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Internet-Based IPM Reports Benefit Green Industry Growers - January 2005
January 9, 2005
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA - Growers of woody ornamentals in southwestern Pennsylvania were better able to keep on top of their pest problems last year, thanks to a Penn State Cooperative Extension IPM scouting program.
Unlike the greenhouse industry, which deals with a smaller number of multiple plant species in an enclosed, constant environment, woody ornamentals grown in the outdoor landscape is a much more diverse and variable environment. According to project leader Michael Masiuk, senior extension educator in Allegheny County, this can cause numerous challenges to growers that require a high level of skill to implement an integrated pest management program. 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.
"Another factor limiting the adoption of IPM in the landscape is the breadth of services provided by many landscaping companies. Most landscapers offer pest management services in addition to planting, transplanting, pruning, mowing, and fertilizing, but may not be trained in all aspects of IPM," says Masiuk.
Sponsored in part by a grant through the Pennsylvania IPM Program (PA IPM) and Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences' Extension IPM Program, Masiuk and Erie County Extension Educator John Holowid developed a program to increase the number of green industry professionals scouting for key insect pests. Scouting is one component of an IPM program that provides growers information on pests and diseases in their field so they can make better informed pest management decisions.
The project utilizes the Internet to distribute both textual and graphic information to landscapers and nursery operators in western Pennsylvania with the goal of honing their monitoring skills. "Weekly Web based reports serve as prompts for the green industry professionals to monitor for specific key insect pests. The reports include information such as growing degree day and plant phenology information and graphical images of the life cycle stage present at that point in time," Masiuk explains.
The Web-based pest activity reports were posted weekly on the Woody Ornamentals IPM Website (http://woodypests.cas.psu.edu/). A link to this web site can also be found as part of our 'Landscape Pest Problem Solver' (http://paipm.cas.psu.edu/329.htm). In addition, a weekly email was sent to green industry professionals providing notification of a new report posting. According to Masiuk, the number of people requesting notification increased by 35 percent in 2004.
In addition, Masiuk conducted four workshops for landscape maintenance professionals in southwest Pennsylvania. The "Landscape Snapshot" meetings provided instruction on the identification of insects, diseases and weeds present in the landscape at those times. All of the participants in the workshops indicated that their ability to scout the landscape for insect and disease pests greatly increased. Over 80 percent indicated they plan to increase the amount of time they spend monitoring or scouting for landscape plant pest as a direct result of the workshops. For more information on the project, contact Masiuk at mcm2@psu.edu.
For the past three years, Penn State's Extension IPM Program has funded projects that facilitate the adoption of environmentally-sound pest management practices by Pennsylvania farmers, rural and urban pest managers, and homeowners/renters. The program is supported through USDA-CSREES formula funds earmarked for IPM program development.
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/. To view our archived news releases, see Web site http://paipm.cas.psu.edu/10.htm.