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Crop Consulting Costs Minor in Greenhouses - July 1998
July 2, 1998
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA -- A recent study in Pennsylvania greenhouses shows that Integrated Pest Management (IPM) crop consulting services costs less than 1 cent per plant, making it one of the smaller production input costs to finish growing plants.
A joint effort of the Penn State Cooperative Extension, the Greenhouse Crop Management Association in Lebanon and Lancaster Counties and the Pennsylvania IPM program, the study found that crop consulting decreases pest and disease problems while reducing the use of pesticides.
The focus of the project was limited to the finishing phase of poinsettia production, from planting of a rooted cutting to shipping the final product. Crop records were maintained by greenhouse workers and reviewed weekly by the crop management association.
The study showed that monitoring helps to improve both crop quality and greenhouse profitability while reducing plant losses and lowering worker exposure to pesticides. A pilot "Pennsylvania Greenhouse Crop Records System" was developed to accurately evaluate the cost of IPM monitoring relative to all other crop costs.
This system can now be used in commercial greenhouses statewide to accurately evaluate IPM costs. Growers, scouts and extension agents alike can use this program to evaluate total greenhouse costs and to help quantify IPM benefits and costs. All data, collection methods, forms, and analysis templates are available to interested growers, Crop Management Association members, private scouts and agents in Pennsylvania and surrounding states.
The green industry in Pennsylvania is the fastest growing agricultural industry in Pennsylvania, and the greenhouse portion is a large part of it. Alan H. Michael, Penn State Cooperative Extension Agent in Dauphin county and an investigator in the study, says as the industry grows and moves into more urban areas, IPM is becoming more important in order to reduce pesticide exposure.
IPM is an approach to managing pests such as insects, diseases, weeds and animals by integrating appropriate physical, biological and chemical tactics that are safe, profitable and environmentally compatible. The Pennsylvania IPM program is a collaboration between Penn State and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture aimed at promoting integrated pest management in both agricultural and nonagricultural situations. For more information on the Pennsylvania Greenhouse Crop Records System, contact Alan Michael at (717) 921-8803 or e-mail at ahm4@psu.edu.