PA IPM Supports Farm Bill for Specialty Crops
The last few years have been challenging for growers of specialty crops such as Christmas trees, tree fruit and vegetables grown in greenhouses due to low prices and adverse weather conditions.


/Agriculture News Articles/ - UNIVERSITY PARK, PA, November 03, 2007 - The last few years have been challenging for growers of specialty crops such as Christmas trees, tree fruit and vegetables grown in greenhouses due to low prices and adverse weather conditions. The Pennsylvania IPM programs helps growers of these crops through its support of research projects and USDA Farm Bill grower reimbursement programs.

Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns recently unveiled the U.S. Department of Agriculture's 2007 farm bill proposals. The more than 65 proposals correspond to the 2002 farm bill titles with additional special focus areas, including specialty crops. Nearly $5 billion in funding is being earmarked to support specialty crop producers by increasing nutrition in food assistance programs, including school meals, through the purchase of fruits and vegetables, funding specialty crop research, fighting trade barriers and expanding export markets.

One specialty crop, Christmas and nursery trees, is an over $41 million per year industry in Pennsylvania, making the state fifth in the nation. Christmas trees are attacked by a number of insect and disease pests. The White Pine Weevil (WPW) is the major insect pest of many of these trees. According to Cathy Thomas, Pennsylvania integrated pest management coordinator at PDA, the weevil is native to Pennsylvania forests and prefers nurseries because of the large fields planted with a single species. The WPW kills the growing tip, or leader, causing the tree to be misshapen and decreasing its value. "Across the state, WPW causes major financial losses to Christmas tree growers each year," says Thomas. "In order to control the pest, large quantities of typically used? pesticides are applied, which can negatively impact non-target organisms and cause pesticide resistance."

A highly effective alternative to excessive pesticide applications is integrated pest management (IPM). 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. According to Thomas, growers using an IPM strategy to manage WPW can significantly reduce their pesticide applications usually resulting in better yield and lower production costs.

Thomas and colleagues from Penn State and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture began working with three large Christmas tree growers in Schuylkill County during the 2005 growing season. Thomas' group trained the growers in IPM techniques such as crop scouting, pest trapping, and observation of growing degree-days so that growers were aware of peak pest activity and could synchronize insecticide applications that target the most susceptible life stage. "In addition to reducing their pesticide use, the growers were also able to decrease tree damage by 70 percent. One grower reported that he prevented over $100 thousand in damaged trees and tree loss caused by WPV," says Thomas.

For specialty crops such as tree fruit, PA IPM supports researchers and growers to ensure their crop is the highest quality while reducing the use of pesticides and their impacts on the environment. According to Dr. David Biddinger, biological control specialist at Penn State's Fruit Research and Extension Center in Biglerville, Pa., the center conducts research to help growers adopt more ecologically-based IPM programs that include scouting, biocontrol, weather and pest forecasting as well as choosing pest-resistant varieties.

One research project conducted at the center demonstrated that apple and peach pests can be controlled using reduced-risk tactics as well as IPM programs using conventional pesticides, but may be up to 85 percent more costly for growers to apply. "Our goal is to build upon our previous research and develop reduced-risk tactics that are more profitable and sustainable," says Biddinger. "We are also examining the possibility of developing eco-labels for fruit managed with reduced risk tactics to provide consumers with a choice and give an economic advantage to growers."

The researchers are refining of their use of new insect growth regulators (biologically-based insecticides and pesticides that target one or two pest life stages) to reduce environmental impacts and to enhance biological control. The researchers are also using a "whole-farm" approach in which the entire orchard, not just certain blocks, are under a reduced-risk management program. "Key insect pests of apples and peaches are highly mobile and previously we often saw movement between reduced risk managed and conventional blocks," Biddinger explains. "These changes, along with more selective pesticides, cost effective pheromone delivery systems, and biological mite control are leading to higher profitability. This is especially true in high risk orchards that are under high pest population pressure or in which pesticide resistance has developed to the older neurotoxic insecticides and miticides."

Another specialty crop is the greenhouse industry, with Pennsylvania ranked sixth in the U.S. with over $175 million per year in the production of vegetables, flowers and herbs.
"Those numbers should continue to increase because greenhouses allow growers to extend the growing season to serve urban and suburban markets with fresh, locally produced food and plants", says Cathy Thomas, Pennsylvania IPM coordinator and biocontrol specialist. "In addition, many farmers are shifting to greenhouse production as a minor crop to replace or supplement income lost from low market prices in other crops."

As with any type of crop, agricultural pests can be limiting factor for yield and quality and can limit a farmer's profit. Pests can include insects, fungal disease and weeds. In the past, pesticides were the mainstay of pest control, but recently consumers are demanding crops grown with fewer pesticides. PA IPM has supported the greenhouse industry in Pennsylvania for over 15 years by providing research-based recommendations to greenhouse growers. A greenhouse IPM program follows a biointensive strategy that relies upon sanitation, mechanical barriers, biocontrol and scouting. Targeted pesticides are used only when necessary.

Biocontrol uses beneficial organisms (good bugs) to control pests. Since most pests have various parasites, diseases and predators that can kill them, beneficial organisms can be purchased and released into greenhouses as a means of control. According to Thomas, using biocontrols within an IPM program is catching on because many growers are looking for viable alternatives to using pesticides.

In an ongoing project, Thomas is showing vegetable greenhouse growers how a successful IPM/biocontrol system can replace traditional pesticides. Through use of biologically compatible pesticides combined with biological controls, growers can slow pesticide resistance in target pests, create a safer working environment for the family and farm workers, and maintain quality crops while increasing profitability when marketed as "pesticide free."

According to Thomas, growers meet with an IPM/biocontrol specialist on a weekly basis starting at the beginning of the growing season. They're taught pest-scouting techniques and identification, lifecycles of pests and biocontrols, and proper record keeping to monitor pest populations and determine pest thresholds. "The program allows growers to identify pest problems specific to their location and develop a practical plan of control that fits into the production constraints of their own farm," Thomas explains.

In addition to its support of greenhouse projects, the PA IPM program has helped to develop many resources for greenhouse growers, including the "Pest Problem Solver" Web site (http://paipm.cas.psu.edu/317.htm) and the manual, "Greenhouse IPM with an Emphasis on Biocontrol" (http://resources.cas.psu.edu/ipm/ghmanual/entire.pdf).

In addition, Penn State is partnering with the National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) through "green" programs such as Agriculture Management Assistance (AMA), Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), and the Conservation Service Program (CSP), which will reimburse growers for the cost of various conservation practices, including IPM in tree fruit, grapes, sweet corn and Christmas trees. Such IPM practices include biological mite control, reduced risk IPM, pheromone mating disruption, IPM scouting, precision application technology, and remote weather sensors to improve spray timing. The most successful program to date has been with Pennsylvania fruit growers under the AMA program, which has awarded over $1.2 million in IPM contracts. For more information on the program, visit their Web site at http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/ama/ or the PA IPM website at: http://paipm.cas.psu.edu/65.htm.

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Press Release Contact Information:

Kristie Auman-Bauer
Pennsylvania IPM Program
Public Relations Coordinator
501 ASI
University Park, PA
United States 16802
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