Integrated Pest Management

1. Integrated PestManagement Best Management Practices Lucy Bradley Urban Horticulture Specialist Thanks to Steve Bambara, Charlotte Glen, Craig Mauney and Debbie Roos for content & images

2. Integrated PestManagement Annihilate Obliterate Best Management Practices Lucy Bradley Urban Horticulture Specialist Eradicate

3. Integrated Pest Management BestManagementPractices Lucy Bradley Urban Horticulture Specialist

4. There are no “pests” in a natural ecosystem . . . It’s called the Food Chain!

5. Which is the Pest?

7. Good Offense • Keep Plants Healthy • Right Plant, Right Place • Proper Planting • Appropriate Water • Encourage natural enemies • Avoid Stress

8. Good Offense Stress • Reduces photosynthesis • Reduces growth • Attracts pests Stressors: • Too dry or wet, • Too high or low soil pH, • Too low or too high nutrients, • Planted too deep • Compact soil Drought stressed plants ‘glow’ and ‘scream’ to insects

9. Good Offense • Biodiversity • Systems Approach • Pests indicate problems • Solution addresses the underlying problem, not just the symptom.

10. 5 Steps in IPM • Monitor • Identify • Evaluate • Choose • Implement Image from http://www.regina.ca/AssetFactory.aspx?did=690

11. Monitor

12. Identify the Plant • What is normal • seasons of the year • stages of life? • What problems are typical? • Insects? • Diseases? • Abiotic?

13. Identify the “Pest” • Learn to recognize the various stages of their life cycle

14. Evaluate

15. Choose

16. Implement

17. IPM uses all possible methods to keep damage below an acceptable level: Acceptable level varies between plants & people complete eradication is not the goal!

18. IPM: Cultural Management Environmental Factors we can manage: • Soil management • Plant selection • Planting times and spacing • Watering and mulching • Sanitation • Crop Rotation • Trap Crops Pathogen Host Environment Disease Triangle Prevent disease by removing a factor

19. IPM: Cultural Management Environmental Factors we can manage: • Soil management • Plant selection • Planting times and spacing • Watering and mulching • Sanitation • Solarization • Crop Rotation Pathogen Host Environment Disease Triangle Prevent disease by removing a factor

20. Soil Management • Soil test • Manage nutrients & pH • Add organic matter • Alleviate soil compaction • Water appropriately • Mulch

21. To till or to till not Benefits • Disrupts life cycle of pests & beneficials • Can expose pests to predators & the elements • Till before planting to manage weeds that harbor armyworms, cutworms, plant bugs and aphids • Till in fall to destroy overwintering sites for flea beetles, corn borers, squash bugs, etc. Drawbacks • Can lead to compaction • Erosion

22. Choose varieties adapted to local climate & site conditions: • soil type • drainage • sun exposure Plant Selection Image from the Grumpy Gardener, Southern Living

23. Restrict insect movement, feeding or reproduction • size, • shape, • color, • leaf hair, • cuticle thickness, and • natural chemicals • (attractants & repellants) • Less attractive to pests. • Dark green leaves are less attractive than yellow green. • Produce compounds that deter pests – e.g. pyrethrum is from African chrysanthemum blooms. • Tolerance for damage Select Resistant Cultivars Many varieties of Crape Myrtleare resistant to powdery mildew

24. Purchase • well cared for • disease free, • insect free plants • from reputable sources Select Healthy Plants

25. Select plants that will be able to grow to their full mature size in the allotted space. Plant Selection Power line pruning, photographed by flickr user Justin Berger]

26. Planting Dates Avoid heat and cold stress Avoid known pest problems by planting early or late. Plant squash early to avoid vine borers which become active in June

27. Shift Planting Dates • Plant winter squash before June 1 to give rind time to harden before the pickleworm arrives.

28. Shift Planting Dates • Plant corn early to avoid ear worm • Plant crops susceptible to nematodes early while soil is cool • Plant late to avoid rot and improve germination

29. Planting • Direct seeded plants • Require correct conditions to emerge and grow quickly • Transplants may be more resilient

30. Spacing • Plan for mature size • Allow air flow between plants to promote drying & prevent disease • Allow adequate space to minimize: • competition for Water, Nutrients, & Light • Habitat for pests Proper spacing depends on mature size of plant – most plants do best when leaves just touch at full size

31. Avoid placing all plants of one kind together • Alternate groups of different plants within rows or patches • Flowers help attract beneficials • The strong scents of herbs can confuse insects Interplanting

32. Drip irrigation delivers water through pipes directly to the soil Watering • To reduce disease, avoid wetting leaves • Most fungal leaf diseases require 4 hrs + of continual leaf wetness to infect Water fan sprinklers spray water in the air, wetting foliage

33. Mulching • Weed Management • Prevents annual weeds from coming up • Reduces stress on plants • Keeps soil cooler • Conserves moisture Avoid ‘Volcano’ mulching! A 3” layer of mulch is good around trees and shrubs –

34. Sanitation Manage weeds • Eliminate habitat for pests & diseases Remove plant debris, (fallen fruit, twigs, and leaves) • Prevents insects and diseases from overwintering Pick up twigs under pecan trees before eggs hatch and larva enter soil

35. Soil Solarization Prepare soil for planting, water, then cover with clear, 1- 4 mil thick plastic for 5-6 weeks in the hottest part of the summer. Helps manage: • weed seeds, • pathogens, • nematodes

36. Crop Rotation Avoid planting crops in the same family in the same location multiple years.

37. IPM: Mechanical Management • Manual • Traps • Exclusion • Sanitation Pathogen Host Environment Disease Triangle Prevent disease by removing a factor

38. Inspect plants for • egg clusters, • beetles, • caterpillars, or • other pests. • Squash or drop them in sudsy water. Manual: Handpicking Handpick bagworm ‘bags’ in winter – removes eggs

39. Mowing • Pruning • Shaking • Flaming • Vacuuming • Water sprays Manual

40. Most insect traps are most useful for detection and monitoring • Be sure that you are not attracting more pests into an area! • Pheromone traps have chemicals that mimic mating hormones Traps Not much evidence to support the value of Japanese Beetle Traps

41. There are many kinds – must get right type for pest • Bait traps • Japanese beetle traps • Pheromone traps • Slug and snail traps • Sticky boards • Trap Crops • Water Traps. Traps

42. Trap Crops Plant a crop more attractive to pests than your desired crop Then treat the pest on the infested decoy plant Different crops attract different pests: Mustard – Striped Flea Beetle & Harlequin bugs Blue Hubbard squash- Striped Cucumber Beetle Yellow Rocket - Diamondback Moth Mixed results Stinkbugs on the Trap Crop Sesbania Rostrata http://www.agnet.org/images/library/nc125d2.jpg

43. Exclusion • cut worm collars, • floating row cover, • netting, • mulches, • sticky barriers (trunk bands), • copper strips, • bagging fruit, Kaolin • plastic lined trenches and • fencing A cardboard or foil collar can protect young vegetables from cutworms Floating row covers can keep flying adult insects from laying eggs on vegetables

44. Kaolin • Clay material ground to uniform size • Forms a barrier on plant surface to insect and disease • Must be sprayed ahead and every 7-10 days • Washes off easily, must be reapplied after rain • Must be agitated to keep it suspended

45. Rake up fallen leaves from plants showing leaf spot and other disease symptoms. Sanitation Prune out infected twigs and rake fallen twigs and leaves to prevent insects and diseases from overwintering. Canna Leaf Roller can be managed by cutting off old foliage in winter

46. IPM: Biological Management • Beneficial Animals & Insects • Predators • Larva &/or adult eats pests • One predator eats many pests • Varied diet • Parasitoids • Egg is laid on the pest, immature consumes pest as it matures • One parasite (sometimes many parasites) eat one pest. • Very selective • Beneficial Diseases • Bacteria, virus, fungi, nematodes, protozoa Pathogen Host Environment Disease Triangle Prevent disease by removing a factor

47. Beneficials Hoover Fly adults look like bees or wasps • Learn to recognize all life stages of beneficials • Diverse landscapes encourage beneficials – plant many different types of plants, including flowers • Strive for a balance of good and bad insects. Hoover fly larvae look like small slugs or caterpillars – voracious aphid eaters

48. Beneficials • Attract and Conserve • Plant small flowered crops • Carrot family • Daisy family • Mint family • For example: • Catnip, caraway, dill, fennel, hyssop, lemon balm, parsley, rosemary, thyme, yarrow, etc. • Purchase & Release

49. Predators • Creatures that catch, kill and eat insects • Most like a wide variety of prey, & consume numerous prey over their lives • Insects, spiders, lizards, and frogs

50. Assassin Bugs • Prey: • aphids, • caterpillars, • beetles, • leafhoppers, & • other insects • They do not like • to be handled.