Progress 09/01/24 to 08/31/25
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience for the Delaware 2021-2025 (extended) EIP project includes a wide assemblage of Delawareans in the agricultural, horticultural, and apiculture community. Among the agricultural community alone, there are an estimated 2,300 farm families, not including crop consultants and allied agribusiness personnel. Project activities targeted small grain, sorghum, and soybean producers, specialty crops producers (particularly with pest surveillance and cover crop demonstrations), urban farms (through high tunnel demonstrations and workshops). A significant project audience included beekeepers regardless of operation scale with pest workshops, pest monitoring, and pollinator-important plant resource education. All facets of stakeholders, whether from among the Delaware landscape, greenhouse, ornamental, silviculture, or agricultural clientele were served through the plant diagnostic lab and through the efforts of the pesticide safety education program. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Co-PI Pollok attended a USDA-ARS Beltsville training 'Phytophthora 101' March 3-7 and a NPDN national meeting September 9-14, 2024 with workshops on Phytophthora, pythium and phytopythium. Workshops are trainings reached the turfgrass industry, beekeepers, and small urban and high tunnel farmers. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Project findings and results have been disseminated via Weekly Crop Update and Ornamentals Hotline articles (combined weekly newsletters reach more than 1,200 addresses), field days, YouTube, and other various extension events. Pollinator health actiities have been discussed duringmonthly apiary outreach events. The Newark Pollinator Garden was installed and uses QR codes for visitors to access information about the plants in the garden and the ecological value of plants as food for flower visiting insects (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Z31gPyD1vUTvFvkQiQzer3eUkGL3C8wt/view?usp=sharing). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Many of the projects mentioned in the accomplishments are continuing projects. Some facets of the individual priority areas have not yet started but will be during the growing season. These include pest surveys for corn and soybean, field and written surveys of conventional soybean producers and vegetable cover-crop adopters, and alfalfa potato leafhopper field surveys. Farmer contact lists are being generated to contact producers in August to provide input on successes, shortcomings, and issues that need addressing future projects. Other pests that will continue to be monitored for include beet armyworm, fall armyworm, and varroa mite. Italian rye grass samples are being collected for follow up herbicide resistance monitoring later this season. The ornamentals team (Co-PIs Kunkel, Moore, Emerson, and Pollok) will be heavily involved with field expos, Pest Walks, and diagnostic training events from June to September. A hands-on disease and insect identification and microscopy workshop is scheduled for July 8 and July 16. The ornamental and pollinator native garden demonstrations will continue to be expanded with new plantings and increased signage during the remainder of the project tyear. Varroa mites will continue to be sampled. Applicator training videos are currently being finalized with the goal of distributing them in July. An ornamental pest identification manual/ flip guide is in development with Co-PIs Kunkel, Emerson, and Pollok with an expected August completion.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Demonstrate alternative management techniques and practices Cover crop demonstrations were initiated in Fall 2024 and planted in May to demonstrate cover crop impact on various pests. Weeds are a major focus of cover crop demonstrations, as well as examing alternative soybean production systems using conventional, non-GMO soybean (a local buyer provides a premium for these beans). Non-GMO soybean plots planted in spring of 2024 were harvested and weed management approaches highlighted at 3 extension events. Identify Changes in Pest Complexes and Monitor Pest Response Pesticide resistance testing has been conducted on four populations of striped cucumber beetle from Delaware, Maryland, and New Jersey. Results suggest that Delaware beetles may be less pyrethroid susceptible than New Jersey. 17 Palmer amaranth populations were collected from DE and MD eastern shore and screened for resistance to mesotrione, fomesafen, 2,4-D choline, glufosinate, halosulfuron, and imazamox. All populations were resistant to imazamox and halosulfuron as expected since resistance to this class is wide-spread. Three populations were resistant to mesotrione and two were resistant to fomesafen. Additional studies with these populations are being planned. All populations were susceptible to glufosinate and 2,4-D choline. Develop New and Engaging Educational Resources The Agronomic and Specialty Crops team surveyed vegetable producers on preferred extension delivery mechanisms; 13 out of 20 respondents indicated videos would be the best way to deliver crop production information. Vlog style pest management videos were uploaded to the UD Extension YouTube page. Pest models and specimens have been created, along with fact sheets. Co-PI Kunkel is assembling fact sheets and 3D-print models of arthropod pests into geocache boxes to be deployed at the Sussex and New Castle demonstration gardens. Using live samples from the 2025 growing season, photos and preserved plant sample specimens were generated as training tools for rating Fusarium Head Blight % severity within head Vlog style pest management videos are currently being uploaded to UD Extension YouTube page. Print pest ID aids created thus far include 4 ornamental pest fact sheets to go along with ornamental geocache boxes, an informational flyer for farm market produce vendors, and a 12 month IPM Vegetable Scouting calendar. Geocaching materials almost complete; 3D prints have been added to boxes and are about to be placed into various locations in the Sussex education garden and the UD Botanical Garden. Over 150 prints of spiders, lady beetles, ticks, tree hoppers, caterpillars, pupae, ants, and mantids have been distributed Assist stakeholders with pest identification, anticipation, and planning The Delaware EIP project provides funding for the Plant Diagnsotic Lab. Thus far, more than 235 samples have been processed, with an expectiation of receiving close to 900 samples by the end of 2025. Crop surveys are an important component of the DE EIP project activity. Various crops were surveyed including high tunnels (43 high tunnels visited), alfalfa, small grains, and peas. Forty three high tunnels were visited by Co-PI Ogutu, surveys were completed indicating tomatoes are the number 1 crop followed by trellised cucumber. Major issues deteted include salt buildup and harlequin bugs in protected-structure cole crops. Farm School demonstrated biological controls and other IPM tactics; 2 producers indicated IPM effectiveness and 3 out of 7 using biological control. In alfalfa, 9 fields were surveyed; important issues detected in these fields included alfalfa weevil, disease, deer damage, and herbicide drift. Alfalfa weevil was less abundant than in previous years overall but still damaging; baseline parasitoid activity studied. Malt Barley acreage was l in 2024-2025, so the survey was expanded to include non-malt barley and wheat. Aphids surveyed in 14 small grain fields in fall and late winter. Ten fields surveyed for Fusarium Head Blight. Risk models exist to help predict risk of damage from FHB to guide spray recommendations. A dry winter kept risk low during barley flowering, but risk and incidence of FHB increased during wheat flowering. Ten WCU articles discussed FHB and aphid scouting and management. In peas, 10 fields were surveyed for seedcorn maggot damage and two snap bean fields were visited. SCM injury was discussed with a local consultant and the UD vegetable agent. Ornamental demonstration gardens are currently being expanded to include boxwood and arborvitae. Additional crepe myrtles were added for crepe myrtle bark scale crawler monitoring. Crawlers have begun emerging. Monitoring over several years will enable the team to adjust predictive phenology models and advise industry when to target insecticide application. Co-PD Delaney created a new feature to our website called "Ask the Bee Team", similar to "Ask an Expert" but focused on honey bee questions in the Mid-Atlantic. Provide training on pest identification, management, tool selection, and pesticide handling October and May pre-exam training for Category 03 (29 attendees, 4 hours of lecture training on proper turf and ornamental pests, laws, labels, and calibration. Attendee learning and pass rate has improved. Three high-quality English/Spanish calibration videos filmed by GROW Media Co. on boom and backpack sprayer and granular spreader calibration, 5-7 min. each. During the winter meetings, a turf workshop was held in each county with 95 attendees and industry clientele were given the opportunity to learn how to reduce inputs with new cultivars and see their characteristics. Enhance pollinator health and habitat Mr. Moore and a UD student designed a native plant plot for the Breakwater Community (a 92 dwelling HOA). Working this design will provide demonstrations on beneficial and predatory insects, pollinators, and using native plants as an aesthetically pleasing entrance planting. Plots at Milford Community Gardens and Waste Management are continuing to do well. The UD teaching apiary createda pollinator garden in 2024. 10 Pollinator 'To Go' activities (pollinator and plant scavenger hunts, pollinator bingo, information on conducitng pollinator observations) have been created and ready for use in outreach events in the pollinator garden and UD teaching apiary. Each activity has all of the supplies, lamintated sheets with learning goals, age group and detailed instructions created. Over 30 info-graphics on native flower visitors and native plants have been designed by students, we will be laminating these and hanging these inside the Educational Shed next to the pollinator garden. Honeybee pest education is a major component of the Pollinator IPM priority area. 3D printed honey bee pests have been printed (Varroa mite, small hiv beetle, and foulbrood models) with QR codes printed on the bottom. We have taken baseline mite counts for a subset of colonies to study the efficacy VarroxSan, a new, slow-release oxalic acid formulation.
Publications
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