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Personalities in the News

Safety in IR-4

New Product Corner

Pest Management Solutions for Specialty Crops and Specialty Uses

Holiday Greenery

NewsletterVol. 49 No.4 Fall 2018

Combined Workshops

Spotted Lanternfly

IR-4 & AmericanGinseng

— by Kelly Servick

Modified from "Scientists spent yearson a plan to import this wasp to killstinkbugs. Then it showed up on itsown" Science August 9, 2018(doi:10.1126/science.aav0327).Reprinted with permission fromAAAS.

In a peach orchard down a ruralroad in Bridgeton, NJ, an uninvitedguest has run amok. The brownmarmorated stinkbug (Halyomorphahalys) has been gorging on theunripe fruit. The bugs have sunktheir needle-sharp stylets into thepeaches, creating wounds that oozea clear, sugary goo; form corkybrown blemishes; and leave the treesmore vulnerable to infection.

In this orchard, managed by theRutgers University AgriculturalResearch and Extension Center, themottled, shield-shaped stinkbug is aresearch subject. In surroundingfarms and homes, however, it's adespised invasive pest known for itsindiscriminate appetite, its tendencyto escape cold weather by crowdinginto homes—sometimes by thethousands—and the pungent,cilantro-like odor it releases whencrushed. (Exterminators oftenrecommend that homeownersvacuum up the insects instead.)

Native to Asia, the bug was firstspotted in the United States in

1998; it has since reached 43states and Washington, DC,attacking fruit trees, corn,soybeans, berries, tomatoes, andother crops. Statistics are scarce,but an industry group estimates thatMid-Atlantic apple growers alonelost $37 million to stinkbugdamage in 2010.

In the peach orchard, however,another surprise invader also is onthe march—and it may prove to bethe stinkbug's nemesis.

Like many invasive species, thebrown marmorated stinkbug has nomajor enemies in its new home tokeep its population in check. So in2005, entomologist Kim Hoelmerand his team at the US Departmentof Agriculture's (USDA's)Agricultural Research Service (ARS)in Newark, DE, turned to a strategyknown as classical biologicalcontrol: they traveled to Asia to findnatural enemies of the stinkbug thatthey might release in the UnitedStates.

Fanning out to agricultural fieldsand botanical gardens, the teamsearched for the bug's tiny clustersof barrel-shaped eggs. Theychecked whether any had beeninvaded by parasitoid wasps, whichinject their own eggs into thestinkbug's, leaving larvae that eatthe developing bugs before chewingtheir way out. By far the most

pervasive parasite they found was thesamurai wasp (Trissolcus japonicus),which, despite its fearsome name, isstingerless and smaller than a sesameseed. The ARS team imported severalstrains of the wasp to a quarantinedfacility in Newark and beganpainstaking tests to decide whether itwas a good biocontrol candidate.

Then in 2014, Hoelmer got anunexpected phone call. ElijahTalamas, a taxonomist at the FloridaDepartment of Agriculture andConsumer Services in Gainesville,had been helping another ARS teamidentify native wasps parasitizingstinkbug eggs in Maryland. Talamas,an expert on Trissolcus species, hadrecognized that some were samuraiwasps.

Scientists Spent Years on a Plan to

Import this Wasp to Kill Stinkbugs. Then it Showed Up on its Own

continued on pg 3

Measuring PollinatorAttractiveness

pg. 2Vol 49 No 4

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Executive Director NotesDear Friends

WOW, another year is reaching its conclusion. Though I am not ready to tackle all the year-end reports and documents,(SPOILER ALERT) IR-4 had one of its most successful years in recent memory. The number of new registrations is expectedto exceed 1000. I am proud of the IR-4 team in gaining this number of tangible registrations in a challenging regulatoryclimate. Everyone, including Field Technicians, Field Research Directors, Regional Field Coordinators, Laboratory Staff,Laboratory Research Directors, Study Directors, Quality Assurance, Administrative Support and Management have workeddiligently to achieve this milestone. IR-4’s partners, including the companies, growers/commodity associations, USDA andEPA continue to provide great support.

One can ask, what did we do differently? I believe the uptick in new registrations is due to many factors. Some of theefficiency moves we have implemented over the past several years are playing out in the number of new registrations. Thisincludes more attention to bundling multiple crops in a submission for an active ingredient. IR-4 has also taken advantage ofthe larger crop groups associated with the Crop Grouping expansion and enhancement project. Another factor playing a keyrole in IR-4 success is the reestablishment of the EPA Minor Use Team. The group that manages IR-4’s submissions withinEPA was sidelined by retirements and reassignments within EPA. The EPA Minor Use Team was stabilized this summer withthe appointment of Bo Davis as Minor Use and Emergency Response Branch Chief and Nancy Fitz as Minor Use Officer.With Bo’s support, Nancy and the remaining members of the Minor Use Team have been working through the accumulatedbacklog of IR-4 submissions pending at EPA.

On other fronts, IR-4 continues its aggressive push to eliminate the backlog in its analytical laboratories. I am pleased toshare that the IR-4 North Central and Western Region Laboratories have fully eliminated their backlog. Congratulations toSue Erhardt and Matt Hengel and their teams at the Regional Laboratories at Michigan State and University of California,Davis, respectively. The Southern Region Analytical Laboratory and the USDA-ARS Laboratory in Wapato, WA are on trackto report success by March 2019. Unfortunately, the USDA-ARS Laboratory in Tifton, GA will not achieve the backlogreduction goal. Due to USDA rules, the laboratory has not been able to use available resources to solve their backlog. Wehave requested that USDA-ARS management find ways to expedite the elimination of the backlog.

In September, IR-4 and its stakeholders established research priorities for 2019 at our workshops in St. Louis. If you recallfrom the last issue’s Executive Director’s notes, IR-4 was launching our Integrated Solutions program with the workshopserving as a venue to establish the first set of research priorities. It was not always as smooth as expected but MISSIONACCOMPLISHED. Kudos to Dan Kunkel, Krista Coleman as well as other technical leads at IR-4 HQ and in the regions forkicking off the exciting new program with six high priority projects. We see great potential to make a difference for thegrowers and consumers of specialty crops as a result of this program.

As we wrap up the year, I want to recognize and thank three scientists who are retiring, the first is Marija Arsenovic; shewas hired by IR-4 HQ almost 20 years ago as our Weed Science Manager. During her tenure, she was lead biologist in theherbicide management area, helping to facilitate hundreds of herbicide registrations on specialty crops. Also retiring is DanBotts. Dan has led the Technical Committee of the Minor Crop Farmers Alliance sinceits establishment in the mid-1990s. He also served on the IR-4 Commodity LiaisonCommittee. He has produced significant national/international impacts in his careerincluding the development and approval of the Minor Use Title of the 1996 FoodQuality Protection Act. Dan will be missed. One more retirement was that of ConnieScarborough, who worked for 30 years in the USDA-ARS Laboratory in Tifton, GA.

On behalf of my co-workers with the IR-4 Project, we wish everyone a wonderful holiday season. We look forward to keeping the IR-4 success train running at full speed in 2019.

That’s all for now, Jerry

Dan Kunkel presenting appreciationplaque to Dan Botts at the MinorCrop Farmer Alliance meeting.

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Stink-bug Killer?

"It was stunning news," Hoelmerrecalls. He had spent years studyingthe wasp in the lab to make surethat, if released, it would do its jobwithout harming native species. Butthe insect was already here.Genetic tests confirmed that thewasps in Maryland hadn't escapedfrom any of his quarantined strains.Somehow, they had immigrated ontheir own.

Over the decades, a variety ofuninvited biocontrol candidateshave popped up on new continents,including a fungus that killsforest-stripping gypsy moths and abeetle that devours allergy-inducingragweed. "The examples definitelyare piling up," says Donald Weber,an ARS entomologist in CollegePark, Maryland, whose team foundthe first US samurai wasps. "We'vehad this mindset that naturalenemies would be less likely toestablish than invasive pests,” hesays. “But sometimes, It might befairly easy."

Those unexpected arrivals canunsettle scientists and regulators.Rules aimed at carefully controllinginsect releases can seemnonsensical when the species inquestion is already happilyspreading on its own. And thearrival of the samurai wasp hasprompted a fresh look at some USregulations.

But unplanned introductions alsofree researchers from some of theusual constraints, allowing them toexplore key questions about abiocontrol agent's impact in fieldexperiments rather than just thelab. The team at the peach orchard,for example, is one of about adozen US groups now releasing thesamurai wasp into fields andorchards to see whether it will be

an ally in fighting the exoticstinkbugs—or yet anotherproblematic invader.

Since the samurai wasp's first USappearance in 2014, surveys haveturned up at least three geneticallydistinct populations in areasaffected by the brown marmoratedstinkbug suggesting multipleintroductions.

One night last May, 3600 samuraiwasps streamed from mesh cagesinto the stinkbug-infested NewJersey orchard. A team led byRutgers entomologist Anne Nielsenand entomologist Kevin Rice of theUniversity of Missouri in Columbiahad strung up yellow sticky cardsbaited with stinkbug egg clustersamong the peaches and along theadjacent forest edge. They plannedto wait a few days, collect thecards, and count the wasps to seewhether they had ventured into theorchard to pursue thepeach-destroying bugs.

The insects were descendants ofwasps that Nielsen first discoveredin a nearby New Jersey orchard in2017—the first find in a USagricultural crop. Maybe waspembryos were hiding in stinkbugeggs aboard a cargo ship. An adultwasp may even have hitched a ridewith an unsuspecting airlinepassenger. (While awaiting a flightfrom New York City to Russia,

Talamas once watched a differentparasitoid wasp species, native tothe U S, land on a page of hisbook. "All it had to do was fly downthe walkway … next stop: Russia."He trapped the hitchhiker in hiscontact lens case and, on arrival,preserved it in vodka.

Now that the wasps are in the US,research questions abound, Nielsensays. “In their native range, theyparasitize up to 90% of brownmarmorated eggs. But will theirbehavior be different here? Wherewill they congregate and forage?Will they dramatically reducestinkbug populations? Couldfarmers support the wasp byadjusting their practices—forexample, not spraying pesticideswhere the insects are mostconcentrated?” The chance toprobe basic questions about alittle-studied exotic species, Ricesays, is "fabulously exciting."

For US regulators, however, thewasp's unexpected arrival poses aconundrum. "This is a good chancefor us to codify policy and decide,‘How are we going to handle thesecircumstances?’" says RobertPfannenstiel, an APHISentomologist in Riverdale,Maryland, who reviews releaseapplications. "Will we allowchanges from our policies andprocesses that are already in place,or not?"

Studies so far suggest the samuraiwasp is a promising biocontrolagent. Although in laboratory testsit has parasitized some eggs laid bynative species, it has shown astrong preference for brownmarmorated stinkbug eggs.Scientists can release the accidentalstrains in states where they'vealready been discovered, but for

Wasp continued from pg 1

continued on pg 4

A samurai wasp emerges from the brownmarmorated stinkbug egg in which ithatched. Scientists hope the wasp willreduce populations of the pest in US crops.Photo by Chris Hedstrom, OregonDepartment of Agriculture

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Stink-bug Killer?

now they can't spread the waspsindiscriminately. APHIS prohibitsmoving exotic species that haven'tbeen formally cleared for releaseinto new states. (Nielsen and Rice,for example, couldn't legally performtheir same experiment if they drove4 hours north to Connecticut, wheresamurai wasps haven't beenfound—so far.)

The wasp needs to go throughregulatory review, just like any othercandidate, Pfannenstiel says. "Thedanger, in one case, of saying, ‘Oh,we can tell it's not a risk,’ and thenreleasing it [is that] there's pressureto do that repeatedly, and startmaking judgment calls rather thandeterminations based on data." Fieldstudies of the accidental strainscould speed the evaluation and helpthe wasp's chances of approval—orreveal new reasons not to releaseit,” he says. "I go into theseevaluations with no preconceptions."

Hoelmer's team at ARS is stillpreparing a petition to APHIS torelease one deliberately importedstrain, which he hopes could serveas a backup if the accidentallyintroduced strains spread slowly. Healso intends to include theaccidentally introduced strains in hisrelease petition, because theirbiology is so similar to that of thestrain he has studied extensively. Heplans to submit his petition by theend of this year, and hopes for adecision next year. For now, he says,growers and researchers in stateswhere the wasp hasn't been detectedwill simply "have to wait until itcrosses the border."

The researchers at work in theRutgers orchard aren't yet endorsingthe samurai wasp as a biocontrolagent. First, they'd like more

evidence that it won't harm nativespecies. "They're invasive," Ricesays. "They're not in a differentbucket from the stinkbugs.”The restrictions on spreading thewasp "can be frustrating, and it canseem arbitrary, but the regulationsare there for a reason," Nielsenadds. Still, she says, the wasp "islikely our best hope of controllingthe brown marmorated." Examiningthe sticky cards this summer, herteam found a roughly equaldistribution of wasps in the peachesand the nearby woods. That findingsuggests the wasps are perfectlyhappy foraging for stinkbug eggsamong the fruit, which bodes wellfor the wasps' ability to control thepests. The team plans to run asimilar experiment soon to see howthe wasps spread into another crop,soybeans.

Meanwhile, researchers inCalifornia have sent Talamasanother surprise: a new,accidentally introduced Trissolcusparasitoid wasp, this one native toIndia and Pakistan, which emergedfrom the egg of another exoticstinkbug pest, Bagrada hilaris. "Ithink that these introductions arehappening constantly," Talamassays, but come to light only whentaxonomists bother to take a closelook. He published the new findingin August 2018, in the Journal ofHymenoptera Research.

Such arrivals are "humbling," Webersays—a reminder of the limits thathumans face in shaping theirenvironment. "We have less controlover things than we think."

Wasp

Personalitiesin the NewsHerman Waguespack, Jr.Herman Waguespack, Jr. is the newestIR-4 Commodity Liaison Committeemember. Herman earned a B.S. inAgriculture fromNicholls StateUniversity. Whileat Nicholls, hewas president ofthe NSU Ag Cluband served aspresident ofDelta Tau Alphahonoraryagriculturefraternity. He was named theoutstanding AG graduate of 1981and was a Nicholls Hall of Famegraduate. Upon graduation he workedas a sugarcane farm manager forCaire and Graugnard and for severalyears worked as a Farm Bureauinsurance agent in St. James Parish,LA. In 1985, he began his career as asugarcane agronomist for theAmerican Sugar Cane League workingwith researchers and farmersthroughout the state to develop newvarieties and test new technology forthe advancement of the Louisianasugarcane industry. In 1996, hecompleted his studies at LSU andgraduated with a master’s degree inagronomy. Since 1985, he hasworked with the Louisiana sugarcanevariety development team to release20 new sugarcane varieties forcommercial production. Sugarcane isa unique commodity. It’s a tropicalcrop that has been improved throughbreeding to withstand the temperate

Rutgers University entomologist AnneNielsen and graduate student Nick Avilasurvey a yellow sticky card for samuraiwasps to track their dispersal in the peachorchard. Photo by Dean Polk.

continued on next pg

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Personalities in the Newsenvironment in Louisiana. AlthoughLA experiences freezingtemperatures every year, growerscan still successfully produce asugarcane crop and supplyapproximately 20% of the domesticsugar (sucrose) supply. Hermanrecently became involved in theIR-4 program while working withresearchers at LSU and USDA todevelop a management strategy fora new weed that has been causingmajor losses in the sugarcanefields. Working with engineers andfarmers, the American SugarcaneLeague agronomists have alsoconducted studies to help improvemechanical planting and otherimportant tools for the industry.

His hobbies include hunting,fishing, guitar, woodworking,gardening and anything Cajun(especially the food). He and hiswife Lisa, enjoy living in Thibodaux,LA.

Carolina Simao Roe-RaymondDr. Carolina joined IR-4 as aProgram Assistant in 2018.Carolina assists with managing theProtecting Pollinators projectwithin the Environ. Hort. Program.

This project bringstogether scientistsfrom variousinstitutions to researchhow to protect beeswithin ornamentalhorticulture. In herrole, she also conducts

field work associated with theproject, helps develop outreachcontent, maintains the ProtectingBees website, and contributes tothe pollinator-attractivenessdatabase. In her spare time,Carolina enjoys dancing salsa,traveling, and spending time withher family.

Chelsea BonettiChelsea Bonetti has joined IR-4 as

a Research Coordinator and StudyDirector. Herstrong analyticalchemistrybackground androbustknowledge ofGood LaboratoryPractices brings much neededsupport for the Food Use Program.Chelsea has seven years ofexperience in the agroscienceindustry, which includes working asan Assistant Laboratory Director,Research Scientist and AnalyticalChemist for Eurofins AgroscienceServices. She also worked as aResearch Intern at the PrincetonInstitute for the Science andTechnology of Materials (PRISM)and the Princeton Center forComplex Materials (PCCM). Chelseahas a Masters of Chemistry inAnalytical Chemistry from IllinoisInstitute of Technology and aBachelor of Science, from theCollege of Saint Elizabeth.

New Beginnings for RetireesHQ will miss Marija Arsenovic whoretired on Nov. 1, 2018. Marija hadbeen with IR-4 for almost 20 years.She was the Lead Weed ScienceBiologist and was responsible formanaging the Weed Scienceregistrations.

Marija is looking forward tospending more time with her family.Thank you Marija for your service toIR-4!

Connie Scarborough retired onOctober 8, 2018 after 30 years ofservice with USDA-ARS. Conniespent her entire career as a

laboratory technician atthe Crop Protection andManagement ResearchLaboratory in Tifton, GAwhere she conductedfood residue assays insupport of the IR-4Project.

The IR-4 Newsletter is published quarterly for distributionto cooperators in our partner State/Federal/Industryresearch units, State and Federal officials, commoditygroups, and private citizens. Material from the IR-4Newsletter may be reproduced with credit to the NewJersey Agricultural Experiment Station PublicationNo.P-27200-18-04. This material is based upon workthat is supported by the National Institute of Food andAgriculture, US Department of Agriculture, under awardnumber 2017-34383-27100 and the Hatch Multistateproject accession number 1008823 through the NewJersey Agricultural Experiment Station Hatch Multistateproject NJ27202, with substantial cooperation andsupport from other State Agricultural ExperimentStations, USDA-ARS, and USDA-FAS. In accordancewith Federal Law and US Department of Agriculturepolicy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating onthe basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age ordisability.

Editor: Sherrilynn NovackIR-4 Public Relations and Communication Manager,732.932.9575 x 4632, novack@njaes.rutgers.edu

Newsletter Committee:North Central Regional Director, John Wise, 517.432.2668.

Western Regional Assistant Field Coordinator, Stephen Flanagan, 541.688.3155.

Southern Region USDA-ARS Interim Minor Use Coordinator, AlvinSimmons 843.402.5307

Commodity Liaison Committee member, Mike Bledsoe, 407-493-3933, Village Farms.

IR-4 HQ, 732.932.9575Integrated Solutions Program Assistant, Krista Coleman x 4631Research Coordinator & Study Director, Thomas Pike x 4628Associate Director, Dan Kunkel x 4616Environmental Horticulture Manager, and Technical CopyEditor Cristi Palmer x 4629Research Coordinator & Study Director, Ken Samoil x4614Assistant Director, Van Starner x 4621

The IR-4 Newsletter, Vol. 49 No.4 Fall 2018

Information Exchange

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The IR-4 Project and AmericanGinseng: Like Two Peas in a PodThe collaboration between the IR-4Project and growers of Americanginseng (Panax quinquefolius) is anexample of a perfect relationship.Both share a strong passion forsuccess of this specialty crop, theycommunicate well with each other,and support each other in times ofneed. This excellent workingrelationship has led to manyaccomplishments including theregistration of many beneficialchemical compounds to increasethe quality of the crop and bolsterthe success of the Americanginseng industry. Without theseregistered products, growers couldlose an estimated 80-100% of theircrop. Through IR-4 research, morethan 14 products have been labeledfor ginseng disease control since2002.

Growers share a special relationshipwith American ginseng. Thisperennial herb is an expensive andtime-consuming crop to grow. Aminimum of three years is needed

to obtain a marketable root. Nativeto woodlots, many growerscommercially cultivate the crop bycovering raised plant beds with athick layer of straw and maintainingartificial shade structures (seepicture). This high value crop mustbe monitored for wild turkeys, plantpathogens, weeds, and insects.After harvest, the roots are cooledin a monitored refrigerated unit for10 to 20 days and then washedand sorted to remove soil and fielddebris. Roots are dried in aspecially designed ginseng dryer for14 days, where they are closelymonitored. Following drying, rootsare trimmed, and sorted againaccording to size, shape and qualitybefore they are sold.

Cultivation of American ginseng hasa long, rich history of more than100 years in Wisconsin that datesback to the 1870s. The firstcultivated ginseng was grown by theFromm Brothers of Hamburg,Wisconsin during World War II.Revenue from ginseng funded theirfox fur business.

Today, 95% of the total cultivatedAmerican ginseng production in theUS occurs in Central Wisconsin,specifically, Marathon County. Thisarea provides optimal conditions forginseng production including coolsummers, rolling hills, and uniquesoils. Currently, there areapproximately 150-200 growers inWisconsin who farm approximately1,500 acres, producing500,000-600,000 pounds of root.Annually, the revenue isapproximately $15 million USD,

depending on price andinternational trade conditions. American ginseng is widely used inWestern cultures as a dietarysupplement and has been used intraditional Chinese medicine forcenturies. In a recent clinical trial,Wisconsin ginseng was found toimprove overall energy levels incancer patients undergoingchemotherapy. American ginseng(Panax quinquefolius) and Asianginseng (Panax ginseng) are bothconsumed for health benefitsincluding antioxidant andanti-inflammatory properties,improvement in memory, behaviorand mood, strengthening of theimmune system, lowering of bloodsugar, and anti-cancer properties.The active compounds includeginsenosides and gintonin, whichare thought to complement eachother to provide health benefits.

Despite the historical significanceand economic value of Americanginseng, the industry was not wellknown to registrants and others.As a result, very few pesticide labels

— by Kathryn Homa, IR-4 Project, Dr. Mary K. Hausbeck and Blair Harlan, Michigan State University

Traditional Cultivated Ginseng Field

Research Plots

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included ginseng, and the crop’syield and quality were suffering.That all changed about twelve yearsago when the industry partneredwith the IR-4 Project. Dr. Mary K.Hausbeck, from Michigan StateUniversity was working with thesmall ginseng industry in northernlower and upper peninsulas ofMichigan and began a regionaleffort to secure Section 18 labelsfor needed fungicides. This regionaleffort across Wisconsin andMichigan, with strong support fromthe IR-4 Project, has resulted inmany key pesticide registrationsthat have greatly enhanced the yieldand limited root rot which wasdecimating the industry. Every year,the Ginseng Board of Wisconsin incooperation with Michigan StateUniversity and the IR-4 Project hosta summer Ginseng Field Day. Thisfull-day program provides animportant opportunity to showcaseresearch plots established withgrower cooperators, answer specificquestions about the crop, assistwith diagnosis, and discuss newpesticides and managementstrategies. Growers communicatetheir need for future research to beconducted in upcoming years. Thissystem works well as growercooperators open their ginsenggardens to allow the research workto be conducted and the results can

be shared with other growers. Ginseng Field Day was held onThursday, August 9, 2018 withover 100 participants that includedgrowers, researchers, and industryand state representatives. The dayfocused on examining the efficacyand crop safety of both registeredand experimental conventional andbio-fungicides. Research field stopsalso included plots that consisted oftank mixes and alternations offungicides. These plots areimportant, since they replicate anexample of how a grower would usethese products in the field.Important diseases of focusincluded Alternaria panax, Botrytiscinerea, root rot caused byPhytophthora cactorum, root andstem rot caused by Rhizoctoniasolani, and root rot caused byCylindrocarpon destructans. Also

included in this year’s field daywere plant growth regulator striptrials to de-bud the crop to limitseed production and promote largeroots. Herbicides are also tested forcrop safety and efficacy against thecommonly occurring weeds. Thesetrials are important, as growerscurrently rely on hand labor toweed and de-bud.

Throughout the Field Day, growersand researchers shared theirknowledge with one another aboutsuccesses and issues that they wereencountering over the last growingyear. The IR-4 Project’s KathrynHoma was a featured speaker anddiscussed with growers thefungicides that have been submittedto EPA for review and other GLPresidue projects that are ongoing.Many growers were excited to hearabout the pipeline of new productsthat will be registered over the nextfew years.

Opportunities such as the annualGinseng Field Day provide valuableinformation that aid growers inproducing a successful crop byreducing the risk of pest damage.This meeting also strengthens therelationships between growers,industry, researchers, and the IR-4Project.

AlternariaBlight

Dr. MaryHausbeck (inblue shirt)provides valuableinformationregarding thetrial.

Information Exchange

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Safety Safety is key in many aspectsof our IR-4 work. While froma field perspective, our field

research personnel have the mostdirect safety risks, the reality is thatall IR-4 personnel are impacted bysafety. Whether in the field, the labor commuting to and from homeand work we are all exposed tosafety risks. Let's take some time toconsider how field, lab and drivingsafety can be addressed andimproved in our IR-4 workplace.

Field SafetyThe first culprit might be fairlyobvious, that is our work is relatedto pesticides, compounds designedto kill. For all of us involved in thedirect handling and application ofpesticides we are the benefactors ofdecades of scientific progress. Thisprogress means we’re sprayingremarkably fewer organophosphateand carbamate materials and we’retesting biorational materials(compounds that are effective onthe pest but relatively innocuous tobeneficial insects and humans) withgreatly reduced mammalian toxicity.In simple terms we’re sprayingcompounds such as insect growthregulators (IGRs) and syntheticmushroom byproducts (strobilurins)which are effective at controllingagricultural pests with the addedbenefit of being safer for humansand non-target organisms.

I’m a father and grandfather withover three decades of agriculturalfield experience and a few storiesgarnered from the miles. I can tellyou about an early morning bikeride alongside an alfalfa field whereI was sprayed by an AgCat airplaneapplying an insecticide that left meretching at the end of the field. Ican tell you about following myboss into a California vineyard thatwe both knew had been sprayedwith dimethoate and how welaughed off the headaches and

work. In fact I’m not aware of any“accidents” or “events” with ourresearch activities related topesticide poisoning. This is aremarkable fact and speaks to thequality and care exhibited by ourfield research directors and alsoserves as a reminder to continuallystrive for a safe work environment.

Some of you reading this articlemay have met or interacted withour Idaho field researcher WillMeeks. At the time of this writing Iqueried Will about how heapproaches safety in his fieldactivities. I caught Will on his wayto an eight day deer hunt innorthern Idaho. "Regardless ofwhether it’s Roundup ® orParaquat ® it's all the same to me."Will works alone as an FRD andtravels long distances across Idahoto conduct his IR-4 trials. "Fieldwork is the same as hiking orcamping, if you're alone the risk ishigher and requires extra caution."

I've observed Will's pesticideapplications for many years and it'sremarkable whether it's been in thedark at 5 am or late in the dayunder blazing sun, Will isconsistently suited in full mask

nausea we experienced later. Inanother vineyard event my wholecrew was staring fixedly at aninjection pump which blew a hoseand proceeded to spray us all with acarbofuran solution. That last eventended up with a late nightemergency run.

Why the stories? I’m not interestedin anyone experiencing the fear andphysical effects of being poisonedwith acutely toxic pesticides. One ofthe aspects of our work is that weserve a critical role in bringing saferand more effective tools into theagricultural environment. Our workis the slow, detailed and progressivescience that helps bring safer pestcontrol materials to the farm. In ourprogram, field research directors arethe front line workers who directlyhandle and apply these pesticides.

How do we mitigate handling risksfor our field researchers? I’d suggestthis is a two-fold responsibility. Firstoff as an organization we need tohold ourselves to prioritizing workon safer, biorational materials fromthe beginning. Secondly we need toavoid the contempt that inevitablycomes with time. Training andreminding ourselves that evenrelatively safe (say category III:Caution) materials are still pesticideswith acute and chronic health effectsand therefore deserve respect. I’malways impressed when I visit a fieldsite and observe the carefulattention to detail and use of PPE(personal protective equipment) byour field researchers.

I'm now in my seventeenth year ofworking in the Western Region andparticipating in field studies. Thesestudies have been as diverse asaerial mosquito applications,oysterbed spike wheel injectors, anda plethora of airblast, hand boomand injection systems as well. Sincecoming to IR-4 I’ve never beendirectly exposed or poisoned in this

Feature

— by Stephen Flanagan, WSR Assistant R

WillMeeks inTyvek suit.

pg. 9Vol 49 No 4

Feature

respirator, Tyvek suit and rubberboots. Will practices what hepreaches and sets an impeccablestandard in personal protection.

To specifically aid FRDs in theWestern Region the field officeprovides each Field ResearchCenter with a comprehensive webpage with links to importantpesticide safety documents. Most ofus are familiar with MSDS (MaterialSafety Data Sheets) whichare now called SDSinternationally. During theprotocol review processwe confirm the exact testsubstance formulationsand label and generate aweb page which lists eachstudy and thecorresponding SDS andlabel. In addition, thiswebsite has the material’shazard category (III-Caution,II-Warning, or I-Danger) andprotective equipment requirements.If the material is not labeled, thelabel link will have an entry of “NoData” as a reminder that thematerial is new and has limiteddocuments. The web page servesas a central location for safetydocuments and a reminder ofimportant safety requirementsassociated with a particular testsubstance.

Lab SafetyAs with the field, the lab facesvery similar safety concerns. Notonly does the lab need to handlethe purified pesticide (>95%purity), but they are faced withconcentrated acids and bases,powerful oxidizing agents andcancer-causing organic solvents.In some cases, the reagents arefar more toxic than the pesticideof interest. To mitigate the risk

using these chemicals, UC Davis hasgone to great lengths to providetraining and access to free PPE (labcoats and eye protection). Inaddition, the lab has gone through amajor shift in attitude towardspersonal safety. Long ago, it wasn’tuncommon to find certain analystswearing shorts (cough cough, Matt)without a lab coat or eye protection,or to see a cup of coffee warming ontop of a hot gas chromatograph rightnext to the beaker of hexane forwashing the injection syringe.Currently, many of the sampleextractions, which used to simply

occur on the bench, are nowconducted in a fume hood or insealed tubes to minimize exposureto organic solvents. And wherepossible, the overall amount oforganic solvent has been reducedfrom approximately 400 mL persample to 40 mL. This reductionhelps us in two ways; first we reducethe exposure during sample analysisand second, we minimize the

amount of solvent that must behandled for waste disposal.

Driving Safety The safety aspects of handlingpesticides and laboratory reagentsare specific to our field and labpersonnel. A universal safety topicfor all of us at IR-4 is driving. We allget behind the wheel. We all pushourselves and end up fatiguedbehind the wheel. It might be onthe New Jersey Turnpike, I-85 inthe Carolinas, Highway 99 in theSan Joaquin Valley, or innumerable

interstates and rural twolane roads. Regardless ofour professional role orwhere we live, we all areexposed and at riskwhen we are driving.According to the Centerfor Disease Control theeffects of drowsy drivingare akin to drunk driving(1). We're all keenlyaware of the dangers of

driving under the influence, but dowe have the same awarenessaround lack of sleep? The abovementioned CDC article states thatstaying awake for 18 hours isequivalent to a blood alcoholcontent (BAC) of .05% and stayingawake for 24 hours is comparableto a BAC of .10%. "Drowsy driving is estimated to be

a factor in 20 percent of fatalcrashes. A new study from AAAstates that drivers who skimp on theseven hours of sleep expertsrecommend increase their risk of acrash exponentially. Missing one totwo hours of sleep doubles adriver’s crash risk, while foregoingtwo or three hours increases therisk of a crash by 400 percent,according to the AAA Foundationfor Traffic Safety study." (2)

Long field days, delayed travel plansand snarling commutes all translate

A sample of the Kearney Agricultural Center’s Label and SDS page

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in IR-4RFC and Matt Hengel, WSR Lab Director

Julie Coughlin, Guy Kyser, and MichelleMitchell using safety precautions in the lab.

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Safety & Workshops

into fatigue and the potential tobecome a drowsy driver. As WillMeeks said to me on the phonetoday "It's about not doingsomething stupid that means youend up dead." In my years beforeIR-4 life I consulted and conductedresearch studies throughoutCalifornia. In those years I estimatethat I drove over 750,000 milesand can relate to several of the"Drowsy Driving" warning signslisted below.

Take some extra time to get whereyou're going, slow down, pull overand take a nap when you start tofeel drowsy. Most of us haveexperienced these symptoms, butlet's remind ourselves of thedangers and take steps to mitigatethe risks.

In SummarySo what do we do? Maybe I’m

finally at the age where slowingdown a bit actually seemsbeneficial. The work will get done.As Matt Hengel mentioned in thelab section, we can ensure that PPEis provided and used as well asrevising our procedures tominimize exposure. Do your fieldpersonnel have adequate PPE? Arethey using it? Have you reviewedyour MSDS and label safetydocuments? Have you reviewedyour facility procedures with an eyetoward safety? These are allquestions worth examining toimprove safety.

The riskier aspects of our work inhandling pesticides and driving longdistances can be mitigated withthought and some planning ahead.In our western region webinars, weemphasize safety reminders, butultimately individual safety is apersonal responsibility. We havesignificant experience and a recordof safety in our organization, butlet’s keep in mind that the work hasits dangers and requires us all to becareful out there.

(1)www.cdc.gov/sleep/about_sleep/drowsy_driving.html(2)cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/best-cars-blog/2016/12/drowsy-driving-worse-than-drunk-driving

From September 19th to the 21st,over 175 IR-4 commodity/growerstakeholders, industryrepresentatives, and regulatorycolleagues from North America andbeyond gathered in St. Louis, MOfor the Food Use/IntegratedSolutions/Biopesticide Workshops.There, just a few of the hundreds ofproject requests received fromgrower stakeholders would beselected as priority researchprojects for the upcoming year.With this being perhaps the most

Drowsy Driving Warning Signs

• Yawning or blinking frequently• Difficulty remembering the

past few miles driven• Missing your exit• Drifting from your lane• Hitting a rumble strip

important meeting of the year forIR-4, a tremendous amount ofplanning was done leading up tothe event. Planning was especiallycrucial with the incorporation of thefirst ever Integrated SolutionsWorkshop.

Wednesday began with a shortintroduction by IR-4 Exec. DirectorJerry Baron before jumping rightinto the Food Use projectprioritization process. Review anddiscussion was focused on a list of

about 180 project requests thatreceived “A” priority nominationsfrom stakeholders online Aug.23-Sept. 6. Workshop participantswere tasked with determining the46 most critical “A” priority residueand 8 most important “H+”product performance projects fromthis list. After only a few passesthrough the requests, the targetwas achieved. These “A” and “H+”priorities, including variousinsecticide, fungicide and herbicideneeds, represent about two-thirdsof the IR-4 Food Use research planfor 2019. Kudos to the stake-holders who were extremelycooperative when it came tosacrificing certain favored projectsto allow more critical ones to makethe cut and achieve the targetnumber of priorities. Also, a specialthanks goes to Bo Davis and NancyFitz from the EPA Minor Use andEmergency Response Branch, whoprovided an update on variousregulatory topics of specialimportance to IR-4 stakeholders.

Thursday morning was focused onvarious presentations, including“The State of IR-4,” updates fromCAST and the IR-4 CommodityLiaison Committee, Minor UseActivities in Australia, and a thankyou from IR-4 colleagues in PuertoRico for support through thedevastating 2017 hurricane seasonthey endured. Industryrepresentatives then had anopportunity to present new

Combined Workshops— by IR-4 HQ Personnel: Michael Braverman, Krista Coleman, ThomasPike & Van Starner

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IR-4’s Executive Director, Jerry Baron (far right) delivers the“State of IR-4” presentation at the Workshop.

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New Productsconventional and biopesticideproducts that are coming down thepipeline, as well as updates onexisting products.

Next up was the IntegratedSolutions priority setting workshop,which included many of the sameneeds as the BiopesticideWorkshop due to 2018 being atransition year. High-priorityprojects selected for research in2019 include bacterial diseasecontrol in onions, parasitic weedcontrol in processing tomato,cucumber beetle control inwatermelon, wireworm control insweet potato, verticillium wiltcontrol in eggplant and nematodecontrol to avoid tuber decay inyam. These priorities were derivedfrom a sorting process similar to theFood Use Workshop. For next year,a pre-workshop on-line projectnomination process is beingconsidered to facilitate moreconcise discussion at the workshop.IR-4 believes that this IntegratedSolutions approach, being a hybridof the Food Use Pest ProblemsWithout Solutions (PPWS) researchand elements of the traditionalBiopesticide research program, willbetter service the needs of IR-4stakeholders.

Friday was the Biopesticideworkshop. IR-4 has a long historywith biopesticides, starting withexpanding the registration ofBacillus thuringiensis in themid-1970s. Since the 1980’s, theprogram has focused on

registration of these important toolsfor growers. In 1995, the programexpanded to include productperformance on both food andnon-food crops. Notableachievements include the EPAregistration of bacteriophage,biotechnology based resistance toplum pox and papaya ringspotviruses, aflatoxin control, Varroamite management in honey bees,attract and kill systems, codlingmoth granulosis virus, and manyothers. At the workshop, attendeesutilized breakout group sessionsbased on discipline (entomology,plant pathology, and weed science)to discuss pest managementpriorities and cast their votes. Theresulting top priorities to beresearched in 2019 include:spotted-wing drosophila, organicbasil downy mildew, screening ofbioherbicides, and pepino mosaicvirus on greenhouse tomato. A toppriority in both workshops wasdamping-off in hemp, which willreceive its funding through theIntegrated Solutions program sincethe potential solutions includeconventional treatments. Thoughthere will not be separateBiopesticide workshops in thefuture, this is not a farewell, but atestament to the program’s success.In the coming years, biopesticideswill receive more attention in theFood Use program throughIntegrated Solutions.

Ultimately, the 2018 combinationof workshops successfullydeveloped an IR-4 roadmap for

both residue and productperformance research in2019, addressing the pestmanagement needs of thegrower community, and addingmore tools to their pestcontrol toolbox.

View from the interior of the famousSt. Louis Gateway Arch.

AFIDOPYROPEN (Inscalis®insecticide – BASF)Introduction: Registration forBASF’s new active ingredient (AI)afidopyropen (Inscalis®) wasgranted by the EPA Sept. 10,2018. BASF had submitted forjoint review with US-EPA,CAN-PMRA and MexicoCOFEPRIS, the latter two agenciesstill under review. The AI wasdiscovered by Meiji Seika PharmaCo. Ltd and the Kitasato Institute,and was developed by BASF.Registration of afidopyropenprovides growers with analternative mode of action from anovel chemical class, thepyropenes, providing an essentialtool to farmers for use in resistanceand integrated pest managementprograms on a wide range of cropssuch as vegetables, fruits, rowcrops and ornamentals to controlpiercing-sucking insect pests. TheAI is derived from the naturalproduct Pyripyropene A, and has afavorable toxicological andenvironmental profile, and lowacute toxicity to importantbeneficial arthropods andpollinators (no pollinatorrestrictions on labels). With a quickonset of action it stops insectfeeding, reducing nutrient loss andvectoring of viral/bacterialpathogens. Afidopyropen isclassified by the InsecticideResistance Action Committee(IRAC) as a Group 9 insecticide, inthe new Subgroup 9D, Pyropenes.Other global registrations: BASFreceived the first globalregistrations in Australia and Indiafor the new insecticide Inscalis(afidopyropen). Registrations are

New ProductCorner

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New Product Corner

expected in additional countriesand regions in the future.US trade names/formulations/labeled crops: Versys® Inscalis®Insecticide (a 0.83 lb AI/galdispersible concentrate) – for useson leafy vegetables, crop group4-16; Brassica head/stemvegetables, crop group 5-16; pomefruit, crop group 11-10; stonefruit, crop group 12-12; and leafpetioles subgroup 22B; Sefina®Inscalis® Insecticide (a 0.42 lbAI/gal dispersible concentrate) – foruses on cotton and soybeans;fruiting vegetables, crop group8-10; cucurbit vegetables, cropgroup 9; and citrus fruit, cropgroup 10-10; see labels for specificcrops, use patterns and othergeneral directions for use.Labeled pest spectrum:piercing-sucking insect pests,including homoptera such asaphids, whiteflies, psyllids, scalesand leafhoppersCompleted IR-4 residue projects(PR#): 2016 – GH cucumber(11675)/GH tomato (11677)/GHpepper (11676)/GH strawberry(11680) – all joint with Canada,and final reports are signed andready for submission.Other IR-4 database requests(PR#): GH eggplant (11796) –should be covered by GHtomato/GH pepper; GH lettuce(11695) - IR-4 to considersubmission of Canadian GH lettucedata from ongoing study.Environmental horticulture:Ventigra® was registered Sept.2018 for the control of piercingand sucking insects onenvironmental horticulture cropsand vegetable transplants for retailsale to consumers. Specific pestsinclude aphids, whiteflies,mealybugs, and scale suppression.IR-4 contributed to this registrationwith crop safety studies on

numerous crops including Aster,Begonia, Chrysanthemum,Dianthus, Echinacea, Foxglove, Ivy,Larkspur, Poppy, Sedum, Veronica,Yew, and Zinnia. Most cropsexhibited no injury or growthreduction at up to 4X therecommended rate. Please view thelabel for more details on cropsafety. Studies are ongoing tobroaden Ventigra for additionalscale and mealybugs.

PYDIFLUMETOFEN (Adepidyn®Fungicide – Syngenta CropProtection, LLC)Introduction: Registration forSyngenta’s new active ingredientpydiflumetofen (Adepidyn®) wasgranted by the EPA May 23, 2018,for various row crop and specialtycrop uses. Formulated in productsunder the Miravis® brand family,Adepidyn fungicide is being broadlymade available in the U.S. in late2018 and 2019, subject to stateapprovals. Registration of Adepidynprovides growers with a newcarboxamide fungicide (SDHI modeof action) and a broad diseasecontrol spectrum. Pydiflumetofen isthe first member of a new chemicalgroup N-methoxy-(phenyl-ethyl)-pyrazole-carboxamide, and hasbeen classified by the FungicideResistance Action Committee(FRAC) as a Group 7 fungicide.Other global registrations: The firstregistration of a product based onAdepidyn was in Argentina in late2016, when Miravis® Duo, acombination of Adepidyn anddifenoconazole, was approved bySENASA (the regulatory authorityin Argentina), for use on soybeansfor late season disease control.Adepidyn based products are alsocurrently available in Australia andNew Zealand.US trade names/formulations/crops:the Miravis line of products will beoffered to growers in a wide rangeof crops through five distinct

brands: Miravis® SC (1.67 lbpydiflumetofen/gal) for peanuts;Miravis® Ace (a combination ofpydiflumetofen + propiconazole)for wheat/cereal grains; Miravis®Top SC (0.63 lb pydiflumetofen +1.04 lb difenoconazole/gal) forsoybeans and certain pulse crops;Miravis® Neo SE (a suspoemulsionformulation containing 0.63 lbpydiflumetofen, 0.83 lbazoxystrobin and 1.04 lbpropiconazole/gal) for corn andsoybeans; Miravis® Prime SC(1.25 lb pydiflumetofen + 2.09 lbfludioxonil/gal) for specialty andvegetable crops (potatoes and cropsubgroup 1C; specific leafyvegetables in crop subgroup4-16A; crop group 8-10, fruitingvegetables; crop group 9, cucurbitvegetables; grapes and cropsubgroup 13-07F; and specific leafpetiole vegetables in crop subgroup22B); see labels for specific crops,use patterns and other generaldirections for use.Labeled pest spectrum: a broaddisease control spectrum thatincludes leaf spots, powderymildew, fusarium head blight,Botrytis, Sclerotinia, Corynesporaand various other diseases.Completed IR-4 residue projects(PR#): 2013 – cantaloupe(11158)/cucumber(11156)/summer squash (11157)– data submitted as part ofSyngenta 1st tier, and all areregistered; 2015 – strawberry(11159 – joint study w/Canada),and 2016 – blueberry (11763 –with data from Syngenta Canada,covers high and low bush) - datasubmitted as part of Syngenta 2ndtier, with PRIA date 9/16/2019Ongoing IR-4 residue projects(PR#): 2016 – cherry (11812 –joint, w/Canada as Sponsor/StudyDirector); 2017 – caneberry(11794, joint with Canada); 2018– ginseng (11912)/hops (12342) –joint, w/Canada as Sponsor/StudyDirector.

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Other IR-4 Food Use databaserequests (PR#): broccoli(11826)/cabbage (11827)/mustardgreens (11825) – all are Mfg.submitted; GH eggplant(12012)/GH lettuce (11880)/GHpepper (11879)/GH strawberry(11881)/GH tomato (11878) – allare researchable (IR-4 to considersubmission of Canadian GH lettuce,GH pepper and GH tomato datafrom ongoing studies [which shouldcover GH eggplant].Environmental horticulture: Thepydiflumetofen registration, May2018, covers environmentalhorticulture crops and vegetableplants for retail sale to consumersfor control of various pathogenscausing gray mold, leaf spots,flower blights, powdery mildewsand stem rot caused by Phoma.The registration also covers soildrench application for Fusarium andSclerotinia root diseases. IR-4contributed to this registration withcrop safety studies on Alyssum,Begonia, Calibrachoa,Chrysanthemum, Coreopsis,Dianthus, Geranium, Gerbera,Impatiens (Garden and NewGuinea), Lupine, Osteospermum,Pansy, Petunia, Poinsettia, Salvia,Snapdragon, and Verbena. Noinjury or growth reduction wasobserved at up to 4X therecommended rate. Efficacy studiesare ongoing for Botrytis andThielaviopsis.

(juniper), Diplodia tip blight (pinesand others). Boxwood is affectedby boxwood blight, volutella blight,Macrophoma leaf spot, Fusarium,Phytophthora, and nematodes.

Main Insect ProblemsEach of the different crop specieshave different pest complexes.Generally, they are impacted byadelgids (Hemlock WoollyAdelgid), aphids, bagworms,borers and beetles (Emerald AshBorer, Southern Pine Beetle),sawflies, and scale (Juniper Scale).Boxwood is affected by leafminer,psyllid, mites and several other lessimpactful pests.

IR-4 Research IR-4 has studied several diseasesand pests of conifers since 2000:Elongate Hemlock Scale,Phytophthora ramorum,Phytophthora cinnamomi,Phytophtora cryptogea, OrientalBeetle, Black Vine Weevil, PineNeedle Scale, Botrytis Gary Mold,Fusarium commune, TarnishedPlant Bugs, Swiss Needle Cast,Pythium dissotocum, Pythiumirregulare, Pythium ultimum,Pythium vipa, Fletcher Scale. Inaddition, IR-4 has sponsored morethan 850 conifer crop safety trialson 81 products. IR-4 also workedwith a team of researchersinvestigating Boxwood Blight.

Picture Source: Monrovia(https://growbeautifully.monrovia.com/winter-decorating-with-evergreen-clippings/)

pg. 13Vol 49 No 4

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EnvironHort Spotlight

Plant InformationThe smell of cedar, pine and otherevergreens are synonymous withthe winter holidays. Whetherwreaths or boughs hung inside orout, this greenery visually signalsthe start of the US holiday season,and its aroma brings back

childhood memories of home. Thetradition of using evergreen plantsto decorate in the winter originatedthousands of years ago within manycultures celebrating the wintersolstice: Egyptians celebrating thereturn of Ra, Celtic druidssymbolizing eternal rebirth,Romans desiring a good harvestyear at the feast of Saturnalia(Saturn, the god of agriculture),and Vikings warding off evil spirits.Some of the traditional evergreens(fir, hemlock, holly, juniper,mistletoe, pine, spruce) have beenjoined by arborvitae, cypress,eucalyptus, mountain pepper,podocarpus, rosemary and others.Any plants with evergreen foliagethat can provide interesting colorsand textures can be incorporatedinto wreaths, boughs, and otherdisplays.

Sources of these evergreens arevaried. The vast majority comefrom trimmings from public andprivate forestlands and Christmastree producers. For example, treesproduced for wood often have sidebranches removed to limit theformation of knots. Other sourcesinclude prunings from nurseryproducers, or in the case ofeucalyptus, deliberate productionof cuts for floral displaysyear-round.

Main Disease ProblemsEach of the different crop specieshave different disease complexes.The conifers tend to have similarroot problems (Pythium,Phytophthora, Rhizoctonia,Fusarium, Cylindrocladium) asother crops, but they also havesome unique ones RhizosphaeraNeedle Cast (multiple), Cytosporacanker (spruce), Cedar Apple rust(juniper), Phomopsis tip blight

Holiday Greenery— by Cristi Palmer, IR-4 EnvironHort Manager

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Information Exchange

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Lycorma delicatula, commonlyknown as the Spotted Lanternfly(SLF), is a new invasive insect thathas spread throughout southeasternPennsylvania since its discovery inBerks County in 2014. SLFpresents a significant threat toPennsylvania agriculture, includingthe grape, tree-fruit, hardwood andnursery industries, whichcollectively are worth nearly $18billion to the state's economy.

Signs & SymptomsThe SLF attacks fruit trees, but notthe fruit itself. It uses itspiercing-sucking mouthparts to feedon the sap in trunks, branches,twigs and leaves. These oozingwounds will leave a greyish or blacktrail along the bark of the plant.

As it digests the sap, the insectexcretes a substance known ashoneydew that, along with sap fromthese weeping wounds, can attractbees and other insects. There maybe a buildup of this sticky fluid on

Spotted Lanternfly

infested plants and on the groundbelow. The honeydew and sap alsoprovide a medium for growth offungi, such as sooty mold, whichcan cover leaf surfaces and stuntgrowth. Plants with heavyinfestations may not survive.

Some SLF Frequently AskedQuestionsGet the answers to the mostfrequently asked questions aboutspotted lanternfly, including theirdamage to plants, how to managethem on your property, and whatyou can do to help! If you havemore questions, check out theother resources available on thewebsite: extension.psu.edu/spotted-lanternfly or contact yourlocal extension agent.

Q. What is a SLF? Where did itcome from?A. The SLF is an invasiveplanthopper (a type of insect) in theUS It is native to certain parts ofSoutheast Asia.

Q. Are they a threat here?A. SLF feed on the sap of a plantand when there are highpopulations of them, they can causesignificant damage. They feed onover 70+ plants, includingimportant forestry and agriculturalcrops. SLF was first discovered inthe United States in Berks County,PA in 2014. It has since spreadthroughout 13 counties insoutheastern Pennsylvania, whichthe Pennsylvania Department ofAgriculture has designated as a SLFquarantine zone. In 2017, SLF wasalso found in Frederick County inVirginia. In 2018, three New Jerseycounties (Mercer, Warren, andHunterdon) were quarantined forSLF.

Q. How do I identify a SLF if I seeone? What do I look for?A. SLFs go through five stages ofgrowth after hatching from eggs(see illustration). The first fourstages are called nymphs, which areincapable of flight. The youngnymphs are black with bright whitespots and are roughly the size of apencil eraser. The next stages ofgrowth are similar, but the nymphsbecome larger. The fourth stage ofSLFs, prior to adulthood, isvibrantly red with distinct patches ofblack and equally distinct brightwhite spots. The adult SLF is aleafhopper with wings about 1”long. Adults have grey wings withblack spots. When the SLF opensits wings, it reveals a bright redunderwing. SLFs live through thewinter only as eggs. Adults lay eggsin masses in the late fall on trees,under bark, posts, lawn furniture,cars, trailers, outdoor grills, and onmany other surfaces.

Q. Do SLFs kill trees and plants?A. In Korea, SLFs have had a majordestructive impact on grapes, andgrape-products such as wine. SLFs

This information reprinted with permission from Heather Leach,Pennsylvania State University. Visit www.psu.edu/ spotted-lanternfly formore information, and more FAQs.

Illustration byColleen

Witkowski,Pennsylvania

StateUniversity

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Over time, environmental (akaornamental) horticulture flowershave been bred to appeal toconsumers. Although this breedingmakes flowers more desirable tohumans, it can simultaneously makeflowers less desirable to bees. Manycultivars have been bred to reduceor eliminate pollen or to haveshowy double petals which reduceor remove a pollinator’s access topollen and nectar.

Since there is very little data onwhich environmental horticultureplants remain attractive to bees, webegan a research project tomeasure the pollinatorattractiveness level of various cropsand their cultivars. Determiningpollinator attractiveness is no easytask, as attractiveness can changedepending on various factors, suchas how many flowers are present,the total area of the floral display,or how many other flowers or

Measuring Pollinator Attractiveness ofEnvironmental Horticulture PlantsPollinator Research under IR-4’s Environmental Horticulture Program —by Carolina Simao Roe-Raymond

nesting locations are available inthe landscape.

Researchers selected their studyplants from the list of Top 25Annuals and HerbaceousPerennials by wholesale value fromthe USDA NASS 2014 Census ofHorticulture. During 2017 and2018, scientists in five locationsthroughout the United Statesplanted their selected annuals,herbaceous perennials, and somecultivars. They recorded pollinatorvisits throughout the summer andearly fall, and they are in the midstof analyzing this data. Cross-siteresults will be available in 2019.

For more about this research andour broader project examiningrelationships between environ-mental horticulture crops,pollinators, and pesticides, pleasevisit the website:protectingbees.njaes.rutgers.edu.

have also reduced yields onimportant fruit-bearing trees andother plants. The SLF feeds onmore than 70 types of plants,including crops such as grapes,apples, hops, walnuts and otherhardwood trees.

Q. Do SLFs infest Christmas trees?A. Real trees are part of an outdoorecosystem, thus there is always achance that insects may be broughtindoors with a tree. With the SLFcurrently an issue of concern,questions have been raisedregarding the possibility of SLFsbeing carried into homes. Although

unlikely SLF eggs will be onChristmas trees, if they were tohatch indoors the nymphs pose nothreat to humans or animals, andwill die quickly. Christmas Treegrowers follow integrated pestmanagement practices to minimizesuch threats. If consumers areconcerned they are encouraged toinspect the tree prior to purchase.SLF egg masses are visible on thebark if present and can be easilyremoved. Purchasing real Christmastrees benefits local growers and thelocal economy. They are also anenvironmentally friendly choice asChristmas trees are a renewable

resource and can be easilyrecycled, unlike artificial trees. Forthose living inside the quarantinezone, we encourage trees to bedisposed of by recycling programswhere they will be shredded andcomposted or burned (if allowed bythe municipality) and should not betransported out of the quarantinezone.

More FAQs can be found atwww.psu.edu/spotted-lanternfly.

Pollinators

Experimental sites with top-selling annualornamental plants established in San DiegoBotanic Garden and Palomar CommunityCollege in California. Photo by Lea Corkidi

Pollinatorattractivenessobservationsunderway at theexperimentalsiteestablished atMichiganStateUniversity.Photo byEricaHotchkiss

subgroup 4-16B except watercress,Celtuce, Florence fennel, Kohlrabi,Leaf petiole subgroup 22B, Headand stem brassica vegetablesubgroup 5-16, Succulent shelledpea and bean subgroup 6B, Driedshelled pea and bean subgroup 6C,Root vegetable except sugar beetsubgroup 1BPR#: 11750, 12120, 12121,12122, 12123, 12124, 12125,12126, 12127, 12128

Federal Register: Oct. 29, 2018PyroxasulfoneTrade Name: Zidua Crops: Mint, Grass, Edamame, Leafpetiole subgroup 22B, Cottonseedsubgroup 20CPR#: 10792, 10885, 11133,11324, 12130

IR-4 Headquarters, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey500 College Road EastSuite 201 WPrinceton, NJ 08540

NON-PROFITUS POSTAGE

PAIDNEW BRUNSWICK, NJ

PERMIT NO. 157This material is based upon work that is supported by the NationalInstitute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture,under award number 2015-34383-23710 with substantialcooperation and support from the State Agricultural ExperimentStations, USDA-ARS and USDA-FAS In accordance with FederalLaw and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution isprohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, nationalorigin, sex, age or disability.

United States Department of AgricultureNational Institute of Food and Agriculture

Successes

Tolerance Successes Aug. - Oct. 2018 (There were no tolerances in Aug.)The trade names listed here are provided as a means to identify the chemical for which a tolerance has been established. A tradename listed here may not be the name of the product on which the new food use(s) will be registered. Only labeled products maybe used on a food crop. Be sure to obtain current information about usage regulations and examine a current product label beforeapplying any chemical.

Federal Register: Sept.11, 2018Cloquintocet-mexylTrade Name: Gold Sky Crops: TeffPR#: 10807

Federal Register: Oct. 5, 2018FlumioxazinTrade Name: Fierce, ValorCrops: GrassPR#: 10885

Federal Register: Oct. 15, 2018EtoxazoleTrade Name: ZealCrops: Sweet corn, Pome fruitgroup 11-10, Tree nut group14-12, Cherry subgroup 12-12A,Peach subgroup 12-12B, Plumsubgroup 12-12C, Cottonseedsubgroup 20C

PR#: 11099, 12111, 12112,12113, 12114

PyraclostrobinTrade Name: Pageant, PristineCrops: Leafy greens subgroup4-16A, Brassica leafy greenssubgroup 4-16B except watercress,Celtuce, Florence fennel, Kohlrabi,Leaf petiole subgroup 22B, Headand stem brassica vegetablesubgroup 5-16PR#: 11750, 12120, 12121,12122, 12123, 12124, 12125

Federal Register: Oct. 19, 2018BoscalidTrade Name: Endura, Pageant,PristineCrops: Leafy greens subgroup4-16A, Brassica leafy greens