Publications
The traditional emphasis of integrated pest management (IPM) is to use strategies, tactics, and tools that maintain pest(s) at or below levels of economic concern, while minimizing risks to people and the environment. This emphasis is compatible with the primary thrust of U.S. farm bill conservation programs, which seek to improve natural resources (including water quality and biodiversity), and ensure that the United States has a safe and healthy food system (U.S. Congress 2002). We examine opportunities, experiences, and strategies used to increase adoption of IPM with joint agricultural and environmental protection value within U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) conservation programs for working farmlands.
The management of arthropods in apple and peach orchards in the eastern United States is a complex and difficult task (Madsen and Morgan 1970, Chapman and Lienk 1971, Howitt 1993, Hogmire 1995). IPM programs for these crops are perhaps the most complex of all cropping systems, particularly in the eastern United States, where the diversity of tree fruit pests is much greater than in other parts of North America.
Summary: The area-wide mating disruption (AWMD) project was continued for the third year in a number of large, deciduous tree fruit areas within Adams County, Pa. The initial AWMD project in 2006 consisted of four large sites of mostly contiguous blocks of apples, pears, and peaches covering various grower farms, with each site ranging in size from 180-250 acres and collectively totaling 900+ acres. In 2007-2008, the size of the AWMD project dramatically increased in size.
