Integrated Pest Management

What is a Pest?

Any organism that spreads disease, destroys property, competes with people for resources such as food, or is just a nuisance

Pesticides

People typically will use pesticides, like: Insecticides Herbicides Nematicides Fungicides Rodenticides

Integrated Pest Management

IPM – an information-based approach to controlling pests

Why do we have a pest problem?

98% of forests have been logged

Pest populations have been altered by humans

Forest Pests

Examples Tent Caterpillars Gypsy Moth Caterpillar Canadian Geese Mosquitoes

Exotic Pests

An insect or other organism that is not native to an area and is introduced

Exotic Pests

Examples Gypsy Moth Asian Long-horned

Beetle European Starling Ladybugs

IPM in Practice

Six Steps of IPM1. Identify your pest and

the damage properly

2. Learn the biology of your pest

3. Survey for pest population

Six Steps of IPM

4. Establish action threshold (tolerance level)

5. Select management tactics

6. Evaluate results

Management Tactics

What you can do about it! Use the IPM Pyramid

IPM Pyramid

First – Use Cultural/Physical Methods Multi-cropping Vacuuming Screens

IPM Pyramid

Second – Biological/Genetic Methods Biocontrol Parasitoids Genetic Engineering

IPM Pyramid

Third – Biorational Pesticides Water Spray Rotenone Soaps

IPM Pyramid

Last Resort! – Chemical Pesticides Round up Insect sprays

Larger areas are controlled by:

EPA USDA Pike County

Conservation District

Effects on the Environment

Positive Safer Fewer Pesticides Lower Cost

Effects on the Environment

Negative Changes to the local

ecosystem Does not eliminate all

pests Takes a lot of time