With the launch of the revamped Cornell Fruit Resources website, New York growers have a new resource this season to help keep them productive and profitable.

“The site is a one-stop shop for commercial fruit growers to access the wealth of information available through Cornell to help them solve production, pest, food safety, business and other problems,” said Julie Carroll, fruit IPM coordinator with the New York State Integrated Pest Management (NYSIPM) Program, who spearheaded the update.

Subsites for tree fruit, grape and berry producers help them zero in on production, IPM and post-harvest information tailored specifically to their crops. The site also features resources on topics of interest to all fruit growers, including food safety, business management and marketing.

The site will also help growers find:

• Local help: Cornell Cooperative Extension contact information for regional fruit programs and county offices.
• Timely tips: Statewide and regional newsletters, including Scaffolds Fruit Journal, Fruit Quarterly, New York Berry News, Appellation Cornell and others, pest alerts and a fruit news feed.
• Key references: Answer questions by perusing organic production guides, factsheets and other publications on all aspects of fruit production.
• Diagnostic help: Links to Cornell and affiliated labs to help growers solve nutrient, insect and disease problems.
• Sophisticated tools: Weather data and applications from the Network for Environment and Weather Applications, TracFruit recordkeeping software from the NYSIPM Program, and more.
• Especially for berry growers: The Cornell Berry Diagnostic Tool to help growers identify and solve pest and disease problems and the Nursery Guide for Berry and Small Fruit Crops.

The site is optimized for use on tablets, smartphones and other devices.

“It’s amazing how much reliable, useful information based on Cornell research is available,” said Carroll. “And this site will help you get to what you need to know – fast.”

Craig Cramer is communications specialist in the School of Integrative Plant Science.