By Clint Thompson
Georgia’s Vidalia onion producers need to guard against overusing Omega 500F, an effective fungicide that protects onions from numerous diseases, including downy mildew.
University of Georgia Extension Vegetable Plant Pathologist Bhabesh Dutta highlighted the fungicide during a recent Vidalia onion meeting in Lyons, Georgia.
“It is good. If we lose Omega, we’re going to be in trouble,” Dutta said. “Sometimes we tend to overuse it. We don’t want to overuse it.”
According to the label, Omega 500F can be used in onions for control of botrytis leaf blight, botrytis neck rot, downy mildew and purple Blotch. The rate is 16 ounces per acre.
Producers should avoid making more than six applications of Omega 500F per acre per year. They should avoid applying more than 96 fluid ounces of Omega 500F per acre per year. Growers should avoid using an adjuvant with Omega 500F on this crop.
The maximum single use rate is 16 fluid ounces with the shortest RTI (retreatment interval or minimum time between applications) of seven days. Growers should also avoid using within seven days of harvest.
“That’s why I showed them the label (at the meeting). This is the maximum use rate and minimum use rate. Do not overuse it,” Dutta said. “It is a single chemistry product. It’s very easy to mutate a single chemistry product.”