UTAH PESTS News Utah Plant Pest Diagnostic Laboratory and USU Extension Vol. III, Spring 2009 Sabbatical Research Experience with the NW Michigan Cherry Industry Diane Alston and family enjoyed Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and feasting on cherry products– just a few activities spent during her sabbatical week- What’s Inside ends in Michigan, the cherry capital of the world. Imidacloprid for Insect Control Utah Pests Holds In- Service Training Turf Problems to Watch for This Spring Getting Nit-Picky About Head Lice Surge in Black Pineleaf Scale Spotlight: Transitioning to Organic Agriculture News, Publications, Web sites, Calendar News Highlights AFRICANIZED HON- EY BEES FOUND IN SOUTHERN UTAH My family and I had a fun and Utah Dept. of Agriculture productive sabbatical experience and Food (UDAF) recently in northwestern Michigan during detected Africanized honey the spring and summer of 2008. bees in monitored traps Michigan produces 75% of U.S. and in honey bee hives tart cherries and is one of four in Washington and Kane major producers of sweet cher- counties. UDAF, USU, and ries. I collaborated with Michigan agricultural stakeholders State University entomologists on whether the sandy soils of NW Michigan are will work together to de- research projects on plum curculio biological conducive to entomopathogens and microbial velop tools and educational control and cherry fruit fly ecology and man- activity. By targeting soil-dwelling life stages materials for beekeepers agement. Drs. Nikki Rothwell, Mark Whalon, of insects, such as the summer generation and citizens. This bee has Larry Gut, and others were generous with of plum curculio and cherry fruit fly larvae, been present in southern their time and expertise and helped me jump growers can take advantage of additional tim- and southwestern U.S. right into research opportunities with the ings to suppress pest populations. since the early 1990s. The Michigan fruit industry. Waxworm larvae were used to “bait” soils for new fact sheet, African- First, I conducted a survey of 37 fruit or- native entomopathogens. Entomopathogen- ized Honey Bees, provides chards and vineyards for the presence of induced insect mortality ranged from 5-95% more details. entomopathogens (nematodes, fungi, and per site, and was 50% or greater in 22 of the www.utahpests.usu.edu bacteria that kill insects). A goal was to assess 37 sites. Soils of organically managed sites continued on next page Michigan Sabbatical, continued from previous page UTAH PESTS had greater entomopathogen activity Staff than transitional organic, sustainable, and conventional orchard soils. Ento- Diane Alston mopathogens were more common in Extension Entomologist grape and tart cherry sites than in sweet [email protected] cherry, and apple sites were intermediate. 435-797-2516 These results support that the presence of mulches and ground covers, and lower Ryan Davis toxicity or shorter-lived pest control Arthropod Diagnostician products used in organic production may [email protected] encourage biologically active soils that 435-797-2435 can suppress soil-dwelling insects. Ad- ditionally, results suggest that the sandy Kent Evans soils of NW Michigan are conducive to Extension Plant Pathologist entomopathogens, and as long as ad- [email protected] equate soil moisture is maintained, may 435-797-2504 be good sites for application of entomo- pathogen products, such as nematodes Diane used a new trick for hanging Erin Frank and fungi. traps: attaching the trap to a bamboo Plant Disease Diagnostician [email protected] Second, I contributed to a statewide pole and hooking it over a limb as high 435-797-2435 effort to develop a predictive model of as 12 feet in the tree. plum curculio (PC) phenology in fruit. Such a model would allow growers to Erin Hodgson better time controls for the summer gen- data collected by Dr. Luis Teixeira of MSU Extension Entomologist suggesting that peak egg-laying of CFF [email protected] eration, such as insect growth regulators in cherry orchards occurs during and 435-797-5689 that reduce egg hatch, entomopathogens to kill larvae in the soil, or post-harvest just after cherry harvest when fruits are foliar sprays for adults. Results showed at peak ripeness, but that CFF trapped Marion Murray that PC phenology was more advanced in nearby black cherry trees don’t have IPM Project Leader mature eggs until later in August when Editor, Utah Pests News in tart and sweet cherry than in apple, black cherry fruits become ripe. My [email protected] and more advanced in fruit on the ground 435-797-0776 results support these findings. Observa- than fruit in the tree. At 450-500 DD50, the majority of PC in fruit on trees tions of CFF behavior in tart cherry trees were eggs and 1st instars, while in fruit found that flies didn’t begin to spend time st on fruits until they were fully red in color. Utah Plant Pest on the ground the majority were 1 to th Most of the flies collected from fruits Diagnostic Lab 4 instars. At 650-700 DD50, most PC rd th were males, suggesting that males sit and BNR Room 203 in cherry fruits on trees were 3 to 4 Utah State University instars while in fruit on the ground most wait to mate with females. Results from 5305 Old Main Hill were 4th instars or had already exited this study will be contributed to research Logan, UT 84322 (except not from apple). These data and Extension publications. suggest that applications of entomopatho- UTAH PESTS News In addition to the exciting research op- th is published quarterly. gens to target 4 instars burrowing into portunities, my family and I found many To subscribe, click here. soil would need to be applied beginning diversions. We took advantage of the at about 500 DD and continue past 700 Any pictures not credited belong to 50 abundance of places to kayak, fish, swim, DD . This study is on-going and more UTAH PESTS and USU Extension. 50 and hike. Sleeping Bear Dunes National data will be collected in subsequent years. Lakeshore is a real treasure and we hiked utahpests.usu.edu Third, I participated in a study on cherry on many of the park’s trails. We take fruit fly (CFF) reproductive maturity with us fond memories of the region and behavior in sweet and tart cherry and people in the “Cherry Capital of the orchards as compared to a native host, World.” black cherry. The goal was to build upon -Diane Alston, Extension Entomologist www.utahpests.usu.edu Utah Pests News - Spring 2009 - page 2 NEwS FrOM tHE Utah PESTS GrOUP Imidacloprid for Insect Control In the mid 1980s, Bayer CropScience patented a new chemi- Pest Diagnostic Lab for identification. Many common Utah cal for insect control—imidacloprid (IC). Registered for use pests are described in Extension fact sheets. in the United States in 1994, this chemical was the first in a new group of insecticides known as the neonicotinoids, and is As with any insecticide, IC Apply Imidacloprid currently considered the most widely used insecticide in the is a chemical that enters the en- Safely and Effectively.. world. Today, neonicotinoids (mode of action group 4a; click vironment. While it has lower here for MOA descriptions) includes active ingredients such toxicity levels than many broad- as acetamiprid, clothianidin, dinotefuran, nitenpyram, thiaclo- spectrum insecticides, it is • An IC product can be prid, and thiamethoxam. There are over 250 IC-containing capable of killing or giving sub- applied with, or after a products available in Utah. lethal doses to many non-target curative insecticide for insects, including bees, parasitic long-term pest control. Imidacloprid is registered on over 140 crops for a variety of wasps, birds, and mammals. This (Check the product label pests. The following are controlled by Merit 75 WP: chemical, when used as a seed for compatibility.) treatment, has been implicated • Do not mix IC with adelgids *mole crickets (but not proven) in contribut- any products containing annual bluegrass weevil Oriental beetle European crane fly ing to widespread honey bee Boron. aphids greenflatheaded june beetleborers pine tip moth death in Europe. It is banned • Imidacloprid can be asiatic garden beetles Japanese beetle psyllids in France, Italy, Germany, and applied with fertilizer to billbug lace bugs Slovenia as a seed treatment promote faster uptake and on such crops as sunflower, black vine weevil leaf beetles *sodsawfly webworm translocation. rapeseed, and sweet corn. It is *chinch bug soft scales • For insect control in highly toxic to fish and aquatic *cutworms/armyworms leafminersleafhoppers *thrips woody plants, fall and ear- invertebrates. Because of emerald ash borer masked chafers white grubs ly spring are good times its frequent use, insect resis- European chafer mealybugs to apply soil drenches/ tance to IC is building in some injections. These applica- Application methods to control insects in this list vary by crop and situation. Please carefully read the label before applying. (*suppressionwhiteflies only) systems like Colorado potato tions are best followed by beetle in Michigan, and the irrigation, and should not be applied to waterlogged Imidacloprid is not a true systemic insecticide because it not greenhouse whitefly in Europe. soil. translocated throughout all plant tissue, however it may dif- Make sure to rotate insecti- fuse partially into the phloem. When applied as a soil drench/ cides that have different modes • Because IC is translo- injection, trunk injection, or seed treatment, it is transported of action (see the spring 2008 cated quickly in turf, it is best to apply during the throughout the water-carrying vessels (xylem), providing Utah Pests newsletter for more egg-laying period of the “systemic” protection. When IC is applied as a foliar spray, it information on preventing target pest.