Progress 09/01/13 to 08/31/15
Outputs
Target Audience:EMPHASIS #1: IPM TRAINING FOR CONSUMERS/URBAN ENVIRONMENTS Programming involved three activities with emphasis on enhancing the IPM knowledge and skills of our statewide Extension County educators and their county Master Gardeners. EMPHASIS #2: IPM IMPLEMENTATION FOR SPECIALTY CROPS Primary audience was commercial producers of dry peas, regional crop advisors, seed industry personnel and Extension faculty. EMPHASIS #3: IPM EDUCATION FOR IDAHO PESTICIDE APPLICATORS Workshops targeted pre-license agricultural and horticultural pesticide applicators across Idaho. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Thirty-two County Extension Educators from Idaho, Montana, Utah and Wyoming participated in our 2014 In-Service Workshop. One hundred thirty-five Master Gardeners and affiliated staff and students from Idaho, Montana and Wyoming participated in our 2014 Master Gardener State Convention. Bechinski delivered36 contact-hours of on-site IPM workshops attended by 303 Idaho Master Gardeners volunteers and County Extension educators. Workshops delivered by Bechinski and staff trained 370 commercial producers, crop advisors and University of Idaho Extension faculty aboutonline IPM decision tools for dry peas. Four regional Pre-Licensing Training Workshops during 2014 delivered IPM training to approximately 200 pre-license private and commercial pesticide applicators. 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?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
EMPHASIS #1: IPM TRAINING FOR CONSUMERS/URBAN ENVIRONMENTS Our desired outcome was improved pest management practices in home yards and gardens among Idahoans statewide; goals anticipated a three-year programming cycle. Results from our 2011-2012 statewide homeowner surveys provide the necessary baseline data for 5-year follow-up surveys scheduled during 2016-2017 to quantify changes in IPM adoption. We focused during 2013-14 on quantifying Short Term Logic Model Outcomes: gains-in-clientele-knowledge of IPM and intent to adopt new IPM practices. Programming involved three activities with emphasis on enhancing the IPM knowledge and skills of our statewide Extension County educators and their county Master Gardeners. Idaho Green Thumbs How-To's Home Landscape Fact Sheets Project The University of Idaho Extension Faculty Team in Commercial and Consumer Horticulture identified 50 topics as priorities for delivery as single-page, on-line and printed fact sheets. We created a new standardized publication series format -- the Idaho Green Thumbs How-To's fact sheets -- and have written and posted on-line nine new titles, seven of which deal with management of diseases, insects, rodents or weeds in home landscapes. We have contracted with University of Idaho Educational Communications to translate these into Spanish. Experience suggests we will reach thousands of homeowners in Idaho and the Pacific Northwest; two of our on-line Homeowner IPM Guides bulletin series (funded through our FY09 and FY10 NIFA E-IPM awards) are the #1 and #4 most-accessed publications in the Extension catalog with 85,000 unique IP downloads annually; downloads are proxies for clientele awareness, knowledge and intent-to-adopt IPM practices. In-Service IPM Workshops for Extension Faculty and Master Gardeners Pre:post tests to quantify short-term Logic Model outcomes showed that whereas >50% Extension faculty participants at our multistate In-Service Workshop ranked their pre-workshop knowledge of pest identification, biology and management as "some-to-poor" (with <3% ranking their knowledge as "excellent"), 75% self-ranked their post-workshop knowledge as "excellent-to-good." Facultyreceived an IPM "tool-kit" of reference texts, specimen curation supplies, and a Mini-Digital Microscope. IPM Curriculum for Master Gardeners Bechinski formally quantified impacts ofextension programming during 2014 by measuring two Logic Model outcomes: (1) gains in clientele knowledge and (2) likelihood of clientele adoption of new IPM practices. The former involved pre:post tests consisting of 3-to-9 questionsadministered at 11 select 2014 workshops using wireless response cards. Audiences more than doubled their IPM knowledge at 2014 workshops; mean gain-in-knowledge was 132% (computed as [(post-pre)/post]*100], n=176 people responding). Essentially all workshop participants said they intended to adopt at least one of the IPM practices discussed at 2014 workshops. Audience responses to the post-workshop evaluation question "List one idea you plan to put into practice" centered on identification of pests and beneficials, safe and effective pesticide use, and alternatives to pesticides such as cultural and physical methods, and especially biological control tactics and biorational pesticides that conserve and maintain bioagents and pollinators. Representative verbatim (not edited) written replies from Master Gardeners included "Advise others about least toxic methods . . . . Label reading of insecticides . . . . I learned more about the Japanese beetle, Marmorated Stink bug & other exotics that will be passed along to our Idaho Master Gardeners in the Plant Clinic." Professional audiences similarly wrote "Good information on when to try to control, and not harm natural predators that control target pests . . . . Furthered my knowledge and understanding of IPM. Will be able to incorporate new aspects of IPM into my own management." Audience satisfaction was high; mean workshop evaluation score was 98.9% (0-to-100% scale, n = 167 evaluations at 6 venues). EMPHASIS #2: IPM IMPLEMENTATION FOR SPECIALTY CROPS Our desired outcomes were two-fold: (1) to increase farmer profitability via real-time pest alerts and interactive IPM on-line decision tools that identify economically optimal aphid:virus management strategies for dry peas in the Palouse agronomic region of northern Idaho and adjoining eastern Washington state, and (2) mitigate adverse environmental impacts of current aphid:virus control practices (esp. impacts on natural enemies) by replacing dimethoate insecticide applied as three seasonal foliar sprays with reduced-hazard seed-treatments of imidacloprid or thiamethoxam. Goals anticipated a three-year programming cycle. Workshops delivered by Bechinski and staff at the multistate Pacific Northwest Farm Forum, the statewide University of Idaho Annual Extension Conference, and regional University of Idaho Winter Commodity schools trained 370 commercial producers, crop advisors and Extension faculty about our online IPM decision tools. EMPHASIS #3: IPM EDUCATION FOR IDAHO PESTICIDE APPLICATORS Our desired outcome was improved pest management practices among state-certified commercial agricultural and horticultural pesticide applicators, especially practices that minimize potential harm to groundwater and surface waters. Goals anticipated a three-year programming cycle.The Idaho State Department of Agriculture administered Certification Exams toparticipants at our four regional workshops; realized scores serve as measures of short-term Logic Model Outcomes (increased knowledge). Our workshop attendees averaged 80% pass score, compared with 45% pass score among non-attendees.Pre:post tests administered with wireless audience response cards showed an average128% gain-in-knowledge among horticultural professionals at three workshops delivered by Bechinski (n=176 responding).
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Jones, W. 2014. Slime flux disease of trees. University of Idaho Green Thumb How-Tos Extension CIS 1205. 2pp. http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edComm/pdf/CIS/CIS1205.pdf
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Bohl, W. 2013. Leaf spot of aspen and poplar. University of Idaho Green Thumb How-Tos Extension CIS 1202. 2pp. http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edComm/pdf/CIS/CIS1202.pdf
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Gunn, D. and E.J Bechinski. 2014. Managing boxelder bugs around your home. University of Idaho Green Thumb How-Tos Extension CIS 1208. 2pp. http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edComm/pdf/CIS/CIS1208.pdf
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Gunn, D., R. Hirnyck, G. Shewmaker, S. Takatori and L. Ellis. 2014. Managing pocket gophers in Idaho lawns and landscapes. University of Idaho Green Thumb How-Tos Extension CIS 1213. 2pp.
http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edComm/pdf/CIS/CIS1213.pdf
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Gunn, D., R. Hirnyck, G. Shewmaker, S. Takatori and L. Ellis. 2014. Managing voles in Idaho lawns and landscapes. University of Idaho Green Thumb How-Tos Extension CIS 1214. 2pp.
http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edComm/pdf/CIS/CIS1214.pdf
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Salaiz, T., S.L. Love and E.J. Bechinski. 2014. Controlling billbug grubs in lawns. University of Idaho Green Thumb How-Tos Extension CIS 1204. 2pp. http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edComm/pdf/CIS/CIS1204.pdf
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Gunn, D., D. Morishita and W. Bohl. 2014. White bryony. University of Idaho Green Thumb How-Tos Extension CIS 1213. 2pp. http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edComm/pdf/CIS/CIS1203.pdf
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Hirnyck, R. and J. Neufeld. 2014. Keeping Pesticide Records Using the OnePlan PAR. University of Idaho Extension CIS 1211. 6pp. http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edcomm/pdf/CIS/CIS1211.pdf
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