Potato and field-crop farmers in Delaware are fortunate to have IPM programs
that give the word "integrated" new meaning.
State IPM Coordinator Joanne Whalen and other Extension personnel have involved
private and public institutions in a potato IPM program that benefits 17
growers and their 6,000 acres of potatoes. To combat the Colorado potato
beetle, Extension personnel have established a demonstration using a biological
control agent, called the predatory stink bug, instead of insecticides.
To teach producers about late blight in 1995, Extension specialists held
meetings, sent out newsletters and individual mailings, made phone calls,
and recorded pest information on a hotline. They monitored six weather stations
and used the data to predict whether late blight would develop and when.
With the help of Delaware's Department of Agriculture, they tested questionable
seedlots for the presence of late blight fungus. Through these integrated
methods, they helped potato growers save $475,000 last year.
Field-crop farmers in Delaware and other states benefitted in 1995 from
a different kind of integrated pest management. Cooperative Extension personnel
from Maryland and Delaware pooled their resources to offer intensive training
for certified crop advisors. It was the first school of its kind for field
crops, and 200 people from seven neighboring states attended. This three-day
training in Maryland, sponsored by the University of Delaware, the University
of Maryland, and Maryland's Department of the Environment, provided certified
crop advisors with required continuing education units. Amidst hands-on
learning opportunities, 50 experts spoke on the management of pests, soil,
water, and nutrients. The second Mid-Atlantic Crop Management School will
be held this November in Delaware.
State IPM Coordinator
Joanne Whalen
255 Townsend Hall
University of Delaware
Newark, DE 19717 1303
302 831 2526
joanne.whalen@mvs.udel.edu
return to IPM in the Northeast Region 1996 Report, Table
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