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Callers Take Advantage of IPM Hotline - January 2004
January 13, 2004
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA - Growers looking for latest information on pest infestations affecting their crops and homeowners with pest problems are increasingly relying on 1-800-PENN-IPM. The toll-free hotline that informs callers on the latest information about pests and pest management received over 4,000 calls last year, its 11th year of operation.
Integrated Pest Management, or IPM, aims to manage pests -- such as insects, diseases, weeds and animals -- by combining physical, biological and chemical tactics that are safe, profitable and environmentally compatible.
Caller numbers are on the rise because Christmas tree growers, agricultural crop producers, turfgrass managers, fruit growers, homeowners and others know they can get the most recent phermone trap capture counts for their region, up-to-date disease development information and other pest information, as well as tips on pest management tactics from the Pennsylvania Integrated Pest Management Program. Information on such crops as Christmas trees, sweet corn, potatoes, apples, tomatoes and ornamental plants in addition to information on scheduled pesticide applicator training sessions is included on the hotline.
New on the hotline is information about fly control and animal IPM, Callers can now find out about tactics used in an animal IPM program such as scouting for pests, monitoring, using appropriate controls for the situation and best management practices. Homeowners that are having fly problems can be referred to a pest management specialist to have their questions answered.
Messages on the hotline are updated frequently during the growing season -- sometimes as often as daily during critical management periods -- and are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Pest management specialists from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Penn State's Departments of Entomology and Plant Pathology, and county offices of Penn State Cooperative Extension contribute their time and expertise to keep the information current and useful.
The system also includes a "fax-on-demand" function. When available, the caller simply requests a fax and indicates his or her fax number. The system then will send a fax containing in-depth information about the crop, graphs of insect activity over time and other data. The same toll-free number can be used to find periodic updates of the winter schedule of pesticide applicator training meetings.
The Pennsylvania IPM program is a collaboration between the Pennsylvania State University and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture aimed at promoting integrated pest management in both agricultural and nonagricultural situations. For more information, contact the program at (814) 865-2839, or Web site http://paipm.cas.psu.edu.