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So my name is Nick Volesky.
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I'm a vegetable IPM associate
for our Utah State University
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extension IPM program.
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I serve the entire
state of Utah.
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And I'm the guy behind the
seasonal vegetable pest
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advisories.
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With extension, I work to
provide education, research,
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and outreach, especially to our
state's commercial vegetable
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farmers along with
home gardeners as well.
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My educational background
is in horticulture
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and applied science.
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My experience from
the past several years
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has been mainly in commercial
vegetable production, plant
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pathology, entomology,
and of course,
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integrated pest management.
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So what exactly is
integrated pest management?
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Integrated pest
management, or IPM,
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is a comprehensive
approach to pest control
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that uses a combined
means to reduce
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the status of pest
to tolerable levels
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while maintaining a
quality environment.
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So that's a really kind
of in depth definition.
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So let's discuss exactly
what is the IPM concept.
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Well IPM has a
broad application.
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It integrates
management of all pests.
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It's a holistic approach.
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It's ecologically based.
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And it can be applied
to any ecosystem.
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So what is IPM integrate?
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Well it integrates multiple
pest management tactics,
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like chemical control,
biological control, cultural,
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and mechanical control.
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It integrates management
of multiple pests.
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So that includes insects, weeds,
diseases, pathogens, nematodes,
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vertebrate, et cetera.
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It integrates pest management
tactics on an area-wide basis.
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So many pest control
situations are better
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handled on a large
scale or regional basis.
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And it reduces pest
to tolerable levels.
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So it does not emphasize pest
eradication or elimination.
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We just want to get the
pest to tolerable levels.
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IPM incorporates
economic sustainability.
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So we will discuss
the economic injury
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level and economic threshold
concepts on a later slide.
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And then we can also incorporate
other important factors,
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such as maintenance
of aesthetic quality.
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So that's really important if
you're a landscape designer.
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And then lastly, it incorporates
environmental and social
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concerns.
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So let's talk about
the things that
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are goals of an IPM program.
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One, it optimizes profits
over the long term.
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Two, it sustains our
resources, especially
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in agricultural or
natural resource
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settings over the long term.
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One goal is to have a
rational use of pesticides.
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We want to reduce environmental
contamination and cost
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involving our soil, groundwater,
surface water, pollinators,
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wildlife, and other
endangered species.
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We want to utilize the
natural biological controls.
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We want to conserve and augment.
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We want to use selective
pesticides, proper timing
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of those applications.
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And then obviously, we want to
minimize pesticide resistance
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problems.
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We want to minimize pest
resurgence and secondary pest
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outbreaks often caused by the
elimination of natural enemies
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with pesticides.
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And then of course,
food safety is a goal.
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We want to reduce
residues of pesticides
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on our food products.
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And then most importantly,
human safety is the main goal.
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We rely on pest
management tactics
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that are safe for
ourselves and others.
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So listed here, I have four
key steps to an IPM program.
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And these are things
you should all know,
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one is know your pest
and the plant ecosystem.
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You want to be
able to decide what
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is an unacceptable pest
damage for your situation.
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Then you want to consider
all the available pest
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management practices,
which we will talk about.
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And then lastly, you want
to time pest controls
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with windows of opportunity.
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So identifying these
windows of opportunity--
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all types of pests
have a lifecycle or set
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of developmental events that
occur during their lifetime.
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The types of life cycle
will vary with the pest.
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However, most pests have
certain weak points or windows
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of opportunities during
their lifecycle when they are
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the most vulnerable to control.
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For insects, these
windows are often
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during the immature stages.
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Weeds are typically
easiest to control
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during their seedling stage.
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So early in the season when
they are just beginning to grow,
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like annuals, or
late in the season
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when they're preparing
for dormancy,
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like our perennial plants.
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Diseases are often
easiest to control
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by using a preventative or
early intervention tactics
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before the disease begins
developing or becomes
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established.
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Sorry about that.
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And then, of course, we want to
optimize management of a pest.
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Control tactics should be
targeted for these weak points.
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So you can see in
this diagram, we
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have the standard
insect life cycle
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with the adults, the eggs,
the immature stage, and then
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the pupa.
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So obviously, a pupa, we can't
usually target that stage,
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because it's in the ground.
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And sometimes adults are tricky,
because they're highly mobile.
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So usually we want to try to
get the immature stage when
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we're controlling pest.
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So now we're going to go
over cultural, mechanical,
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biological, and chemical control
management within integrated
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pest management.
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So let's start with these
cultural control practices.
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We have land and
water management.
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So with this, we
want to maintain
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an ecosystem in a
healthy state to minimize
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the competitiveness of pest.
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In some situations, water
levels can be regulated
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to reduce pest problems.
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So this can involve
mosquitoes or aquatic weeds.
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Or if you have a
garden, you want
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to avoid over or under watering
your plants to minimize stress.
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Next we have a
discing or tilling.
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This can disrupt any
overwintering life stage
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of an insect or disease pest.
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And then weeding-- removing
weeds around your production
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site is a good idea,
because weeds often
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serve as an alternate host
for insects and diseases.
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And then sanitation or
just garden cleanup--
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if you can remove,
prune, gather,
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burn plant parts and
debris that serve
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as a protective or overwintering
site for many pests,
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that's a good idea.
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Then we have habitat
diversification.
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So in monoculture situations,
so like a cornfield, an orchard
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or turf grass, diversification
of vegetation--
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the habitat may subsequently
increase the diversity
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of animal life in that habitat,
because such diversification
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can attract beneficial
and pest organisms.
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So you have that
healthy balance.
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And then crop rotation-- this
makes it challenging for pest
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to access their
target host if they
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are relocated every season.
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And then I listed sourcing
tolerant or resistant species
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and cultivars.
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Select insect and disease
resistant species and cultivars
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of plants, whenever
they're available.
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For perennial plants,
select species and cultivars
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that are cold hardy, because
a winter damaged plant
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like a tree can be more
susceptible to attack by pests.
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And most seed catalogs
will have a diagram
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that will explain what
varieties have resistance
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to certain diseases
or insect pest.
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And then lastly,
we want to focus
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on the nutrition of our soil
and the fertility management.
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So although you cannot change
the soil type in your area,
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there are some practices you can
follow to improve the growing
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conditions for your plants.
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Proper fertilization
is important.
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But over fertilization can
lead to excessive lush growth
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that can be attractive to
aphids and other foliar pests.
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Increasing organic matter
of the soil where it is low
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can improve the growth
and health of your plants
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overall as well.
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So next we have a mechanical
control practices.
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So this might seem
like an obvious one.
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But hand removal-- when you
hand pull weeds or other pests,
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you're physically removing
them from the situation.
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And that's obviously
probably the number one form
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of pest control.
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Mowing-- if you mow
down weeds, especially
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before they start
to produce seeds,
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this can be a very
effective pest management
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tool for the long term.
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Using physical barriers--
there are many types
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of physical barriers that can
be used to block and disrupt
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the movement of pests.
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For example, a sticky band
around the trunk of a tree
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can discourage pests
from climbing up.
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And then in this picture
I have row covers.
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And then traps-- so attractive
traps can be used to mass trap
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and remove pests from the
environment or to monitor
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their activities,
so control actions
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can be appropriately timed.
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Traps are primarily used for
insects and vertebrate pest
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and some disease pests as well.
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Attractive traps
typically use visual cues.
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So like this yellow sticky trap
and/or odors and pheromones,
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like food baits.
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So like this slug
trap you see here.
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So passive traps can
be placed in areas
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common with pest activity
and use wind currents
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to catch the pest.
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So next we have
biological control.
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So we define biological
control as any activity
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of one species that reduces
the adverse effects of another.
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So for example,
we have predators.
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This is an organism that
eats or consumes another.
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So this can be like predatory
insects or predatory mites
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or even like reptiles or
birds that eat insects.
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We have parasites.
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This is an organism that
lives in or on another,
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and it kills it.
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So we'll call that a
parasitoid while it's
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completing its life cycle.
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So here we have a samurai wasp
parasitizing stink bug eggs.
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Then we have pathogens.
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These are microbial agents
that attack and invade
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other organisms.
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So this can be like a bacteria,
a virus or a nematode.
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And then sometimes there's
herbivorous insects
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that eat weeds,
which is pretty cool.
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So an example I had is
the bindweed mite, which
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you might be familiar with.
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And it's important to know that
biological control agents can
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be purchased from
commercial suppliers
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and released for supplementary
control of pests.
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Biological control
release can be intuitive.
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So if you flood an
area with agents
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to produce a pest over short
term or it can be inoculated,
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where you have a
slow release so they
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can colonize and
spread themselves.
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However, most biological control
occurs without the assistance
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of people.
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Many predators and
parasites and pathogens
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occur naturally and
are continually working
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to keep nature in balance.
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The importance of
natural enemies
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is often not appreciated until a
broad spectrum pesticide, which
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can kill many beneficial insects
as well as the targeted pest
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is applied and a
new pest is suddenly
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released from
biological control,
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because of a serious problem.
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So there are things
you can do to encourage
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the activities of biological
control agents already present
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in your environment.
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The main thing is to avoid
the use of broad spectrum
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pesticides unless necessary.
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Use selective
pesticides, and target
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them to pest problem spots.
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So lastly, we have
chemical control.
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So this includes our pesticides.
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So we define pesticides
as any substance
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applied to control insects,
fungi, bacteria, weeds,
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vertebrae or other pests.
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So since the advent of synthetic
pesticides in the 1940s,
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pest managers have become very
reliant on their generally
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simple to use, fast acting, and
effective attributes to manage
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the majority of pest problems.
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However, in recent
times, the resistance
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of pests to pesticides
has become high,
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because they've
continually used them.
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So to reduce the
reliance on pesticides
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as a single pronged
approach to pest management,
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pest management
should become familiar
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with those other forms
we talked about--
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cultural, mechanical,
and biological.
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So although pesticides
have been perhaps overused
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in recent decades, they're
still an important tool
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within our IPM toolbox.
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So the avoidance of
overuse will allow
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them to remain a viable pest
control option for many decades
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to come.
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So we have many
types of chemicals
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used before the development
of synthetic pesticides
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that are becoming popular.
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Once again, they are called
organic pest control options.
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In addition, many
new chemical products
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are being developed
and made available,
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such as biologicals and
insect growth regulators.
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So first we have
synthetic pesticides.
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These are human made
in a laboratory.
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They're chemically joined
compounds or elements.
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And this usually includes
most of our herbicides
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and other products with active
ingredients like malathion,
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carbaryl, benomyl,
stuff like that.
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And then we have
organic pesticides.
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So these are
naturally occurring.
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They're derived from plant or
animal materials, like rocks
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or petroleum oil sources.
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So this could be neem oil,
sulfur, copper, pyrethrum,
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stuff like that.
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And then, of course, we
have biological pesticides.
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So this is a subset of organic
pesticides or a subgroup.
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And these specifically
refer to products
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that develop from
naturally occurring
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microbial agents such as
bacteria, viruses, and fungi.
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Bacillus thuringiensis
is probably
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the most common one we see,
which you might have heard
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is called BT.
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And spinozad is another one.
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So and then lastly, we had
insect growth regulators,
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or IGRs.
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These kill insects
by interfering
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with their normal process
of juvenile development.
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So common insect
growth regulators
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disrupt either the insects
hormonal process or exoskeleton
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development.
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So just to review, we talked
about cultural control options,
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mechanical control options,
biological control options,
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and chemical control options.
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So let's talk about the
economic-injury level concept.
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So this looks complicated.
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But once I explain it,
it'll make a lot of sense.
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So the economic-injury
level concept
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was developed hand in hand with
the integrated pest management
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concept and is used to promote
more rational use of pesticides
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to avoid pesticide resistance
and reduce problems
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with the pesticide residue
on our agricultural products,
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and reduce the negative
effects of pesticides
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on non-target organisms.
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So some definitions-- this
blue line right here represents
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our economic-injury level.
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This is the lowest
population density
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of a pest that will
cause economic damage
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or the amount of pest
injury which will
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justify the cost of control.
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This brown line here is
the action threshold.
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So this is the pest density at
which control measures should
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be implemented to
prevent it from reaching
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the economic-injury
level, so the point where
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there's economic loss occurs.
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So as farmers or
gardeners, we want
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to be strategic with the
timing of our pest control.
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So these graphs are showing
the insect populations
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on the left and then
the time or the length
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of the season on the bottom.
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So if the insect
population passes
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the economic-injury level,
so above the blue line,
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it would not be worth
our time to manage.
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But if we manage
right before that line
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at the action threshold, then
we will be saving time, labor,
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and money, because
the cost of control
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allows for the correct
benefits, if that makes sense.
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OK, so we just
spent a lot of time
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talking about the different
control practices of integrated
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pest management.
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But none of that's
going to serve you well
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unless you guys are actually
good at scouting for the pest.
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So when you're
scouting for the pest,
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you can't just look at your
garden from the window.
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You got to get
out there, and you
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got to go look down at
the canopy of the plants.
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You want to look at the leaves.
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You want to look at the
nodes, the fruits, the stem,
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the crown of the plant.
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And then if necessary, you might
have to dig up the roots, too,
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if there's a serious problem.
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If you're scouting a
large farm or field,
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you want to make
sure you walk around
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in a well-represented area.
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So here's a picture
of a cantaloupe field
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that I go to often.
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And I start at one point.
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And I kind of do a zigzag
pattern throughout the field.
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And then I'll pick random
plants to stop at, and then
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do a closer observation.
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And then I always want to make
sure I'm looking at the field
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edges, because there tends
to be a lot of pest pressure
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there from neighboring fields.
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Or if there's like
a damp or wet area,
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I want to look there
as well, because there
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tends to be a lot of diseases.
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When you're out
scouting for pest,
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you want to be looking
for two things--
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signs and symptoms.
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So symptoms are a plant's
reaction to the pest.
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So this can include dead plant
parts, changes in the growth,
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changes in the appearance,
so the color or the texture.
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A sign is the physical evidence
of a pest on the plant.
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So this can include the
actual pest itself, evidence
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of the pest, so observed
mechanical damage,
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secretions from the plants,
and then just kind of a damage
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pattern like we see with the
leaf miners or the burrowing
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holes.
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So now let's talk
about some supplies
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you might use when you are
out scouting for a plant.
00:20:50
These are all ones
that I use frequently.
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The first is a beating tray.
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So what I do is I hold
this underneath the canopy
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of a plant, and then
I'll shake the foliage.
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And this will dislodge
any nymphs, adults, larvae
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or really small insects,
so I can see them easier.
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If they're really small,
I can use a 10 to 30
00:21:11
magnification hand lens.
00:21:13
And again, this is really
helpful for viewing aphids
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or other small insects.
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We have a sweep
net, which you can
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use to collect flying insects,
like our moth or butterfly
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pest.
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And you can also do sweep
counts in an alfalfa field.
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And then I like to use
yellow sticky traps
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to monitor for insect pests
over a long period of time.
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Next I use a field
notebook, which
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I like to document the pests.
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So I'll write down
the location, the host
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plant it was on, how many tests
there were, and then the time.
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And then I can refer to that
from week to week or month
00:21:56
to month or even year to year.
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Sometimes I like to
measure the plant specimens
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or the insect specimens.
00:22:04
And then sometimes I
like to take them back
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to our diagnostic lab.
00:22:08
So I'll use a
Ziploc bag or vials.
00:22:10
And then I like to use
little paint brushes, which
00:22:13
are good for collecting aphids
or other really small insects
00:22:17
without crushing them.
00:22:19
And then I always take
with me some field guides,
00:22:22
which these are available
to you guys as well online.
00:22:25
And this helps with
the identification
00:22:28
of insects and diseases.
00:22:30
