Fourteen fruit and vegetable producers, representing Geauga, Portage and Trumbull Counties enrolled over 100 acres of commercial production. These commercial acres consisted of apples, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, muskmelon, watermelon, pumpkins, summer and winter squash, cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, sweet corn, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, beans and some miscellaneous crops. A single scout individually scouted each growers enrolled acres at least two times each week and more often if heavy pressures or serious problems occurred.
Heliothis traps and lures were used to help monitor corn earworm and European corn borer in sweet corn plantings and for monitoring European corn borer in pepper plantings.
Scouting reports and insect and disease monitoring reports were shared with participating cooperators following each visit, with other growers in Geauga, Portage, Stark and Summit counties via a monthly tri-county cluster fruit and vegetable newsletter written by the Geauga County Extension Agent. Scout reports were also shared with growers at monthly field nights held throughout the season. A majority of growers used the IPM generated recommendations throughout their operations. Whether the acres were enrolled or not. Generally, growers made fewer applications of pesticides than would be expected when using a calendar spray schedule. This cost savings of materials, operator/machinery time, and increased produce quality covered or exceeded the calculated expense of an average of $40.00 per acre for the program. According to harvest and market evaluations and growers observations, excellent quality produce which had very little pest damage was harvested.
A list and time table has been included detailing the insect, disease and production problems encountered during the scouting sessions. The IPM scout also noted crop problems and stress associated with the very dry conditions this season. Under these dry conditions the scout also was monitoring the growers irrigation practices, so they were applying irrigation water when irrigation was necessary.
Extension Program Implementation:
All participants and area produce buyers desire a continuation of some type of IPM scouting program, with many other growers interested in participating in future programs. This program encouraged involvement with growers and actual "hands-on" education as many growers went to the field with the IPM scout and observed his scouting techniques and findings. However, all growers did not take advantage of this opportunity due to time restraints. We hope to increase grower participation and involvement in the future. A hired scout is necessary for a program of this type, again due to growers time restraints and the growers lack of experience and knowledge with IPM scouting. Experiences and data accumulated from this program will also be shared at this years winter grower meetings and crop production schools to help establish a basis for IPM scouting and to increase the use of IPM techniques on other growers operations.
This IPM scout program has been very useful to area growers since most growers are new to growing fruit and vegetables with a majority of the acreage planted only in the last two seasons.
Insect and disease problems observed at threshold levels on horticultural crops scouted.
| First Day of Observation Week | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crop & Pest Problem | 6/7 | 6/14 | 6/22 | 6/28 | 7/6 | 7/12 | 7/19 | 7/26 | 8/2 | 8/9 | |
| Crucifera: | |||||||||||
| Flea beetles | X | X | X | X | X | ||||||
| Cabbage loopers | X | X | X | X | |||||||
| Curcubits: | |||||||||||
| Cucumber beetles | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||
| Bacterial wilt | X | X | X | X | X | ||||||
| Powdery mildew | X | X | X | X | |||||||
| Downy mildew | X | ||||||||||
| Leaf spot | X | X | |||||||||
| Fusarium wilt | X | ||||||||||
| Blossom end rot | X | ||||||||||
| Sunscald | X | ||||||||||
| Solinacea: | |||||||||||
| Cutworms | X | ||||||||||
| Colorado potato beetles | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||
| Aphids | X | X | |||||||||
| Flea beetles | X | X | X | X | |||||||
| European corn borer | X | ||||||||||
| Early blight | X | X | X | ||||||||
| Blossom end rot | X | X | |||||||||
| Sunscald | X | X | |||||||||
| Sweet corn: | |||||||||||
| Cutworms | X | ||||||||||
| Corn earworm | X | X | |||||||||
| European corn borer | X | X | X | ||||||||
| Strawberries: | |||||||||||
| Slugs | X | ||||||||||
| Spittlebug | X | X | |||||||||
| Black vine weevil | X | ||||||||||
| Crown rot | X | X | |||||||||
| Leaf spot | X | ||||||||||
| Leaf blight | X | ||||||||||
| Apples: | |||||||||||
| Plum curculio | X | ||||||||||
| Mites | X | X | X | ||||||||
| Fireblight | X | ||||||||||
Return to Ohio IPM Home Page.