Fasciation (also called “cresting”) is a relatively rare plant growth condition that produces flattened, ribbon-like, crested, or contorted tissue in the stem, root, fruit, or flower head.
05.07.2023 - 11:35 / hgic.clemson.edu
Blueberry splits are caused by excessive water from rainfall or irrigation when ripe or near-ripe fruit are on the plant. These berries of the rabbiteye cultivar ‘Climax’ split following nearly four inches of rain over three days.
In blueberries, root absorbed water combined with water absorbed through the skin of ripe berries causes splitting, particularly if the rain follows an extended dry spell. Freeze damage may also increase susceptibility to splitting.
The condition is correlated with cultivar, and ‘Climax’ is considered highly susceptible. To reduce the chances of fruit split, maintain even soil moisture in the field via irrigation when possible and harvest ripe and near-ripe fruit prior to a forecasted rainfall.
Fasciation (also called “cresting”) is a relatively rare plant growth condition that produces flattened, ribbon-like, crested, or contorted tissue in the stem, root, fruit, or flower head.
The ability to camouflage oneself and the level of that camouflage is often a matter of life and death for an insect. Adults and larvae employ static strategies such as adapting their shape, pigmentation, and color patterns to disguise themselves. Some insects can modify themselves in response to the environment. Still, others, larvae, in particular, adorn themselves with leaf and flower parts, frass, lichens, dead insects, soil particles, small rocks, and other organic material to disguise themselves or create protective covers in a display known as decorative crypsis.
This may look a lot like a paper wasp, but it is actually a mantidfly. If you look carefully, you’ll notice the front pair of legs is different from the two back pairs.
This is a caterpillar known as the hickory horned devil. The adult is a beautiful moth known as the regal moth (Citheronia regalis), but it is rarely seen due to its nocturnal habit.
This looks a lot like bird poop; however, it’s just a camouflage tactic of the giant swallowtail caterpillar (Papilio cresphontes). This species is often called the “orangedog” as they feed on members of the citrus family throughout their larval stage.
These beets were injured by glyphosate overspray. Only the last 6 feet of 6 beds were affected.
This little critter looks a lot like a bee (it’s yellow, fuzzy, and foraging flowers), but if you look closely, you’ll see it has only one pair of wings (bees have two). This feature distinguishes this as a fly, specifically a bee fly (family Bombyliidae). Though they look similar, these flies grow up very differently from bees. Bee flies are parasitic and develop on the larvae and pupae of other insects, such as wasps, beetles, butterflies and moths, grasshoppers, and other flies.
This is the caterpillar of the imperial moth (Eacles imperialis). The imperial moth is one of the largest moths in the Southeast.
This is cutleaf evening primrose. This weed germinates and starts appearing in the fall and grows through the winter and spring until the weather gets hot.
The fully autonomous robotic laser weeder creeps through the field without a human driver, using GPS, Lidar, and multiple sensors. The machine detects weeds in the planted crop. When a weed is detected, a laser zaps the weed, leaving the crop safely behind.
There are diamondback moth caterpillars on the right. The caterpillar on the left is a cabbage webworm.
This leaf is showing symptoms of a fungal disease called large leaf spot (Monochaetia sp.) that affects oaks and chestnuts. The appropriately named spots may reach 2 inches wide and stretch across the entire leaf, killing large amounts of tissue.