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Black Cutworm IPM Saves Money, Reduces Insecticide Use |
Since 1980, Iowa State University Extension's Integrated Pest Management program staff have monitored black cutworm moth arrivals. County extension staff, farmers, agribusiness dealers, and crop consultants monitor traps placed in half the state's counties and report results to ISU's IPM office. Computer software determines when plant damage can be expected. Staff members educate growers, consultants, and agrichemical dealers about pest identification and economic thresholds and inform the agricultural community of moth arrival and cutting dates.
Extension educational meetings teach about the black cutworm's life cycle and how to identify the pest. News releases and newsletters alert growers to the presence of black cutworm, recommend IPM techniques, and discourage unjustified insecticide treatments.
A 1994 survey showed only 11 percent of corn fields following soybean acreage received an insecticide treatment. However, 25 percent were treated in 1979-a 56 percent reduction in treated acres in 15 years. Assuming total costs of $12 an acre for fuel, labor, and insecticide, the black cutworm IPM program saves Iowa farmers $15 million each year, and the environment is spared more than 1 million pounds of insecticide.
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[Integrated Pest Management in the North Central States] |
[National Integrated Pest Management Network] |