concerning. Consider buying a tree from a local supplier to minimize risk. When you are ready to take down your greenery, check with your city or county for proper disposal locations – dumping your tree in the woods can not only introduce invasive species, it is also illegal in many places.

Jared Spokowsky (Nursery Inspector & Lead Apiary Inspector) - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The results from the 2023-2024 beekeeper loss survey are out. It is a little flipped this year with more losses on the commercial side than with hobbyist beekeepers. Either way it still wasn’t a great year for losses. The total number of lost hives was the third highest since the survey started.

In total over 1,600 beekeepers took the survey nationwide accounting for about 13% of all the managed hives in the country. Unfortunately, only 10 beekeepers from Indiana took the survey. I would highly encourage any beekeeper to spend a few minutes filling this out when the next survey opens in the spring. The more data we have the better picture we will get about management practices and the wellbeing of bee colonies across the country. It only takes a few minutes to fill out and there is no identifying data given so you remain anonymous. I will send out a reminder again in May when the next survey rolls around.

From the report, “Different from previous years, backyard beekeepers during 2023-2024 experienced a lower annual loss rate than commercial beekeepers (45.1% [42.4 – 47.6 CI] for backyard vs 55.7% [48.9 – 62.9 CI] for commercial). This represented a lower loss year than average for backyard beekeepers (4.1 pp less than their running 13-year average of 49.2%), but a significantly higher loss year for commercial beekeepers (16.8 pp more than their running 13-year average of 38.9%).”

You can find the full report here.

Will Drews (Nursery Inspector & Compliance Officer) – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

During a nursery inspection in Owen County earlier this year, I noticed some interesting yellowing of the leaves on some American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana) trees (Photo 4). A look on the underside of the leaves revealed some yellow-orange pustules, reminiscent of a rust fungus (Photo 5). With the assistance of the Purdue Plant & Pest Diagnostic Lab staff, this fungal pathogen has been confirmed to be hornbeam rust (Melampsoridium asiaticum), a relatively new emerging rust fungal disease in the US.

Hornbeam rust can be identified by its yellow-orange raised bumps, called pustules, on the underside of the leaves (Photo 6 & 7). As these pustules develop, there will be corresponding yellow leaf spots that form on the upper side of the leaves. If there is a severe pustule load on the undersides, the yellowing pattern on the upper sides of the leaves may coalesce and appear as larger yellow patches (Photo 8 & 9). Besides leaves, the samaras (fruit structures) may also become infected with hornbeam rust.

Hornbeam rust originates from Japan and China and was first detected in the US in a couple counties in Florida in the fall of 2018. In 2019, similar rust reports were made in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. This new find in Owen County is the first detection of hornbeam rust in Indiana and is likely the northernmost report in the country to date.

Hornbeam rust has been confirmed on American hornbeam, European hornbeam (Carpinus betulus), and Hophornbeam (Ostrya virginiana) trees. Unlike a number of common rusts like cedar apple rust which alternate between two very different hosts (e.g. Apples [Malus spp.] and Cedars [Juniperus spp.]) depending on life cycle stage, hornbeam rust appears to stay on its host throughout its life cycle.

Because of its recent discovery, not much is known about spread and control. If you think you have some infected Carpinus or Ostrya trees, you can contact your nursery inspectorhere or send a sample to Purdue PPDL.

Gary Moughler (Nursery Inspector & Compliance Officer) – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

I attended the Aerial Pesticide Applicators Training in Gettysburg, Penn. back in September. Classroom time was spent learning about spray systems, nozzle basics, avionics, and aviation safety. Meanwhile, outdoor portions included learning how to inspect aircraft and ground equipment and calibrate spray equipment. The highlight of the training for many attending was the demonstration of a spray drone which can be used to treat up to 4 acres at a time.

Recently announced, JB's Barnyard and Risin' Creek Creamerywere awarded funding from the Dairy Business Innovation Alliance (DBIA) for value added facilities to their farms.

JB's Barnyard, located near Evansville, was awarded $100,000 for ice cream machinery. JB's Barnyard produces 16% butterfat ice cream that is available for purchase from its mobile ice cream trucks, at a private event booking or at various wholesale locations. JB's Barnyard will use the funding to further develop its wholesale ice cream business by expanding its delivery capabilities. This project aims to increase production and sales, creating new jobs and expanding market reach.

"JB’s Barnyard is a dream of ours, and by receiving this funding from the Dairy Business Innovation Alliance we will be able to further expand our offerings to wholesale locations beyond our local region,” said Briley Simpkins of JB’s Barnyard. “We are excited to continue growing our business while providing our community with high quality, delicious ice cream.”

Risin' Creek Creamery, located in Martinsville, was awarded $49,206 for a fluid milk bottle filler to grow its goat milk processing and expand into drinkable yogurts. Risin’ Creek Creamery currently produces award-winning fresh Chèvre, a smooth classic spreadable goat cheese, goat milk feta, a goat milk caramel sauce and several hard cheeses. All of Risin' Creek Creamery's products are made from milk that is produced by its herd of Nubian goats.

“We are so honored to be the recipient of this very sought-after grant from DBIA,” said Tim Vanzant of Risin' Creek Creamery. “Our goat business started as a 4H project in 1984, but now has grown to encompass three generations of our family! We produce award-winning fresh goat cheeses, and we are excited to embark on a fluid goat milk and yogurt journey thanks to this grant funding.”

The Dairy Business Innovation Alliance, a partnership between the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association (WCMA) and the Center for Dairy Research (CDR), awarded 39 grants totaling more than $3.3 million to farmstead operations and dairy processing businesses across the Midwest. The Indiana State Department of Agriculture serves as the Indiana state collaborator. Since 2022, ten Indiana dairy businesses have been awarded more than $833,000 from DBIA to grow their operations.

The grants will be awarded through the DBIA’s Dairy Business Builder and Dairy Industry Impact grant programs. The Dairy Business Builder grant program is targeted at small-to-medium size farmers or processors. DBIA’s grant programs advance the organization’s mission to support small and mid-size dairy processors across its 11-state service area of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

“We are delighted to be able to assist the growth of our regional cheese plants and small dairy businesses; once again farmsteads were an important focus. We are also happy to help companies with their exports and sustainability challenges,“ said John Lucey, CDR Director.

The DBIA is supported by funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and was created in the 2018 federal Farm Bill. Since then, the DBIA has awarded over $20 million across more than 250 grants to Midwestern dairy farms and businesses. The program also offers technical assistance to dairy farmers and processors in participating states.

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources - Division of Forestry is accepting orders for seedlings for the 2025 spring season. Order forms are available online with seedlings available for spring pick-up with DNR. Orders are accepted October 2, 2024 through May 1, 2025, as supplies last at thhe DNR Vallonia Tree Nursery. To order trees contact the Vallonia Tree Nursery at 812-358-3621 or online at www.INForestryX.com.