IPM EXTENSION PROGRAMS TO ADDRESS STAKEHOLDER NEEDS IN NORTH CAROLINA

• Sponsoring Institution: National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Project Status: TERMINATED
• Funding Source: OTHER GRANTS
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 1013906
• Grant No.: 2017-70006-27141
• Project No.: NC09838
• Proposal No.: 2017-04463
• Program Code: EIP
• Project Start Date: Sep 1, 2017
• Project End Date: Aug 31, 2022
• Grant Year: 2020

Project Director
Seth Carley, D.

Recipient Organization
NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIV
(N/A)
RALEIGH,NC 27695

Performing Department
Research Administration

Non Technical Summary
The need for IPM implementation in NC cannot be overstated. Agriculture is the number one industry in NC, with 2015 farm receipts of over $11.5 billion, the 8th highest value nationally. In fact, we have a tremendous number of commodity groups in NC (over 90), including very important Agronomic and Specially crop groups including NC Apple Growers Association, NC Aquaculture Association, NC Beekeepers Association, Corn Growers Association of NC, Inc., NC Blueberry Council. The diverse array of NC agriculture products is threatened by a wide variety of insect, disease, weed,and vertebrate pests due to our moderate and changing climate. Producers are required to spend considerable time and resources to manage these pests, with significant risk to profitability, health, and the environment. This Extension Implimentation Program brings IPM-related faculty together from around NC to help NC's greatest resource: our agriculture. Ourdiverse transdisciplinary teamworks collaborativelyto sustain and enhance environmental stewardship, reduce economic risks for growers and consumers, and protect human health by applying IPM in all appropriate settings, and to increase coordination and improve efficiency of translating IPM research through extension programming. By working to synergize efforts and leverage resources, we are better able to promote development and adoption of IPM through collaborative programs and broad-based stakeholder participation. With a strong team of experts and close association with our Evaluation Specialist, we are able to document the value of IPM strategies and programs, and demonstrate to our stakeholders that IPM works. Through the outputs and outcomes from this program, NC Extension agents and stakeholders will become more knowledgeable about IPM and develop the skills necessary to implement IPM strategies in Agronomic Crops, Specialty Crops, and Communities, and increase knowledge of IPM principles and pesticide safety through IPM Education for Pesticide Applicators.To accomplish our goals and address stakeholder needs for the 2017 CPPM-EIP program, we have 3 main objectives which we will tackle as specific program teams:To develop and employ Extension Agent Trainings/In-Services to help agents to be effective communicators of IPM tactics, to build confidence in their knowledge of IPM strategies, and to foster high levels of trust and credibility in their local communities in Agronomic crops, Specialty crops, Communities, and/or Aquatic environments;Deliver IPM Information to variety of stakeholders in North Carolina and the Southern Region through multiple means and activities. NC Extension agents and stakeholders will become more knowledgeable about IPM and develop skill sets to be able to implement sound IPM practices;Offer tools that will improve Pest Monitoring and Pest Forecasting protocols for pests of importance to NC Agronomic and Specialty Crops and enable enhanced searching and output features on the NC IPM portal.

Animal Health Component

0%

Research Effort Categories

Basic

(N/A)

Applied

(N/A)

Developmental

(N/A)

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
216	2410	3030	65%
216	3099	1060	20%
216	0210	1140	15%

Knowledge Area
216 - Integrated Pest Management Systems;

Subject Of Investigation
3099 - Bees, honey, and other pollinators, general; 0210 - Water resources; 2410 - Cross-commodity research--multiple crops;

Field Of Science
1060 - Biology (whole systems); 1140 - Weed science; 3030 - Information and communication;

Keywords

extension agent training

pest monitoring

stakeholder engagement

transdisciplinary approach

Goals / Objectives
Through North Carolina Cooperative Extension programs and diverse transdisciplinary team collaboration, we work to sustain and enhance environmental stewardship, reduce economic risks for growers and consumers, and protect human health by applying integrated pest management in all appropriate settings, and to increase coordination and improve efficiency of translating IPM research through extension programming.Through the outputs and outcomes from this program, NC Extension agents and stakeholders will become more knowledgeable about IPM and develop the skills necessary to implement IPM strategies in Agronomic Crops, Specialty Crops, and Communities, and increase knowledge of IPM principles and pesticide safety through IPM Education for Pesticide Applicators.To accomplish our goals and address stakeholder needs, we have 3 main objectives which we will tackle as specific program teams:Program 1. To develop and employ Extension Agent Trainings/In-Services to help agents to be effective communicators of IPM tactics, to build confidence in their knowledge of IPM strategies, and to foster high levels of trust and credibility in their local communities in Agronomic crops, Specialty crops, Communities, and/or Aquatic environments;Program 2. Deliver IPM Information to variety of stakeholders in North Carolina and the Southern Region through multiple means and activities. NC Extension agents and stakeholders will become more knowledgeable about IPM and develop skill sets to be able to implement sound IPM practices;Program 3. Offer tools that will improve Pest Monitoring and Pest Forecasting protocols for pests of importance to NC Agronomic and Specialty Crops and enable enhanced searching and output features on the NC IPM portal.Program 1.1 Providing Training Resources for Horticulture Agents and Integrating IPM into the Flipped Classroom Experience for Extension Master Gardener Training. To accomplish our objective of training Extension agents for preparing stronger IPM-focused EMGVs, Horticultural Extension agents will be trained using our new system.Program 1.2 Integrated Pest Management for Plant Diseases in Horticulture Crops for Extension Agents in North Carolina.Through this training,Agents will expand their knowledge in field diagnostics, IPM strategies for plant diseases in horticulture crops, and have a greater familiarity with resources that are available to them to make them more successful and confident in their roles as agents.Program 1.3 Aquatic Plant Management School. We will develop a two day, intensive short course focused on aquatic plant management in the states of NC, SC, and VA. Currently, the only similar courses offered in the US are in Florida and California. The APM School agenda will include topics such as Biology and Ecology of Aquatic Plants, Laws and Regulations, IPM Techniques and Strategies, IPM Implementation including both Non-Chemical Control Methods and Chemical Control Methods, and Algae Management.Program 1.4 Agronomy Extension Agent Training and Establishment of the NC Extension Agent Diagnostic Training and Education. We plan to expand the number of crops available for teaching in the garden;we already have corn and soybeans, as well as sunflowers, bean, and a few others. Over the 3 year project, we planto add cotton and peanuts, millet and other small grains. We will use the garden to hold Extension Agent trainings yearly.Program 2.1 Update and Revise 1970's-era Pesticide Safety Factsheets and Stewardship Program Information for Use in Education for Pesticide Applicators. We plan to update and revise pesticide applicator study guides for those preparing to take their certification exams and fact sheets to be used by pesticide applicators and employers.Program 2.2 Create and Launch Two New eBooks for the Most Common Arthropod Pests of Trees and Shrubs in the Southeast. We will develop two eBooks with pictures and host lists will help the user rapidly identify their pest. One will be on tree pests and one on shrub pests.Program 2.3 Devise and Launch a Pesticide Leaching and Groundwater Contamination Potential Database. A databased compendium will be created that includes pesticides currently registered in the southern US including chemical properties that affect leaching potential.Program 2.4 Devise and Launch a Lawn and Garden Update for Pesticide Selection for the IPM Portal. A guide, searchable by common pests and pesticides, will be made available for the lawn and garden sector that includes pesticides currently registered for use in the lawn and garden sector in the southern US.Program 2.5 Create a Community Science Program and Pollinator ID guide to Educate Stakeholders about Pollinator Awareness and Pollinator Conservation. We will create and deploy a "Pollinator Visitation Watch Program" employing volunteer citizens (including students, Master Gardeners, public figures, and other community stakeholders) in an effort to collect data on the status of pollinator populations visiting plants in our Pollinator Garden. We will also create, print, and distribute a "Pollinators in Our Garden" ID guide to make pollinator ID easier for everyone involved in our community outreach efforts.Program 3.1 Pest Monitoring and Pest Forecasting. In this project, we will continue development of a multi-tier platform to host pest management applications and facilitate creation of models and user interfaces for different pests, audiences, and devices (e.g., laptop computers, tablets, smart phones).

Project Methods
In order to develop and employ Extension Agent Trainings/In-Services to help agents to be effective communicators of IPM tactics, to build confidence in their knowledge of IPM strategies, and to foster high levels of trust and credibility in their local communities in Agronomic crops, Specialty crops, Communities, and/or Aquatic environments, faculty members with responsibilities in this program area will work directly with the Lead PI (Dr. Carley), the EIPProgram Assistant(TBD -the position is currently unfilled, once the money is available, we will seek a highly qualified candidate for this position)and the Evaluation Specialist (Dr. Dubois) to assure their programming is on task, on target, and being evaluated appropriately. Trainings and In-Services will be held yearly, and evaluations will be held pre-and post- each training.In order to deliver IPM Information to variety of stakeholders in North Carolina and the Southern Region through multiple means and activities so thatNC Extension agents and stakeholders become more knowledgeable about IPM and develop skill sets to be able to implement sound IPM practices, faculty members with responsibilities in this program area will work directly with the Lead PI (Dr. Carley), the EIPProgram Assistant (TBD) and the Evaluation Specialist (Dr. Dubois) to assure their programming is on task, on target, and being evaluated appropriately. Drs. Carley and Dubois, along with the Program Assistantand faculty-associated technicians will assist with document development, image-gathering, editing, and electronic publishing.In order to offer tools that will improve Pest Monitoring and Pest Forecasting protocols for pests of importance to NC Agronomic and Specialty Crops and enable enhanced searching and output features on the NCCE IPM portal, faculty members with responsibilities in this program area will work directly with the Lead PI (Dr. Carley), the Program Assistantand the Evaluation Specialist (Dr. Dubois) to assure their programming is on task, on target, and being evaluated appropriately.

Progress 09/01/17 to 08/31/22

Outputs
Target Audience:Stakeholder advisory council, pesticide safety education program educators (PSEP), NC State extension administrators, NC A&T faculty, NGOs, Federal Partners (i.e. EPA, USDA, etc.), growers, commodity growers, state extension specialists, State IPM faculty and staff, NC Department of Agriculture (NCDA) agronomists, certified crop consultants, private pesticide/chemical sales reps, landscaping professionals, nurseryman and greenhouse growers, landscape/lawncare managers, other SERA3 partners, extension master gardeners volunteers (EMGV's), beekeepers, and consumers/NC residents and homeowners. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Program 1.1 Several in-person and virtual training opportunities have been provided by this program reaching nearly 700 extension agents and EMGV's. In addition we presented a poster at the International Master Gardener Conference, which had over 1,000 registed attendees. Program 1.2 A workshop was held to train agents on various vegetable and tomato diseases in 2019. Many of the same diseases covered were targeting when creating the new factsheets. An additional training one-day training for 25 county extension agents was held at the Mountain Research Station in 2022. Program 1.3 The fourth iteration of APMS occurred in 2022. Due to concerns over Covid-19, this event was held virtually with three half-day sessions made up of pre-recorded and live stream sessions. This year program had nearly 90 total attendees: made up of mostly government and Non-profit: 65 (20 extension agents attended at no charge). The rest of the attendees were private Industry (23). Over the course of the project, this course has provided training for over 300 people. Program 1.4 We provided 39 seperate opportunities for training and professional development throughout this program. Participants ranged from soybean specialists, county agricultural agents, to growers. The training covered soybean growth and development, planting guidelines, insect control, weed control options, weed identification and disease control. Program 2.1 N/A Program 2.2 N/A Program 2.3 N/A Program 2.4 N/A Program 2.5 A total of 112 programs on pollinators were directly taught by Extension professionals. These programs were taught in school, field days, community programs, and 4-H clubs. 85 NC Extension Agents and 4-H Volunteer leaders participated in virtual pollinator education workshops. Over 5,100 youth benefitting from hands-on learning about pollinators. Program 3.1 N/A How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The results have been disseminated through multiple platforms created in previous EIP grants. These include weekly pest news and information newsletters, immediate release through email (pest alerts) as well as on our social media platforms (Twitter and Facebook). The news, emails, and content is also posted to our (IPM portal), and our affiliated Extension Specialists spend a great deal of time traveling all over the state giving presentations and consulting with individual growers. As a result of the pandemic, we have transitioned into a more web-based/asynchronous training program. Through meetings with our Advisory Council, we continue to make strides to revise our communication plan and refined our audience. These audiences, which include mostly agricultural or horticultural professionals with an interest in IPM. We also target residents and homeowners in NC through our community focused programs with master gardeners, 4-H as well as community and school gardens. The EIP team has also created a quarterly EIP seminar in 2022, which will focus on highlighting and strengthening specific EIP programs. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Program 1 To develop and employ Extension Agent Trainings/In-Services to help agents to be effective communicators of IPM tactics, to build confidence in their knowledge of IPM strategies, and to foster high levels of trust and credibility in their local communities in Agronomic crops, Specialty crops, Communities, and/or Aquatic environments; Program 1.1: Outputs: The 21-chapter EMGV teacher's training guide includes 5 interactive elements; quizzes and a final exam, 60-min presentation with facilitator notes, and hands on /group activities. The training guide has been presented at 10 regional and national conferences, reaching 620 participants. The plant toolbox developed in this program has over 8 million unique page views Over 4,500 unique plant profiles created 1,227 videos have been uploaded to the plant toolbox Outcomes/Impacts: 95% of participants have an increase in knowledge related to IPM strategies and the implementation of IPM in residential landscapes 80% of participants also reported an increase in their confidence to educate others on IPM strategies Program 1.2: Outputs: We have published fourteen NCSU Disease Factsheets and two Extension publications. These publications have had 28,300 page views. Outcomes/Impacts: A survey of County Extension Agents was conducted in 2020 to determine the impact of the factsheets (34 responses): 28% of agents reported more frequent visits to NCSU factsheets over the past year. The majority (61% or more) of agents surveyed also reported each of the sections in the factsheets to be valuable. Project 1.3: Outputs: Over the course of the project we held 4 APMS's reaching a total of 315 people. A majority of these attendees (approximate 70%) were affiliated with government and nonprofit, including extension agents. Due to the pandemic the APMS switched to a virtual program (half pre-recorded, half live stream) in 2021 and 2022. Five video-shorts were developed following the shift to a virtual APMS Aquatic Weeds: A Pocket Guide to the Carolinas' was published in 2021 and hundreds of copies have already been disseminated. Outcomes/Impacts: A post training-survey was conducted following the 2019, 2021 and 2022 APMS. Attendees were asked which practices they may adopt in the future; In 2021, 60% of attendees felt comfortable discouraging improper and off label use of aquatic herbicides. After another year of training, in 2022, 88% of attendees discourage such actions. Project 1.4: Outputs: The project provided 20 county-based training meetings and 19 soybean specific trainings reaching 1526 participants. These participants ranged from soybean and small grain specialists, to county agricultural agents, to growers. Outcomes/Impacts: In 2021, we surveyed growers (39 collected) with the same questions as the 2018 survey. Knowledge linked to IPM practices, grower adoption of IPM increased for all questions including; What influence do you think crop variety selection has on the number of insecticides (total sprays, seed treatments, in- furrow applications, etc.) you use? 9.5% increase How important do you think beneficial insects (including parasites and predators) are to control pest insect populations? 3.0% increase Program 2 Deliver IPM Information to a variety of stakeholders in North Carolina and the Southern Region through multiple means and activities. NC Extension agents and stakeholders will become more knowledgeable about IPM and develop skill sets to be able to implement sound IPM practices. Program 2.1: Outputs: Several thousand copies of the Roadmap to the Worker Protection Standard been distributed in Spanish and English. The roadmap provides specific responsibilities that the grower must provide workers. The Spanish version of the North Carolina Pesticide Applicator Certification Core Manual was published in 2020. A new pesticide applicator study guide has been developed and printed for applicators seeking to become certified in Public Health Pest Control. Outcomes/Impacts: NCDA&CS Inspectors can report on the usefulness of the roadmap as a teaching tool and recognize changes in behavior on subsequent visits. It is hopeful that this resource will reduce risk of pesticide exposure. Approximately 350 people have become certified as commercial pesticide applicators. Program 2.2: Outputs: Two new Ebooks have been published Most Common Arthropod Pests of Trees and Shrubs in the Southeast. Outcomes/Impacts: We conducted a survey in 2017-2018 to determine the most important pest species of common NC trees. This survey was used for book development but also was accepted in Journal of Arboriculture and Urban Forestry and was published in November 2019. Program 2.3: Outputs: A relatively simple, systematic method was created to evaluate soils and pesticides so that those combinations with the least potential of contaminating groundwater may be identified. This searchable database (housed at the Southern IPM Center) will allow for users to compare pesticide leaching potential (PLP) with the soil leaching potential (SLP). Outcomes/Impacts: Overall, this database will improve understanding of pesticide and soil interaction and may prevent the use of highly mobile pesticides on soils with little inherent capacity to limit mobility. Program 2.4: Outputs: A herbicde database has been created that sorts by use restrictions in the turf industry (golf, residential, roadside, sod farm etc.) and allow users to search for herbicides labeled for control of certain weed species. Outcomes/Impacts: Ultimately by optimizing pesticide application timing and product selection, it will result in fewer active ingredients and minimize potential adverse effects on human and environmental health. Program 2.5: Outputs: A total of 112 programs on pollinators were directly taught by Extension professionals. These programs were taught in school, field days, community programs, and 4-H clubs. 85 NC Extension Agents and 4-H Volunteer leaders participated in virtual pollinator education workshops. Over 5,100 youth benefitting from hands-on learning about pollinators. A Pollinator Grow Box program was delivered to 150 families serving 180 youth. This subscription-type box was created to deliver materials and hands-on activities to families. Outcomes/Impacts: Through pre/post surveys youth participating in pollinator youth programs increased their knowledge of pollinators by 81% in 2019, 85% in 2020, and 70% in 2021. Extension professionals, teachers and volunteers increased their knowledge on IPM practices within school and community pollinator gardens (including different IPM strategies, managing pesticide use and pollinator stewardship) by 62% the first year, 73% the second, and by 95% in the final year. Program 3 Offer tools that will improve Pest Monitoring and Pest Forecasting protocols for pests of importance to NC Agronomic and Specialty Crops and enable enhanced searching and output features on the NC IPM portal. Program 3.1: Outputs: Development of an apple fire blight forecasting model based on degree-day models originally developed for the Maryblyt model. The strawberry disease forecasting model has been available to growers for five years, the apple coddling moth forecasting model for four years, and the tufted apple bud moth and oriental fruit moth forecast models for three years. Outcomes/Impacts: The disease and insect forecasting applications developed through this project has provided growers and extension personnel with near real-time information for several years to assist in tracking pest development and making pest related management decisions. Through the project, there has been a favorable response to the framework and implemented models based on informal feedback and comments from growers.

Publications

• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Seth Carley, D., L. A. Gragg, M. J. Taggart, T. W. Rufty. 2021 Estimation of water stress tolerance of six woody plant species. Horticulture International Journal. 5(2): 64-72.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Frank, S.D., Nagle, A.M. 2021. Impact of Selected Insecticides Against European Pepper Moth Larvae Infesting Poinsettia, 2021, Arthropod Management Tests, Volume 46, Issue 1, 2021, tsab104, https://doi.org/10.1093/amt/tsab104
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: 2022 Southeast Regional Strawberry Integrated Pest Management Guide. 2022. http://www.smallfruits.org/assets/documents/ipm-guides/StrawberryIPMGuide.pdf
• Type: Books Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: 2022 Southeastern US Vegetable Crop Production Handbook. 2022. Meadows I. ed. https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/southeastern-us-vegetable-crop-handbook
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Frank, S., L.K. Bradley, and K.A. Moore. 2022. Integrated Pest Management, Chapter 8. In: K.A. Moore, and L.K. Bradley (eds). North Carolina Extension Gardener Handbook. NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC.
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Reeves, E., and I. Meadows. 2022. Prevention and Management of Soilbourne Diseases of Ornamental Plants and Vegetables in the Greenhouse. NC State Extension.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Frank, S.D., Nagle, A.M. 2021. Impact of Selected Insecticides Against Brown Soft Scales Infesting Macho Ferns, 2021, Arthropod Management Tests, Volume 46, Issue 1, tsab105, https://doi.org/10.1093/amt/tsab105.

Progress 09/01/20 to 08/31/21

Outputs
Target Audience:Stakeholder Advisory Council, Pesticide Safety Education Program Educators, NC State Extension Administrators, NC A&T faculty, NGOs, Federal Partners (i.e. EPA, USDA, etc.), Growers, State Extension specialists, State IPM faculty and staff, homeowners, landscaping professionals, nursery growers, landscape/lawncare managers, Other SERA3 partners, consumers, Master Gardeners, Bee keepers. Changes/Problems:The global pandemic severely limited our ability to finish programs and hold in-person trainings. Many events were postponed, cancelled, or had to pivot towards online/virtual programs. In addition, progress on several programs were slowed or halted due to COVID-19. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Program 1.1 We presented the progress of the Teacher's Training Guide during a Plants Pests and Pathogens Webinar on September 22, 2020 to 200 participants. An additional course was held at the NC State University Extension Conference (Agents and Staff) on October 30, 2020 with 75 virtual participants. A presentation was also given to 55 participants at the National Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Coordinators Conference, along with 3 regional/county master gardener association meetings across NC reaching another 102 individuals. Program 1.2 A workshop was held to train agents on various vegetable and tomato diseases. Many of the same diseases covered were targeting when updating and creating new factsheets. An additional training one-day training for 25 county extension agents will be held at the Mountain Research Station in July or early August. The training will focus on differences among conventional programs and program that incorporate biological-based products in the field. Program 1.3 The third iteration of APMS occurred on March 9-11th 2021. Due to concerns over Covid-19, this event was held virtually with three half-day sessions made up of pre-recorded and live stream sessions. This year program had 88 total attendees: made up of mostly government and Non-profit: 65 (20 extension agents attended at no charge). The rest of the attendees were private Industry (23). Program 1.4 Fourteen regional virtual soybean trainings were held (approx. 500 attendees), as well as 16 county specific meetings reaching an additional 756 participants. Participants ranged from soybean specialists, county agricultural agents, to growers. The training covered soybean growth and development, planting guidelines, insect control, weed control options, weed identification and disease control. Program 2.1 N/A Program 2.2 N/A Program 2.3 N/A Program 2.4 N/A Program 2.5 In Spring of 2021, over 85 NC Cooperative Extension Agents and 4-H Volunteer leaders participated in virtual pollinator education workshops. Teen Pollinator Ambassador Training: Working with three eastern and rural North Carolina counties (Lenoir, Jones, and Greene), a workshop was held in May 2021 to train teenagers (12) in delivering pollinator education to young adolescents in summer 2021. Youth Virtual Pollinator Program developed in collaboration with 21 Extension Agents and with 248 participants ranging in age from 4 to 17. Asynchronous virtual materials were crafted to engage youth in understanding the importance of bees and butterflies and opportunities for pollinator stewardship. Program 3.1 N/A How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The results have been disseminated through platform created in previous EIP grant. Through meetings with Advisory Council, revisions were made to the communication plan, which refined main audiences. These audiences, which include mostly professionals within the IPM arena and anyone in an organization that deals with a component of IPM. Some individuals included in these audiences are reading pest news stories either directly from the website or through the e-mailed newsletter (which we call pest news). We send pest news out weekly pest news and information, have an active twitter account, and provide "immediate" pest alerts. We also have a website (IPMportal), and our affiliated Extension Specialists spend time traveling all over the state giving talks to our stakeholders prior to COVID. The pandemic has forced us to pivot and transition into web-based presentations and webinars to largely move information across North Carolina. We provide advice and assistance to stakeholders with evaluation planning and data collection when faculty and other stakeholders call on us directly. Followers of the blog range from land grant specialists and members of IPM-related industries to members of the general public. Those who follow via e-mail tend to be from land grant universities or government agencies, and those who follow via WordPress accounts tend to be from unknown backgrounds, although a few are from garden centers, farms or the pest control industry. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Program 1.1 With the pandemic, many classes were postponed or cancelled but we do plan to do a follow up survey to see how our new Teachers Guide materials and hands on activities have changed students understanding of IPM, behavior changes of their own and their confidence in disseminating IPM principles to the public. We will incorporate more options for alternative plantings including the "Plant This Not That" series set up by the Plants Pests and Pathogens Series. Directing users to plant choices that will have fewer problems. In these final months we will continue to create and wrap up our online training materials and our virtual interactive activities. These materials have an IPM focus that correlates with the chapters from our Extension Gardener Handbook. Program 1.2 A final draft of the Extension Publications will be completed before August 2021. Agents will be asked to review the extension publication prior to the in-person training. After the in-person training, agents will be asked to complete a survey to better understand how this information will help them help their growers. In June-August, a field trial will be established at two research stations to demonstrate implementation of biological fungicides in a spray program where conventional and biological-based products are incorporated to manage tomato diseases. In late July or early August, we will provide a one-day training for 25 county extension agents at the Mountain Research Station so agents can visualize the differences among conventional programs and programs that incorporate biological-based products in a field setting. Program 1.3 Further dissemination of Aquatic Weed ID guide through multiple channels including contacts at the NCDNR, Aquatic Management Society meetings and several regional meetings. Begin planning of 4th Aquatic Plant Management School for 2022. Program 1.4 This program has been completed, however we will continue to gather additional survey data as it is submitted from farmers to show importance of IPM based agent training and its influence on grower IPM practices. Program 2.1 This program has been completed, however work may focus on additional publications. Program 2.2 A review questionnaire is being created to measure expected use and economic value of the published eBooks. Program 2.3 Additionally, format enhancements are being evaluated in cooperation with programmers. Edits and revisions continue to be made to the database as well as formatting. The database will be launched in 2021. Program 2.4 A spreadsheet delineating which herbicide active ingredients are registered for residential turf has been compiled. This spreadsheet and supporting information continues to be added, edited and revised prior to being launched on the IPM portal. Program 2.5 Teacher Training on Pollinators - Mid-August in-service training to teachers in Lenoir, Greene, and Jones counties. Expected 25 teachers. Youth Pollinator Camps - Eight, one-day pollinator programs held across the state. Hands-on pollinator activities will be delivered with a culminating pollinator garden planting as a service project. Development of selected digital assets around pollinator education like a timelapse video showing the development of butterflies and pollinator identification. Program 3.1 Primary work has been completed for this program however, we will continue monitor and maintain pest forecasts so that they can be delivered to stakeholders (extension personnel and crop producers) in a consistent and accurate manner through web-based and mobile delivery tools.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Program 1 To develop and employ Extension Agent Trainings/In-Services to help agents to be effective communicators of IPM tactics, to build confidence in their knowledge of IPM strategies, and to foster high levels of trust and credibility in their local communities in Agronomic crops, Specialty crops, Communities, and/or Aquatic environments; Program 1.1 (95% Complete): Outputs: The Teacher's Training Guide has been presented at state, regional and national conferences: 6 presentations reaching 430 attendees All 21 chapters now include; atleast 5 interactive elements including quizzes and a final exam, 60-min presentation with facilitator notes, and hands on /group activities. The plant toolbox has 5,490,503 unique page views since 8/1/2020 and work has been completed by 104 volunteers representing 41 NC counties. 1,432 new plant profiles added for total number to 4,494 profiles. 1,881 audio files uploaded and Latin name pronunciations 744 videos were uploaded to plant profiles. Outcomes/Impacts: With the pandemic, many classes were postponed or cancelled, but we do plan to create a survey to determine changes in knowledge of IPM principals, behavior changes and their confidence in disseminating IPM principles following Training Guide use. Program 1.2 (95% Complete): Outputs: Our program has published three new NCSU Disease Factsheets and two Extension publications. These publications have had over 21,200 page views since 8/1/20. Factsheets: "Anthracnose of Pepper", "Bacterial Spot of Pepper and Tomato", and "Black Root Rot on Ornamental Plants" Publications: Homeowner's Guide to Managing Diseases using Fungicides, Bactericides, and Alternative Products" and "Phytophthora Rot and Crown Rot in the Landscape". Outcomes/Impacts: We do not have any impacts however, a brief survey will be sent to county agents to assess adoption of IPM practices. Agents will be asked to review extension publications prior to in-person trainings. At the training, agents will complete a needs assessment survey on how to meet challenges growers face. Project 1.3 (95% Complete): Outputs: The third iteration of APMS occurred on March 9-11th 2021. Due to Covid-19, this event was held virtually with three half-day sessions made up of pre-recorded and live stream sessions. This year program had 88 total attendees: Government and Non-profit: 65 attendees (20 extension agents), Private Industry (23). Five video-shorts were created for the APMS workshop. All of these were posted to the NCSU Aquatic Plant Management YouTube channel. Aquatic Weeds: A Pocket Guide to the Carolinas' has been completed and hundreds of copies have already been dissemination throughout the region. Outcomes/Impacts: A survey was conducted following the 2021 APMS and 28 attendees responded. Attendees were asked which practices they may adopt in the future; Last year, 60% of attendees felt comfortable discouraging improper and off label use of aquatic herbicides. After another year of training, 88% of attendees discourage such actions. Project 1.4 (100% Complete): Outputs: 14 Soybean trainings were held, averaging over 35 participants (mainly county agents). In additional, 16 county meetings reached another 756 participants. These events were placed across the state and participants ranged from soybean specialists, county agricultural agents, to growers. Outcomes/Impacts: In 2021, we surveyed growers across 9 counties with the same questions as the 2018 survey. Although the sample size (39 collected) was small, it is still representative. Knowledge linked to IPM practices, grower adoption of IPM increased for all questions including; What influence do you think crop variety selection has on the number of insecticides (total sprays, seed treatments, in-furrow applications, etc.) you use? 9.5% increase How important do you think beneficial insects (including parasites and predators) are to control pest insect populations? 3.0% increase Program 2 Deliver IPM Information to variety of stakeholders in North Carolina and the Southern Region through multiple means and activities. NC Extension agents and stakeholders will become more knowledgeable about IPM and develop skill sets to be able to implement sound IPM practices; Program 2.1 (100% Complete): Outputs: Creation of "The Roadmap to the Worker Protection Standard". The roadmap provides specific responsibilities that the grower must provide his or her workers and/or handlers. Several thousand copies of the roadmap (reverse side in Spanish) are being designed and printed and will be distributed by County Extension Agents and NCDA&CS staff. Outcomes/Impacts: NCDA&CS Inspectors can report on the usefulness of the roadmap as a teaching tool and recognize changes in behavior on subsequent visits. It is hopeful that this resource will reduce risk of pesticide exposure. Program 2.2 (95% Complete): Outputs: Two new Ebooks have been published Most Common Arthropod Pests of Trees and Shrubs in the Southeast. Outcomes/Impacts: We do not have any impacts yet, a review questionnaire is being created to measure expected use and economic value of the published eBooks. Program 2.3 (85% Complete): Outputs: A searchable database is being developed to aid land managers and producers when selecting pest control agents. The database will allow for users to compare pesticide leaching potential with soil types found across the southeastern US. Outcomes/Impacts: Overall, this database will minimize potential adverse effects on human and environmental health. Program 2.4 (75% Complete): Outputs: The herbicides have been compiled and a searchable database is currently being developed. The database will allow for users to sort by turf industry (golf, residential, etc.) and allow users to search for herbicides labeled for control of weed species. Outcomes/Impacts: Ultimately by optimizing pesticide application timing and product selection, it will result in less active ingredient and minimize potential adverse effects on human and environmental health. Program 2.5 (95% Complete): Outputs: 85 NC Extension Agents and 4-H Volunteer leaders participated in virtual pollinator education workshops. Teen Pollinator Ambassador Training: Trained teenagers (12) to deliver pollinator education to young adolescents. Youth Virtual Pollinator Program: 21 Extension Agents and with 248 participants ranging in age from 4 to 17. Asynchronous virtual materials were crafted to engage youth in pollinator stewardship. A Pollinator Grow Box program was delivered to 150 families serving 180 youth. This subscription-type box was created to deliver materials and hands-on activities to families for them to explore pollinators. Outcomes/Impacts: Workshop evaluations showed that Extension professionals, and teachers increased their knowledge on pollinator stewardship and correlating IPM practices within school and community pollinator gardens by 95%. Through pre/post surveys youth participating in pollinator youth programs increased their knowledge of pollinators by 70%. Program 3 Offer tools that will improve Pest Monitoring and Pest Forecasting protocols for pests of importance to NC Agronomic and Specialty Crops and enable enhanced searching and output features on the NC IPM portal.' Program 3.1 (100% Complete): Outputs: Updates to the model framework software have been made to address changes to the weather data web services maintained by the North Carolina State Climate Office (NCSCO). Outcomes/Impacts: The disease and insect forecasting applications developed through this project has provided growers and extension personnel with near real-time information for several years to assist in tracking pest development and making pest related management decisions. Total number of peer-reviewed publications: 1 Total number of non-peer-reviewed publications: 14 Total number of presentations: 51 Total number of people reached by your project during this reporting period: 3,275

Publications

• Type: Books Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Pollinator Gardening for the South: Creating Sustainable Habitats by Danesha Seth Carley and Anne Spafford. UNC Press, Chapel Hill, NC. 152pp. March 2021. (not funded by EIP, so not NIFA recognized)
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Billeisen, T.L., L.D. Kilpatrick, D. Seth Carley, R. L. Brandenburg. 2021. Presence of Pollinator-Friendly Habitat on Pollinator Communities in Managed Turfgrass Systems. International Turfgrass Society Research Journal. doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/its2.56.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Seth Carley, D. and Billeisen, T. 2020. Creating a pollinator-friendly habitat in your home landscape. March/April Tennessee Nursery and Landscape Association Magazine.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Meadows, I., and C. Stokes. 2021. Black Root Rot on Ornamental Plants. NC State Extension Publication, Feb. 2021.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Stokes, C., and I. Meadows. 2021. Anthracnose of Pepper. NC State Extension Publication. March, 2021.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Reeves, E., and I. Meadows. 2021. AG-896 Homeowners Guide to Managing Diseases Using Fungicides, Bactericides, and Alternative Products. NC State Extension. April, 2021.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Henson, M., Sharpe, S., Reeves, E., and I. Meadows. 2021. AG-747 Phytophthora Root and Crown Rot in the Landscape. NC State Extension. March, 2021.
• Type: Books Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Aquatic Weeds: A Pocket Identification Guide for the Carolinas. Second Edition. NC State Extension. March 2021.

Progress 09/01/19 to 08/31/20

Outputs
Target Audience:Stakeholder Advisory Council, Pesticide Safety Education Program Educators, NC State Extension Administrators, NC A&T faculty, NGOs, Federal Partners (i.e. EPA, USDA, etc.), Growers, State Extension specialists, State IPM faculty and staff, homeowners, landscaping professionals, nursery growers, landscape/lawncare managers, Other SERA003 partners, consumers, Master Gardeners and Bee keepers. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Program 1.1 We presented the progress of the Teacher's Training Guide at the EMGV's annual conference June 7-9, 2019 to 150 participants. We presented a poster at the International Master Gardener Conference in Valley Forge, PA, June 16-21, 2019. There were 1,000 attendees at the conference. A presentation was given to 45 participants at the ASHS Conference in Las Vegas July, 23, 2020. A presentation was given to 50 extension agents and staff members at the Extension Conference October 30, 2020. Program 1.2 A workshop was held to train agents on various vegetable and tomato diseases. Many of the same diseases covered were targeting when updating and creating new factsheets. Program 1.3 The third Aquatic Plant Management School will occur during August 2020 in an online format. We expect 60-80 stakeholders as well as 20 Cooperative Extension personnel. The 2019 school had 79 total attendees, with 43 of those being affiliated with government and nonprofit (7 extension agents attended at no charge) and 36 attendees who were in private industry. Program 1.4 Eight soybean field days and events were held during the fall of 2019. These events were placed across the state and participants ranged from soybean specialists, county agricultural agents, to growers. The training covered soybean growth and development, planting guidelines, insect control, weed control options, weed identification and disease control. Program 2.1 The Spanish version of the North Carolina Pesticide Applicator Certification Core Manual (180 pp.) was published in January 2020. The manual was translated verbatim from the English version by a Bilingual Specialist with NCDA&CS. It was created in InDesign by a desktop publisher/contractor with an easy-to-read format and plentiful images and illustrations. The Spanish certification exam will be administered by NCDA&CS and is based on this manual for both private and commercial applicator certification. Three Spanish Pesticide Schools (full-day workshops) are scheduled to occur in the spring of 2021. Program 2.2 We have given 9 presentations since September 2019 that reached at least 1388 people: 1. February 28, 2020. The native plant paradox: Costs and benefits of planting native trees. Mountain Horticulture Crops Research and Extension Center. 40 attendees. 2. February 11, 2020. IPM for scale insects on urban trees. Green's Industry Meeting in Rockingham County. 90 attendees. 3. February 6, 2020. The native plant paradox: Costs and benefits of planting native trees. Foothills Ornamental Production Workshop, Morganton, NC. 158 attendees. 4. January 28, 2020. IPM for European pepper moth and other nursery pests. NCNLA Green and Growin' trade show. ~300 attendees. 5. January 28, 2020. The native plant paradox: Costs and benefits of planting native trees. NCNLA Green and Growin' trade show. ~300 attendees. 6. December 4, 2019. New pests of ornamental trees and shrubs. Triangle Landscape School, Oxford, NC. 100 attendees. 7. November 5, 2019. Can forests take the heat? Duke University ENCORE lecture series. 100 attendees. 8. September 26, 2019. The native plant paradox: Costs and benefits of planting native trees. NC Arboretum IPM Symposium. ~150 attendees. 9. September 6, 2019. Pest and beneficial insects in your garden. JC Raulston Arboretum. 150 attendees. Program 2.3 N/A Program 2.4 N/A Program 2.5 Completed to date - 269 Extension professionals and 4-H volunteers engaged in face to face training on pollinators in 36 counties across the state of North Carolina. 98 Programs on pollinators were directly taught by Extension professionals and their volunteers (Extension Master Gardener Volunteers, 4-H Volunteers and teachers. These programs were taught in school, field days, community programs, 4-H clubs. 4,696 youth benefitting from hands-on learning about pollinators (delivered by Extension professionals and teachers). Spanish language translation of 150 pages has been completed for the first grade bees curriculum. Planned - With the cancellation of in-person training, this has been an opportunity to retool and develop online courses on pollinators. By the end of this grant period; three courses will be developed - two for adults on bees and butterflies and one directly for youth. Program 3.1 N/A How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The results have been disseminated through platform created in previous EIP grant. Through meetings with Advisory Council, revisions were made to the communication plan, which refined main audiences. These audiences, which include mostly professionals within the IPM arena and anyone in an organization that deals with a component of IPM. Some individuals included in these audiences are reading pest news stories either directly from the website or through the e-mailed newsletter (which we call pest news). We send pest news out weekly pest news and information, have an active twitter account, and provide "immediate" pest alerts. We also have a vibrant website (IPMportal), and our affiliated Extension Specialists spend time traveling all over the state giving talks to our stakeholders. We provide advice and assistance to stakeholders with evaluation planning and data collection when faculty and other stakeholders call on us directly. Followers of the blog range from land grant specialists and members of IPM-related industries to members of the general public. Those who follow via e-mail tend to be from land grant universities or government agencies, and those who follow via WordPress accounts tend to be from unknown backgrounds, although a few are from garden centers, farms or the pest control industry. We have an active twitter feed with over 1,700 tweets and 388 followers. In early 2019, we also created an IPM Extension Facebook page, that has garnered 24 likes and 32 followers since inception. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Program 1.1 Continue to create IPM focused materials that correlate with the chapters from our Extension Gardener Handbook and Teachers Guide with a focus on IPM practices and techniques. These chapters include soils, botany, composting, diseases, diagnostics, insects, IPM, lawns, landscape design, woody ornamentals, and wildlife. Develop IPM feature to incorporate into the Plant Toolbox along with integration of additional resources and publications. This would focus on IPM elements, plant identification and selection, and also common pests. Program 1.2 Based on the feedback from the survey in 2020, we can readily incorporate many of the suggestions provided. Develop a peer-reviewed extension publication providing information on incorporating biopesticides and biochemicals into fresh-market tomato production to manage plant diseases. Provide an extension agent training on incorporating biopesticides and biochemicals in management of tomato diseases in North Carolina. Agents will be asked to review the extension publication previous to the in-person training. After the in-person training, agents will be asked to complete a survey to better understand how this information will help them help their growers. Program 1.3 2020 APMS school will be held in an online format. Topics may be varied to include specific information on discrete species, new management techniques, and methods to integrate specific techniques. Level of knowledge may include a focus on basic (e.g. small impoundment) or advanced (e.g. large system) practitioners. Complete revisions and additions to the Aquatic Weed ID guide. We are also partnering with NCDNR to further our reach in terms of dissemination. Program 1.4 A follow up survey will be conducted to measure whether agent trainings have increased IPM knowledge or outcomes of growers. Development a series of IPM training videos for soybean extension agents. These videos will be focused on the identification, growth and development, plant biology, IPM strategies and chemical control of soybean weed, disease, and insect pests. Program 2.1 Near final drafts of fact sheets are awaiting formatting for publication on 1.) Pesticide Storage and Disposal; 2.) Minimizing Risk through the Pesticide Applicator Certification and Licensing Program; 3.) Understanding the Worker Protection Standard; and, 4.) Selection, Use and Care of Respirators. Development of pesticide safety and stewardship videos.These videos will be posted to SIPMC eAcademy YT channel, IPM portal, and the PSEP-IMI Intranet site for access by all Pesticide Safety Educators. Three Spanish Pesticide Schools will be held (full-day workshops). Local agents as well as a bilingual Extension Agent from Florida will coordinate the workshops. More than 80 of their Spanish-speaking pesticide handlers have registered. Program 2.2 Text for all chapters will be completed and we will have the text and proposed format reviewed by experts for accuracy and clientele for usability including faculty, extension professionals, and landscape professionals. Books will be published as they are completed and undergo a final editorial review. Program 2.3 Additionally, format enhancements are being evaluated in cooperation with programmers. Edits and revisions continue to be made to the database as well as formatting. Program 2.4 A spreadsheet delineating which herbicide active ingredients are registered for residential turf has been compiled. This spreadsheet and supporting information continues to be added, edited and revised prior to being launched on the IPM portal. Program 2.5 Leveraging the success of developing a strong local network of schools and agencies delivering pollinator curriculum and teaching from vibrant garden spaces, we propose expanding the reach to engage a broader network of education professionals across the state in pollinator education and pesticide stewardship. Three, 2-day educator workshops will be held in each region of North Carolina (west, central and east) and would include intensive training on North Carolina 4-H pollinator curriculum (includes lessons focused on native bees, honey bees, butterflies, habitat conservation and management) and a demonstration garden build at each training. Program 3.1 Plans are to finalize the incorporation of the Applied Climate Information System (ACIS) Web Services with missing data handling into the framework. A user interface will be developed for NC apple fire blight model with plans to make it available to growers and extension personal for the 2021 NC apple growing season.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Program 1 To develop and employ Extension Agent Trainings/In-Services to help agents to be effective communicators of IPM tactics, to build confidence in their knowledge of IPM strategies, and to foster high levels of trust and credibility in their local communities in Agronomic crops, Specialty crops, Communities, and/or Aquatic environments; Program 1.1 (90% Complete): Outputs: We have reached stakeholders with information about the Teacher's Training Guide at state, regional and national conferences: 3 presentations reaching over 300 attendees A poster presentation at the International EMGV Conference to over 1,000 attendees We have developed, designed, and formatted 137 playing cards that accompany our 6 Insect Stations. 150 sets have been distributed to extension agents. Outcomes/Impacts: This new teaching style will be advertised by Extension Agents in their counties as well as promoted by the state Extension Master Gardener office. Volunteers are more willing to staff the help desk and field questions from walk-ins and via the phone. Program 1.2 (90% Complete): Outputs: Between 2018-2020, we have updated or created 11 fact sheets on tomato and vegetable diseases. Outcomes/Impacts: A survey of North Carolina Area and County Agricultural Agents was conducted in March-April 2020 to determine the impact of the factsheets. A total of 34 agents responded. We received positive feedback where 28% of agents reported more frequent visits to NCSU factsheets over the past year. The majority (61% or more) of agents surveyed also reported each of the sections in the factsheets to be of perfect or near perfect quality. Additional feedback was collected and will be implemented to improve factsheets. Project 1.3 (80% Complete): Outputs: 2019 APMS had 79 total attendees, with 43 of those being affiliated with government and nonprofit (7 extension agents attended at no charge) and 36 attendees who were in private industry. Outcomes/Impacts: A survey was conducted following the 2019 APMS and 30 attendees responded. Attendees were asked which practices they may adopt in the future; 93% of the participants plan to or already seek out additional NCSU publications 29% of attendee's surveyed plan to discourage improper and off label use of aquatic herbicides in the future. 60% already discourage such action. 32% of individuals surveyed plan to encourage the reduction of nutrient rich runoff from urban and agricultural land in the future, while 57% already encourage this practice. Project 1.4 (40% Complete): Outputs: Eight soybean field days and events were held during the fall of 2019. These events were placed across the state. Outcomes/Impacts: These growers/farmers will increase IPM adoption and implementation in Agronomic crops. Through an increase in broad-scale changes in management strategies, we can increase economic and environmental sustainability and reduce negative impacts on human health brought on by potential pesticide exposure. Program 2 Deliver IPM Information to variety of stakeholders in North Carolina and the Southern Region through multiple means and activities. NC Extension agents and stakeholders will become more knowledgeable about IPM and develop skill sets to be able to implement sound IPM practices; Program 2.1 (75% Complete): Outputs: The Spanish version of the North Carolina Pesticide Applicator Certification Core Manual (180 pp.) was published in January 2020. The Spanish certification exam is based on this manual for both private and commercial applicator certifications. Outcomes/Impacts: 206 people (110 in 2018 and 96 in 2019) became certified as commercial pesticide applicators by passing an exam administered by the NC Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services (NCDA&CS). Program 2.2 (75% Complete): Outputs: The outputs of this project will largely come at the end once all chapters are finished and the books are published. We conducted a survey in 2017 to determine the most important pest species of common trees. This survey was used for book development but also was accepted in Journal of Arboriculture and urban Forestry and was published in November 2019. Outcomes/Impacts: We do not have any impacts yet, a review questionnaire will be created to measure expected use and economic value of the eBooks once disseminated. Program 2.3 (60% Complete): Outputs: Information is being compiled that will be utilized to develop training materials for extension agents, regional training personnel, etc. An online, searchable database will be developed to aid land managers and producers when selecting pest control agents. Outcomes/Impacts: Overall, this will aid land managers when selecting a product to minimize potential adverse effects on human and environmental health. Program 2.4 (60% Complete): Outputs: Information is being compiled that will be utilized to develop training materials for extension agents and regional training personnel. The herbicide master spreadsheet has been completed and ideally an online, searchable database will be developed. Outcomes/Impacts: Ultimately by optimizing pesticide application timing and product selection, it will allow professional lawn care operators and homeowners to utilize less active ingredient and minimize potential adverse effects on human and environmental health. Program 2.5 (90% Complete): Outputs: 269 Extension professionals and 4-H volunteers engaged in face to face training on pollinators in 36 counties across the state of North Carolina. 98 Programs on pollinators were directly taught by Extension professionals and their volunteers (Extension Master Gardener Volunteers, 4-H Volunteers and teachers. These programs were taught in school, field days, community programs, 4-H clubs. 4,696 youth benefitting from hands-on learning about pollinators (delivered by Extension professionals and teachers). Spanish language translation of 150 pages has been completed for the first grade bees curriculum. Outcomes/Impacts: Extension professionals, teachers and volunteers increased their knowledge on IPM practices within school and community pollinator gardens (including different IPM strategies, managing pesticide use and pollinator stewardship) by 73% Extension professionals, teachers and volunteers increased their delivery of pollinator education in classrooms and will use school gardens as a method for teaching about pollinators by 80%. Youth increased their knowledge of pollinator stewardship by 85%. Program 3 Offer tools that will improve Pest Monitoring and Pest Forecasting protocols for pests of importance to NC Agronomic and Specialty Crops and enable enhanced searching and output features on the NC IPM portal. Program 3.1 (95% Complete): Outputs: The framework's code continues to be updated to facilitate the development of new and existing models, to provide additional data handling, and improve performance. Weather data from weather stations maintained by apple growers in western North Carolina is now available through the incorporation of the Applied Climate Information System (ACIS) Web Services into the framework. Outcomes/Impacts: The strawberry disease forecasting model has been available to growers for six years, the apple coddling moth forecasting model for five years, and the tufted apple bud moth and oriental fruit moth forecast models for four years. There has been a favorable response to the framework and implemented models based on informal feedback and comments from growers and extension personnel. The disease and insect forecasting applications developed through this project provide growers and extension personnel with near real-time information to assist in tracking pest development and making pest related management decisions. Total number of peer-reviewed publications: 12 Total number of non-peer-reviewed publications: 16 Total number of presentations: 13 Total number of people reached by your project during this reporting period: 4,100

Publications

• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: 2020 Southeast Regional Strawberry Integrated Pest Management Guide. 2020. Louws F.J. ed. http://www.smallfruits.org/assets/documents/ipm-guides/StrawberryIPMGuide.pdf
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Louws, F.J. 2013-2020. Summary of fungicide use in strawberries for Botrytis and anthracnose control in the spring. IN: North Carolina Agricultural Chemicals Manual. (Annual Updates).
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Louws, F.J. 2013-2020. Relative effectiveness of various fungicides for strawberry disease control.IN: North Carolina Agricultural Chemicals Manual. (Annual Updates).
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Louws, F.J. and D. Ingram 2013-2020. Greenhouse vegetable crop disease control schedule. IN: North Carolina Agricultural Chemicals Manual. (Annual Updates)
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Louws, F.J. 2013-2020. Strawberry disease control. IN: North Carolina Agricultural Chemicals Manual. (Annual Updates).
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Meadows, I. 2020. Early Blight of Tomato. NC State Extension Publication, May 2020.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Meadows, I., Sharp, S., and A. Scherer. 2020. Phytophthora Blight and Root Rot on Annuals and Herbaceous Perennials. NC State Extension Publication, May 2020.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Meadows, I., Sharp, S., and M. Henson. 2020. Damping-off in Flower and Vegetable Seedlings. NC State Extension Publication, May 2020.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Meadows, I and M. Henson. 2020. Southern Bacterial Wilt. NC State Extension Publication, May 2020.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Frank, S.D. 2019. Galls on Oaks. NC State Extension Publication, Entomology Insect Notes. September 2019. https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/galls-on-oaks
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Frank, S.D and J. Baker. 2019. Phylloxera on Hickory and Pecan. NC State Extension Publication, Entomology Insect Notes. October 2019. https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/phylloxera-on-hickory-and-pecan
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Frank, S.D, and J. Baker. 2019. Ornamental Cherry Pest Management Calendar. NC State Extension Publication, Entomology Insect Notes. October 2019. https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/ornamental-cherry-pest-management-calendar
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Frank, S.D. and Just, M.G. (2020) Can cities activate sleeper species and predict future forest pests? A case study of scale insects. Insects, 11(3): 142. https://doi.org/10.3390/insects11030142. PDF.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Long, L.C. and Frank, S.D. (2020) Risk of bird predation and defoliating insect abundance are greater in urban forest fragments than street trees. Urban Ecosystems, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-020-00939-x.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Parsons, S.E., Kerner, L.M., and Frank, S.D. (2020) Effects of native and exotic congeners on diversity of invertebrate natural enemies, available spider biomass, and pest control services in residential landscapes. Biodiversity and Conservation, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-020-01932-8. PDF.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Just, M.G., and Frank, S.D. (2020) Thermal tolerance of gloomy scale (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) in the Eastern United States. Environmental Entomology, nvz154, https://doi.org/10.1093/ee/nvz154. PDF.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Lahr, E.C., Backe, K.M., and Frank, S.D. (2020) Intraspecifc variation in morphology, physiology, and ecology of wildtype relative to horticultural varieties of red maple (Acer rubrum). Trees  Structure and Function, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-019-01942-2. PDF.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Frank, S.D. (2019) A survey of key arthropod pests on common southeastern street trees. Arboriculture & Urban Forestry, 45(5): 155-166.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Backe, K.M., and Frank, S.D. (2019) Chronology of gloomy scale (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) infestations on urban trees. Environmental Entomology, 48(5): 1113-1120. https://doi.org/10.1093/ee/nvz094. PDF.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Parsons, S.E., Sozanski, K.S., Wilson, A.A., and Frank, S.D. (2019) Effects of temperature and habitat complexity on an urban tree pest (Tinocallis kahawaluokalani), natural enemies, and predation. Urban Ecosystems, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-019-00900-7. PDF.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Parsons, S.E., and Frank, S.D. (2019) Urban tree pests and natural enemies respond to habitat at different spatial scales. Journal of Urban Ecology, 5(1): 1-15. doi: 10.1093/jue/juz010.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Just, M.G., and Frank, S.D. (2019) Evaluation of an easy-to-install, low-cost dendrometer band for citizen-science tree research. Journal of Forestry, 317-322. doi:10.1093/jofore/fvz026.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Just, M.G., Long, L.C., Dale, A.G., and Frank, S.D. (2019) Urbanization drives unique latitudinal patterns of insect herbivory and tree condition. Oikos. https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.05874. PDF.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Frank, S.D., Backe, K.M., McDaniel, C., Green, M., Widney, S., Dunn, R.R. (2019) Exotic urban trees conserve similar natural enemy communities to native congeners but have fewer pests. PeerJ: 7:e6531 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.6531.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Kilpatrick, L., Seth Carley, D., and T. Billeisen. 2019. A Comparison of Pollinator Communities in Managed Turfgrass Systems in the Piedmont and Sandhills of North Carolina. Poster Presentation at the NC State Turfgrass Centers Education and Research Symposium. Raleigh, NC. December 2019.

Progress 09/01/18 to 08/31/19

Outputs
Target Audience:Stakeholder Advisory Council, Pesticide Safety Education Program Educators, NC State Extension Administrators, NC A&T faculty, NGOs, Federal Partners (i.e. EPA, USDA, etc.), Growers, State Extension specialists, State IPM faculty and staff, homeowners, landscaping professionals, nursery growers, landscape/lawncare managers, Other SERA003 partners, consumers, Master Gardeners, Bee keepers Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Program 1.1 We invited agents to respond to the pre-survey and have 50 responses so far. We will be announcing the pre-survey for EMGV's at their annual conference June 7-9th where there will be 150 participants. We have also developed a number of PowerPoint presentations for agents to use in their EMGV trainings. We held atraining for 37 agents June 5-7th, where we will review the progress of the project and beta test the activities for the Soils and Insects Chapters. Program 1.2 We held a workshop to train agents on various vegetable and tomatodiseases. Program 1.3 The second Aquatic Plant Management School will occur during August 2019. We expect 60 stakeholders reached through the two day APM school as well as 20 Cooperative Extension personnel. Program 1.4 The NCSU Soybean Agent training field day was attended by 30 NC Cooperative Extension agents form across the state. The training covered soybean growth and development, planting guidelines, insect control, weed control options, weed identification and disease control. Additional Soybean trainings will be held in the summer of 2019. Others may be added depending on needs. In the Spring of 2020 a small grains training will be held. Program 2.1 A new pesticide applicator study guide has been developed and printed for applicators seeking to become certified in Public Health Pest Control.Also, a 50-question certification exam has been developed by the NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services based on the content of this manual. Over 280 manuals have been printed and a PowerPoint presentation created for teaching prospective public health pesticide applicators through the NC Cooperative Extension Pesticide Schools. A Spanish version of the NC Pesticide Applicator Certification Core study guide has been translated from the English version and is now being formatted in InDesign for printing. This study guide is needed in order to prepare prospective Spanish-speaking applicators for the NC Core Commercial and Private Applicator Certification exams. Program 2.2 We have given 8 presentations since September 2018 that reached at least 2200 people: May 30, 2019. New pests of ornamental trees and shrubs. Pitt County Landscape conference. 30 attenddees. March 26, 2019. IPM for ambrosia beetles and scale insects. Johnston Co. Nursery Association. ~30 attendees. February 12, 2019. IPM for ambrosia beetles and scale insects. Eastern NC Nursery Conference, Wilson, NC. ~100 attendees. February 5, 2019. Scale insect management on trees and shrubs. Regional Turf and Landscape Conference, Wilmington, NC. 64 attendees. January 23, 2019. Crape myrtle bark scale and other new and emerging pests. Carolina Green Industry Network. Union County. 600 attendees. January 16, 2019. Select planting sites to reduce tree stress and pest infestations. NCNLA Green and Growin' Show. Greensboro, NC. 500 attendees. January 15, 2019. New pests on the horizon. NCNLA Green and Growin' Show. Greensboro, NC. 941 attendees. October 17, 2018. Can urban tree pests take the heat? Rainbow Tree Annual Seminar. Stowe Botanical Garden. 41 attendees. Program 2.3 N/A Program 2.4 N/A Program 2.5 Completed to date - 45 Extension professionals and 4-H volunteers engaged in face to face and web-based curriculum training on pollinators for 14 hours. 50 Teachers engaged in embedding pollinator curriculum into their existing teaching practice to enhance student understanding of life cycles, ecology, habitats, and agriculture with 11 hours of training. 3,500 youth benefitting from hands-on learning about pollinators (delivered by Extension professionals and teachers named above) Planned - Fall/Winter 2019 Recruitment of partner sites (camps, schools and extension offices) Translation of 2nd grade butterflies and 4th grade bee curriculum into Spanish. Spring 2020 (3) 4-H Pollinator Curriculum Training for Extension Agents, Extension Master Gardener Volunteers, 4-H Volunteer Leaders, Teachers, Environmental Educators and others. (3) Pollinator Garden builds Program 3.1 N/A How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The results have been disseminated through platform created in previous EIP grant. Through meetings with Advisory Council, revisions were made to the communication plan, which refined main audiences. These audiences, which include mostly professionals within the IPM arena and anyone in an organization that deals with a component of IPM. Some individuals included in these audiences are reading pest news stories either directly from the website or through the e-mailed newsletter (which we call pest news). We send pest news out weekly pest news and information, have an active twitter account, and provide "immediate" pest alerts. We also have a vibrant website (IPMportal), and our affiliated Extension Specialists spend time traveling all over the state giving talks to our stakeholders. We provide advice and assistance to stakeholders with evaluation planning and data collection when faculty and other stakeholders call on us directly. Followers of the blog range from land grant specialists and members of IPM-related industries to members of the general public. Those who follow via e-mail tend to be from land grant universities or government agencies, and those who follow via WordPress accounts tend to be from unknown backgrounds, although a few are from garden centers, farms or the pest control industry. We have an active twitter feed with 1,730 tweets and 356 followers. In early 2019, we also created an IPM Extension Facebook page, that has garnered 9 likes and over the last month and posts have reached 294 people. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Program 1.1 In year three we will continue to create IPM focused materials that correlate with the chapters from our Extension Gardener Handbook with a focus on IPM practices and techniques. The chapters include soils, botany, composting, diseases, diagnostics, insects, IPM, lawns, landscape design, woody ornamentals, and wildlife. Each chapter will have: Pre class readers guide Resource links, and video recommendations Pre class/break slides that run automatically A 30-minute power point presentation with facilitator notes At least three hands on activity options with facilitator notes At least two homework options A quiz Case study/review questions We will also include a final exam file containing a variety of questions from each of the chapters. Program 1.2 We plan to create and publish three more disease factsheets by the end of 2019 field season entitled "Powdery Mildew on Greenhouse Ornamentals," "Verticillium Wilt of Tomato," and "Fusarium Wilt of Tomato." In year 3, we identified some additional factsheets that need to be updated or created such as "Septoria Leaf Spot", "Bacterial Wilt of Tomato", "Fusarium Wilt of Chrysanthemum", "Soilborne Fungal Diseases of Greenhouse and High Tunnel Tomatoes", and "Botrytis on Greenhouse Crops". At the 2019 NC State Extension conference, extension agents and specialists expressed the need for a printer friendly version of the disease fact sheets in addition to the web-based publication. Thus, we have also created printer friendly PDF versions of each fact sheet listed above and these are available to stakeholders upon request. Program 1.3 The Aquatic Plant Management School (APMS)will be held again. Location, topics, and/or level of knowledge will be varied from Years 1 and 2 based on evaluations from the 2 previous years. Potential locations include Charlotte or Raleigh, NC; Richmond, VA, and Columbia, SC. Topics may be varied to include specific information on discrete species, new management techniques, and methods to integrate specific techniques. Level of knowledge may include a focus on basic (e.g. small impoundment) or advanced (e.g. large system) practitioners. Aquatic Weeds ID Guide. Year 3: Dissemination of the pocket guide. Revision of the electronic platforms. Program 1.4 One in-field training has been planned for this summer. A soybean training is planned for September, Demonstration plots have been created at the NCSU ATEC and are currently being maintained for the training events. NC State soybean specialists will capture photos of various abiotic and biotic soybean maladies during the 2019 soybean growing season. The photos will be catalogued and used to create a soybean "maladies" ID guide. Program 2.1 All projects indicated in Outputs 2 and 3 above will be taken to completion in 2019. I look forward to meeting with Dr.Dubois to assess the economic value of these outcomes and to collaborating with Ryan Adams in the development of videos and other resources that will be posted to the SIPMC eAcademy YT channel, IPM portal, and the PSEP-IMI Intranet site for access by all Pesticide Safety Educators. Program 2.2 In the third year we will finish the text for all chapters completed this summer and we will have the text and proposed format reviewed by experts for accuracy and clientele for usability including faculty, extension professionals, and landscape professionals. We will adjust information and content as needed them complete formatting of the publications in the fall. We will publish the books as they are completed and undergo a final editorial review. A review questionnaire will be created in collaboration with the SIPM Center in year 3 to measure expected use and economic value of the eBooks once disseminated. Program 2.3 Information will continue to be gathered to build a pesticide leaching and groundwater contamination potential database. This database will be available in appropriate extension outlets. Further, we will be meeting with programmers to assist with compiling the information in a user-friendly format. Program 2.4 Investigators will continue to gather information on pesticides currently registered for use in residential sites. This information will be built into a database that will be accessible to lawn care operators and homeowners as well as other appropriate personnel. Further, we will be meeting with programmers to assist with compiling the information in a user-friendly format. Program 2.5 Leveraging the success of developing a strong local network of schools and agencies delivering pollinator curriculum and teaching from vibrant garden spaces, we propose expanding the reach to engage a broader network of education professionals across the state in pollinator education and pesticide stewardship. This project proposes leading 3, 2-day educator workshops in each region of North Carolina (west, central and east) and would include intensive training on North Carolina 4-H pollinator curriculum (includes lessons focused on native bees, honey bees, butterflies, habitat conservation and management) and a demonstration garden build at each training. The gardens will be built in partnership with a local organization (4-H camp, school, or Extension office) that will both educate workshop participants in plant selection and planting techniques and as a lasting teaching space to engage youth audiences in understanding pollinator stewardship. In addition to serve our Spanish-speaking partners, translating the curriculum into Spanish would be critical to way to connect with and support Spanish-speaking partners. Fall/Winter 2019 Recruitment of partner sites (camps, schools and extension offices) Translation of 2nd grade butterflies and 4th grade bee curriculum into Spanish. Spring 2020 (3) 4-H Pollinator Curriculum Training for Extension Agents, Extension Master Gardener Volunteers, 4-H Volunteer Leaders, Teachers, Environmental Educators and others. (3) Pollinator Garden build Program 3.1 The databases, web services, and web applications currently developed through this project have to be moved to new servers in the next one to two months due to decommissioning of the servers which currently host the project's software. After server migration is completed, work will continue to finalize the incorporation of the Applied Climate Information System (ACIS) Web Services with missing data handling into the framework and finalize the NC apple fire blight model. Plans are to have these two items finalized and implemented during the fall of 2019 so they can be tested and made available to growers and extension personal for the 2020 NC apple growing season. Additionally, during the next six months, project members will meet to decide which pest models which should be developed in the framework next. One potential model which has been recommended for inclusion in the framework is a model for cereal leaf beetle. Work on adding models to the framework will begin in the fall of 2019 and continue through 2020. Monitoring and general improvements to the framework's databases and software will be performed throughout the year.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? This is for the period Sept. 2018 through June 10th, 2019 Program 1.1 Outputs: Pre-survey received 50 responses from agents and 270 responses from EMGV's. Progress and results will be presented at the EMGV's annual conference June 7-9th, at the International MGConference and at the ASHSConference. Agent trainings provided feedback from37 agents who reviewed materials. We also completed 2 focus groups of 10 master gardeners from Wake County to try out our activities and materials. We have developed, designed, and formatted 137 playing cards that accompany our 6 Insect Stations. Impacts: Implementation of the new teaching strategies in their next scheduled training course and will measure the impact of the training by comparing our pre and post survey of self - reported behavior. We also anticipate that volunteers will be more willing to staff the help desk and field questions from walk-ins and via the phone. Volunteers will be able to provide more comprehensive IPM answers to thousands of N.C. residents, each year. Program 1.2 Outputs:To date, we have updated or created the following eight (8) disease fact sheets: Southern Blight of Tomato and Pepper, Late Blight of Tomato, Bacterial Leaf Spot on Greenhouse Ornamentals, Phytophthora blight and root rot on annuals and herbaceous perennials, Damping-off in flower and vegetable seedlings, Bacterial Spot of Tomato and Pepper, Collar Rot andAlternariastem canker of Tomato, and Foliar Fungal Diseases on Greenhouse and High Tunnel Tomatoes. Impacts:Impacts will be largely generated upon circulation of fact sheets. We plan to conduct two surveys with the help of Dr. Dubois to determine the usefulness of the newly created and updated plant disease fact sheets. In order to target stakeholders, one will be conducted at the 2019 NC State Extension Conference and a second one will be conducted via the Meadows Lab Twitter account. Program 1.3 Outputs:The second APMSwill occur during August 2019. We expect 60 stakeholders reached through the two day APM school as well as 20 Cooperative Extension personnel. Impacts:We expect IPM adoption will increase within the focus region of NC, SC, and VA. This will decrease the cost of managing aquatic invasive plants and increase environmental sustainability through better invasive IDand IPM implementation. A questionnaire will be given to participants at the end of the school to collect current recommendations, knowledge gained, satisfaction with the school, and expected changes in recommendation implementation. A follow up questionnaire will be sent 1 and 2 years' post-school to monitor long term gains. Program 1.4 Outputs:The NCSU Soybean Agent training field day was attended by 30 NC Cooperative Extension agents form across the state. The training covered soybean growth and development, planting guidelines, insect control, weed control options, weed identification and disease control. Impacts: Ultimately, through the increase of knowledge obtained at the trainings, agents will be more comfortable teaching growers and farmers about IPM strategies and techniques. Through an increase in broad-scale changes in management strategies, we can increase economic and environmental sustainability and reduce negative impacts on human health brought on by potential pesticide exposure. Questionnaires were administered in year one to the agents after the training to evaluate their satisfaction with the training, change in knowledge from the training and intention to use the contents in their work with clients. Program 2.1 Outputs: A new pesticide applicator study guide has been developed and printed for applicators seeking to become certified in Public Health Pest Control. The 110-page guide has color pictures and life cycle illustrations for eighteen pests of public health importance Over 280 manuals have been printed and a PowerPoint presentation created for teaching prospective public health pesticide applicators Impacts:Impacts will be generated upon completion and circulation of study guides and fact sheets. Program 2.2 Outputs:The outputs of this project will largely come once the books are published. However, we have produced other relevant outputs. We conducted a survey in 2017 to determine the most important pest species of common trees to help inform the content of our book. Not only are we using this information in book development but created a peer reviewed publication in Arboriculture and urban Forestry and will be published in November 2019. outlining key tree pests and IPM needs. 5 National industry publications 8 Training events reaching 2,306 attendees Impacts:We do not have any impacts yet, will be completed once eBooks disseminated. Program 2.3 Outputs:Information is being compiled that will be utilized to develop training materials for extension agents, regional training personnel, etc. Impacts:The compiled database will help pesticide applicators understand the impact of pesticide selection on the environment, exposure to workers and non-workers as well as best management practices to minimize potential adverse effects. Program 2.4 Outputs:Information is being compiled that will be utilized to develop training materials for extension agents, regional training personnel, etc. The herbicide master spreadsheet has been completed. Impacts:Information produced will aid professional lawn care operators and homeowners when selecting pesticides for comprehensive pest management plans. Ultimately by optimizing pesticide application timing and product selection, it will allow professional lawn care operators and homeowners to utilize less active ingredient and minimize potential adverse effects on human and environmental health. Program 2.5 Output: 45Extension professionals and 4-H volunteers engaged in face to face and web-based curriculum training on pollinators for14hours. 50Teachers engaged in embedding pollinator curriculum into their existing teaching practice to enhance student understanding of life cycles, ecology, habitats, and agriculture with11hours of training. 3,500youth benefitting from hands-on learning about pollinators Impacts: Extension professionals, teachers and volunteers increased their knowledge on IPM practices within school and community pollinator gardens (including different IPM strategies, managing pesticide use and pollinator stewardship) by62% Extension professionals, teachers and volunteers increased their pollinator education in classrooms and will use school gardens as a method for teaching about pollinators by75%. Youth increased their knowledge of pollinator stewardship by81% Youth positively increased their science attitudes after participating in pollinator garden builds and through participation in pollinator lessons in the classroom by14% Program 3.1 Outputs: Work has continued on revisions to a journal article describing the project's software framework design and current models. The framework's code continues to be updated to facilitate the development of new and existing models, to provide additional data handling, and improve performance. Weather data from weather stations maintained by apple growers in western North Carolina is now available. Work has continued on the development of an apple fire blight forecasting model based on degree-day models original developed for the Maryblyt model. Impacts: The strawberry disease forecasting model has been available to growers for five years, the apple coddling moth forecasting model for four years, and the tufted apple bud moth and oriental fruit moth forecast models for three years. There has been a favorable response based on informal feedback and comments from growers and extension personnel. The disease and insect forecasting applications developed through this project provide growers and extension personnel with near real-time information to assist in tracking pest development and making pest related management decisions.

Publications

• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: 2019 Southeast Regional Strawberry Integrated Pest Management Guide. 2019. Louws F.J. ed. http://www.smallfruits.org/assets/documents/ipm-guides/StrawberryIPMGuide.pdf
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Louws, F.J. 2013-2019. Summary of fungicide use in strawberries for Botrytis and anthracnose control in the spring. IN: North Carolina Agricultural Chemicals Manual. https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/north-carolina-agricultural-chemicals-manual.
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Louws, F.J. 2013-2019. Relative effectiveness of various fungicides for strawberry disease control. IN: North Carolina Agricultural Chemicals Manual.
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Louws, F.J. and D. Ingram 2013-2019. Greenhouse vegetable crop disease control schedule. IN: North Carolina Agricultural Chemicals Manual.
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Louws, F.J. 2013-2019. Strawberry disease control. IN: North Carolina Agricultural Chemicals Manual.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Frank, S.D. 2019. The vicious cycle of stress. Arborist News, February 2019, 28(1): 44-46.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Frank, S.D. 2018. The box tree moth. Western Plant Diagnostic Network First Detector News, December 2018, 11:3.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Frank, S.D. 2018. Compatible tools. Nursery Management, December 2018. PDF.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Frank, S.D. 2018. Keep your cool. Nursery Management, September 2018. PDF.
• Type: Other Status: Under Review Year Published: 2018 Citation: Frank, S.D. 2018. Defeat the defoliators. Nursery Management, July 2018.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Meadows, I., A. Scherer, & M. Henson. 2019. Southern Blight of Tomato and Pepper. NC State Extension Publication, January 2019.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Quesada-Ocampa, L., & I. Meadows. 2019. Late Blight of Tomato. NC State Extension Publication, January 2019.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Meadows, I., & S. Sharpe. 2019. Bacterial Leaf Spot on Greenhouse Ornamentals. NC State Extension Publication, January 2019.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Scherer, A., I. Meadows, & M. Henson. 2019. Bacterial Spot of Tomato and Pepper. NC State Extension Publication, February 2019.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Scherer, A. & I. Meadows. 2019. Collar Rot and Alternaria stem canker of Tomato. NC State Extension Publication, April 2019.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Scherer, A. & I. Meadows. 2019. Foliar Fungal Diseases on Greenhouse and High Tunnel Tomatoes. NC State Extension Publication, May 2019.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: S.L. Levine, J. Giddings, T. Valenti, G.P. Cobb, D. Seth Carley, L.L. McConnell. 2019. Overcoming Challenges of Incorporating Higher-Tier Data in Ecological Risk Assessments and Risk Management of Pesticides in the United States: Findings and Recommendations from the 2017 Workshop on Regulation and Innovation in Agriculture. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management (IEAM). in press
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2019 Citation: Mata, M., Seth Carley, D., Hamblin, A., and Dubois, J-J. 2019. Community Outreach as a Tool for Bee Conservation Efforts. Journal of Extension.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Submitted Year Published: 2019 Citation: Buol, G.S., G. G. Wilkerson, F. Louws, D. S. Carley, J. Walgenbach. 2019. Integrated framework for weather-based crop and pest management decision aids. Computers & Electronics in Agriculture.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Seth Carley, D. and Adams, R. 2019. If weeds could talk: IPM Indicator weeds in home lawns. March/April North Carolina Turfgrass Magazine.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Seth Carley, D. and Adams, R. 2019. 5 Steps to creating a pollinator-friendly habitat on your golf course. January/February North Carolina Turfgrass Magazine.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2018 Citation: Seth Carley, D., Mata, M., and Spafford, A. 2018. Urban gardens as a platform for experiential learning: Pollinator conservation, citizen science, and sustainability. 2018 IPM Symposium, Baltimore, MD. March 2018.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2018 Citation: Kilpatrick, L. Seth Carley, D. and Billeisen, T. A Comparison of Pollinator Communities in Managed Turfgrass Systems in the Piedmont and Sandhills of North Carolina. Poster Presentation at the NC State Turfgrass Centers Education and Research Symposium. Raleigh, NC. December 2018.

Progress 09/01/17 to 08/31/18

Outputs
Target Audience:Urban residents including church members, school administrators, community organizations garden center clientele, nursery growers, greehouse managers, turf managers and professionals Landscape companies, home gardeners, vegetable growers, field crop producers (both conventional and organic) Master gardeners, extention agents Changes/Problems:We had difficulties interfacing with the NIFA budget person. Due to her lack of responsiveness and the challenges working with her, we waited for full funding for many months. Aside from those challenges (which were substancial), most of our programs will be doing their major efforts over this summer. We also just now hired our Extension Associate - who will plan to start June 20. We plan to be fully functional for year 2. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Program 1.1. We are holding a training for 37 agents June 5-7th, where we will review the progress of the project and beta test the activities for the Soils and Insects Chapters. Program 1.3. Aquatic Plant Management School. The first iteration is being held July 31 - August 1, 2018 in Raleigh, NC. The APM School will have 20+ speakers covering topics from plant and algae biology to chemical and non-chemical management of plants, algae, fish, and mosquitos. Non-plant topics have been included to appeal to the large number of stormwater pond managers throughout the region. The first iteration will focus on introductory level information and smaller waterbodies. Registration for 20 cooperative extension agents will be provided and the remaining 60 registration slots are open to any public or private individuals. Program 1.4The training names and numbers are as follows: Training event Date Number of Attendees Attendees NCSU Basic Small Grain Short Course 2/2017 25 NC Extension Agents NCSU Resource Conservation Workshop 6/2017 100 NC High School students NCSU Corn Agent Training 7/2017 35 NC Extension Agents NRCS Basics of Conservation Planning 10/2017 35 NRCS staff , SWCD, NC DSWC staff, NRCS Technical Service Providers Wake SWCD Soil Health and Cover Crop Workshop 2/2018 30 Producers, NRCS Staff, SWCD Staff NCSU Advanced Small Grain Short Course 3/2018 20 NC Extension Agents TOTALS: 6 Training events, 245 attendees Program 2.1 We had 1,400 NC stakeholders come through the Pesticide Training School. Program 2.5 We held a Pollinator Curriculum Training at Millstone 4-H Camp. Leveraging newly developed North Carolina 4-H curriculum that focuses on native bees, honey bees, butterflies within a context of gardening and agriculture, the project partners delivered 25 hours of pollinator curriculum training to over 50 4-H professionals. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?For all programs with Agent training included (Program 1.1, 1.3, 1.4, 2.1 ), once the materials are developed Extension Agents will have access to them both in on-line and hardcopy form. They will be able to implement the new teaching strategies in their next scheduled training course. This new teaching style will be advertised by Extension Agents in their counties as well as promoted by the state Extension offices. Program 1.2 Plant Disease Facts are publicly available, references on NCSU's website targeted to growers, area specialized agents [ASAs], and other stakeholders. The Fact Sheets provide valuable information regarding signs and symptoms of plant diseases, where and when the disease occurs, and IPM recommendations. Program 1.3 Aquatic weed ID guides are given out to participants, and information will be put online on the IPM Portal as soon as the guide is complete. Program 1.4 Handouts and guides are given to training participants. Eventually, the information will be shared on the IPM Portal. Program 2.5 Training materials are haded out at every training. We are developing other hand-outs and as those are completed we will print those to handout at field days, community events, etc. Eventually we will put the information on the IPM Portal. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We will continue to tackle the programs as laid-out in our continuation report.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Program 1.1For background research on creating training materials using a flipped classroom model, we polled other state Master Gardener Coordinators to ask if they were already using a similar model. We interviewed the three states that used this style of training and were able to review some of the materials they have created. We created a 22 question survey for agents and a 19 question survey for EMGV's under the guidance of Jean-Jacques Dubois. We have 38 responses so far. Program 1.2We have identified 8 Plant Disease Fact Sheets that need to be updated or created including: Bacterial Spot of Pepper and Tomato, Early Blight of Tomato, Plant Disease Management in High Tunnels, Damping-off in Greenhouse Ornamentals and Vegetable Seedlings, Powdery Mildew on Greenhouse Ornamentals, Leaf Mold on Greenhouse and High Tunnel Tomatoes, Timber Rot in Greenhouse Tomatoes, and Phytophthora Crown and Root Rot in Landscape Ornamentals. Program 1.3 Plans for the first Aquatic Plant Managment School have been made. Aquatic Weeds ID Guide. Information for approximately 12 additional species has been compiled and edited into pocket guide format. This will increase the breadth of the guide by approximately 20%. Reprinting quotes are being collected with July targeted for reprinting and August targeted for updates to the electronic apps. Program 1.4Developed and maintained demonstration plots at NCSU Agronomy Training and Education Center (ATEC) at 3004 Mid Pines Rd, Raleigh. The demonstration plots have been used for several trainings and workshops. A survey was conducted at winter grain production meetings to document baseline adoption of IPM practices with growers. We intend to re-survey at the end of the grant to see if IPM practices have changed due to the training in counties with and without agent training. Program 2.1 We identified the old fact sheets most in need of updating. We updated one fact sheet. (See continuation report for the pdf example). Program 2.2We have begun formatting and writing chapters of the first ebook and collecting photographs for both ebooks. Program 2.3 Information for the pesticide leaching and groundwater contamination potential database has been and is still being gathered. Some of the information has been gathered from former publications and some has been gathered from other sources. Program 2.4Information has been gathered and compiled about pesticides that are currently registered for residential sites. This is ongoing. PRogram 2.5 Pollinator Demonstration Gardens: The project partners collaborated with Wake County Public Schools and Wake County Cooperative Extension to build and enhance pollinator habitats that served as model/demonstration sites within the county. Using a youth-led design process - students worked with teachers and parents to determine garden design, planting needs, construction needs and organize garden build days. North Carolina's Millstone 4-H Camp serves as a premier educational space for youth and adults across the state. To fulfill strategic objective of providing pollinator education to youth, teachers, informal educators and extension professionals, we collaborated to construct additional pollinator gardens and enhance existing landscapes with pollinator plants and nests. Program 3.1?A fire blight forecasting model for North Carolina apples is currently being developed within the framework. The model is based on degree-day models used by the Maryblyt model. Station weather data and National Weather Service forecast data managed through the framework are used by the NC fire blight model to predict apple flower development from green tip through petal fall and to predict blossom infection events. In addition, since this model primarily relies on temperature data and below freezing temperatures can occur and kill buds/flowers during this period of apple development, information on freeze events and predicted flower loss are also being calculated with this model. Once the fire blight model is completed, a user interface will be developed and incorporated into the apple pest risk website which currently provides access to three apple insect risk models built within the framework.

Publications

• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Vegetable Production Update-May 25th, 2018 https://ipm.ces.ncsu.edu/2018/05/vegetable-production-update-may-25th-2018/
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: 2018 Fungicide Spray Guides for Tomato and Pepper in North Carolina. PDF available at: https://ipm.ces.ncsu.edu/2018/03/2018-fungicide-spray-guides-for-tomato-and-pepper-in-north-carolina/
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: New Southeastern Vegetable Crop Handbook Now Available Online. https://ipm.ces.ncsu.edu/2018/02/new-southeastern-vegetable-crop-handbook-now-available-online/
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Downy Mildew Confirmed on Hops in Western North Carolina. https://ipm.ces.ncsu.edu/2018/05/downy-mildew-confirmed-on-hops-in-western-north-carolina/
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: NC Pest News for the week of 05/11/2018
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: NC Pest News for the week of 05/18/2018
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: NC Pest News for the week of 05/25/2018
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: NC Pest News for the week of 06/01/2018
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Should You Tank Mix Herbicide / Nitrogen With Insecticide to Control Stink Bugs in Corn? https://entomology.ces.ncsu.edu/2018/05/should-you-tank-mix-herbicide-nitrogen-with-insecticide-to-control-stink-bugs-in-corn/?src=rss&utm_source=NC+Pest+News&utm_campaign=c8b15685e2-NC+Pest+News&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_15f1410994-c8b15685e2-207300609
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Should You Spray for Cotton Thrips? https://cotton.ces.ncsu.edu/2018/05/should-you-spray-for-cotton-thrips-2/
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Considerations for Pyrethroids (Bifenthrin and Others) Used to Manage Bollworm in Cotton and Soybean. https://cotton.ces.ncsu.edu/2017/08/considerations-for-pyrethroids-bifenthrin-and-others-used-to-manage-bollworm-in-cotton-and-soybean/
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Insecticide Recommendations for Plant Bugs. https://cotton.ces.ncsu.edu/2017/06/insecticide-recommendations-for-plant-bugs/
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Manage Bollworm First, but Dont Forget Stink Bugs and Plant Bugs https://cotton.ces.ncsu.edu/2017/07/manage-bollworm-first-but-dont-forget-stink-bugs-and-plant-bugs/
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Late Blight on Tomato Confirmed in Henderson County, NC  June 26, 2017 UPDATE. https://plantpathology.ces.ncsu.edu/2017/06/late-blight-on-tomato-confirmed-in-henderson-county-nc-june-26-2017/
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Section 18 Label Renewed in North Carolina for Use of Mertect Postharvest to Control Black Rot of Sweetpotato for Domestic Markets. https://plantpathology.ces.ncsu.edu/2018/03/section-18-label-renewed-in-north-carolina-for-use-of-mertect-postharvest-to-control-black-rot-of-sweetpotato-for-domestic-markers/
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Munster, M. 2017. Diseases Chpt 5. In: K.A. Moore, L.K. Bradley (eds). North Carolina Extension Gardener Handbook. NC State Extension, Raleigh, NC. https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/extension-gardener-handbook/5-diseases-and-disorders