Progress 01/07/14 to 09/30/16
Outputs
Target Audience:We presented Extension seminars about alfalfa pest management at the Spring Weed & Pest Workshop in Worland, reaching Weed & Pest supervisors and staff from around the state and at the High Plains Organic Conference in Cheyenne in Spring 2016. We also presented to producers at the Sustainable Agriculture Reseach & Extension Center (SAREC) in Lingle, Wyoming in Summer 2016. In Winter 2016, we published two numbered Extension bulletins including our Insects in Alfalfa book which was mailed to Extension educators in parts of Wyoming with high alfalfa production as well as to all participating producers from this project - namely from Park, BigHorn, Platte, Fremont, and Goshen Counties. Changes/Problems:We requested a year-long extension to continue to work on our data collection and product completion. We have made great progress but still have multiple manuscripts in review and in prep. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?This project supported training opportunities by 4 graduate students, 2 MS students in Sociology, 1 MS student in Agronomy, and 1 MS student in natural sciences education. This project also supported training of 2 undergraduate Agroecology students. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?We published 2 numbered bulletins through Extension and gave 7 Extension presentations in Park, Washakie, Sheridan, Laramie, and Goshen Counties. We also maintained communication with focus group participants from Park, Big Horn, Fremont, Platte, and Goshen Counties, including mailing them our recent Extension bulletins. As part of the statewide survey, we offered participants the opportunity to provide their information to a voluntary list to receive information about alfalfa insect pest management from us. We now have a list of 97 producers from 18 Wyoming counties who we have also sent information to. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
1. Continued analysis of data collected from 630 alfalfa producers in Wyoming through our statewide survey. One manuscript is in prep to submit to the Journal of Integrated Pest Management focused on alfalfa insect pest priorities according to alfalfa markets and operation size to be submitted this fall from these data. 2. Using data from both focus groups and surveys, one manuscript is in review at the Journal of Extension about egocentric survey data collected from Wyoming alfalfa farmers. 3. Students in Agroecology 1000 completed an assignment through which they analyzed Wyoming farmer focus group transcripts from this project. This work was presented at a poster presentation at the Gordon Research Conference on Undergraduate Biology Education in summer 2015. The major findings were that students who had not previously worked on a farm improved their knowledge about pest management through this assignment more than those who had worked on a farm. However, the final "knowledge" ranking was higher for those students with agricultural experience. Students positively evaluated this assignment. 4. Throughout this project, we published 2 numbered bulletins through Extension and gave 7 Extension presentations. We acquired external funding from Western SARE and Western IPM Center using data from this project as a foundation.
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Jones, A., Pellissier, M., Jabbour, R. 2015. Insects in Wyoming Alfalfa: Common Pests and Beneficial Insects. University of Wyoming Extension Bulletin B-1275.
- Type:
Other
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Pellissier, M., Jones, A., Jabbour, R. 2016. Aphids in Alfalfa. University of Wyoming Extension Bulletin B-1287.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Pellissier, M., Jabbour, R. 2016. Alfalfa Weevil Management. Invited Presentation at Spring Weed & Pest Workshop, Worland, WY.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Under Review
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Noy, S., Jabbour, R. Using egocentric networks to illustrate information seeking and sharing by alfalfa farmers in Wyoming. Journal of Extension.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Under Review
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Pellissier, M., Nelson, Z., Jabbour, R. 2016. Ecology and Management of the Alfalfa Weevil (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in Western United States Alfalfa. Journal of Integrated Pest Management.
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Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15
Outputs
Target Audience:Producers in Park County and Fremont County participated in focus groups during this reporting period. PI Jabbour and grad student Makenzie Benander presented about the topic of alfalfa insect pest management at Extension events advertised statewide held in Sheridan and Lingle, WY. Our mail survey was sent to all alfalfa producers listed statewide (3200 according to National Agricultural Statistics Service), with 630 surveys returned and ~100 farmers requesting to be added to our mailing list. Changes/Problems:Originally we planned to conduct focus groups and survey producers in only 6 Wyoming counties, however we decided to allocate more resources to the mail survey to get statewide representation, and in exchange completed only 4 in person focus groups. This reallocation of resources will allow us to better serve the producers throughout Wyoming, and also to get a better representation of farmer perceptions and priorities that will more likely "scale up" to be of use nationally in the United States, given the prominence of alfalfa as a crop throughout the country. Finally, we requested an extension to allow us to finish our Extension publication printings into early 2016. The peer review and design process took us much longer than originally planned. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?We have trained 1 Plant Sciences graduate student and 1 Plant Sciences technician in developing Extension materials and presenting at outreach events. We have also trained 1 Sociology graduate student in sociology research methods through our focus group work. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Through Extension bulletins, field days, and our web blog and Instagram account. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?In the next reporting period, we will complete analysis of the data received through the focus groups and the surveys. We will also complete publication, including print copies, of the two planned Extension bulletins. We also plan to report on this project at two additional outreach events: the High Plains Organic Farming Conference and the Washakie County Weed and Pest annual event in April.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Goal 1: We collected data on farmer perceptions, priorities, and decision-making strategies via focus groups conducted in Park and Fremont Counties in 2015. We mailed the IRB-approved survey to all alfalfa producers in the state of Wyoming (~3200 according to National Ag Statistics Service) and received ~630 completed surveys. Goal 2: We are in the process of analyzing the network data from the returned surveys from producers throughout Wyoming. Goal 3: We presented our findings from engaging students with the curriculum developed from this project at the Gordon Conference for Undergraduate Biology Education. Goal 4: We have one Extension bulletin in press, another in review, and we presented on this project via our web presence and at 2 in-person field days out in the state.
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Jones, A., Pellissier, M., and Jabbour, R. Insects in Wyoming Alfalfa: Pests and Beneficial Insects. University of Wyoming Extension Bulletin B-1275. In press.
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Progress 01/07/14 to 09/30/14
Outputs
Target Audience: Farmers in Platte and Goshen Counties participated in focus groups. PI Jabbour presented on the project at Extension events advertised statewide that were held in Farson, WY and Casper, WY. Changes/Problems: We changed our planned methodology for distribution of our survey. Originally, we were going to distribute the survey via County Extension professionals to their stakeholders. We realized that County Extension mailing lists are not specific enough to target alfalfa producers, and we would have difficulty distributing through this avenue. Thus, we are currently working with NASS to distribute the survey through their sampling frame. Their HQ is still evaluating our survey tool, but the survey will be disseminated upon their approval. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? 3 undergraduate students (Alex Foulk, Seth Gill, and Kymbre Skersies) have assisted with research tasks, and gained training in data collection and analysis. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?
Nothing Reported
What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Goal 1: We will mail a survey statewide to all alfalfa producers through NASS. We will contact more focus groups throughout the state. Goal 2: We will analyze network data from the surveys and focus groups to be conducted in 2015. We will submit a publication for peer-review about application of egocentric network methods to Extension. Goal 3: We will submit a publication for peer-review about designing a classroom exercise based on focus group transcripts. Goal 4: In the next reporting period, we will publish Extension fact sheets on the topics of concern to growers, mail our annual report to focus group participants from 2014.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Goal 1: We collected data on farmer perceptions, priorities, and decision-making strategies via focus groups conducted in Platte and Goshen Counties in 2014. We also collected data using a preliminary version of our survey at the Forage Field Day in Farson, WY in June 2014. We developed a survey tool that is IRB-approved and currently being evaluated by NASS HQ for statewide distribution planned in February 2015. Goal 2: We completed analyses of egocentric networks of focus group participants. Goal 3: We designed and utilized an assignment in Agroecology 1000 based on farmer focus group transcripts. Goal 4: To date, we have reported on this project in 2 invited seminars and 1 invited talk at the national Entomological Society of America meeting. We are building collaborative relationships with scientists working in alfalfa throughout the Intermountain West (Montana, Colorado, Utah).
Publications
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