Summer 2011

Program Updates

Most significantly for our program, as of July 1, 2011, we entered into our next three year contract with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Plant Industry. The funds from that contract support nearly 90% of our program activities, including applicator certification and recertification training; university specialists and county extension educators travel to provide pesticide education programs; support for local, regional, and statewide pesticide safety education programming; Master Gardener support; and consumer and youth outreach education. We were fortunate enough that they honored our request to fund an Education Support Assistant position, which will help fill the gap for the position we lost when John Ayers retired. After considering several excellent candidates, Kelly Over was offered and accepted this position as of July 1, 2011.

Airblast Sprayer Calibration

Last winter meeting season we placed a significant emphasis on calibration of boom sprayers. In preparing for that effort I wondered how it would be possible to calibrate an airblast sprayer? During a professional meeting in New Hampshire I was fortunate enough not only to find the answer, but also an outstanding educator who did an excellent hands-on demonstration to illustrate the process.

Long story short, we were fortunate to have George Hamilton, the outstanding extension educator from New Hampshire and his associate Steve Gatcombe, come to Pennsylvania in late June and provide that demonstration at three field days in southcentral and western Pennsylvania.

At the same time we conducted several on farm calibrations of spray equipment to see how the concept would be received by growers in a diversity of commodities. From orchards to vegetable growers they all thought it was a great concept. In every case having their sprayer calibrated addressed problems that they didn't even realize existed with their sprayers. Every one of them adamantly agreed that this would be something that any grower would benefit from if it was available. We not only had the calibration process digitally recorded to incorporate into a PowerPoint, but we also captured problems encountered during the actual sprayer calibration.

Imprelis

DuPont’s Imprelis® herbicide is labeled to control broadleaf weeds in cool grasses and some, but not all, warm season grasses. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) accepted the conditional registration of Imprelis®for sale August 31, 2010, and the product was first used in the fall of 2010 without any reported adverse effects. Landscape use first became more frequent in the Spring of 2011. However, because of significant reports of damage to trees and other non-target plants, the Environmental Protection Agency issued a Stop Sale and Recall order for Imprelis products the beginning of August 2011.

The issues of most significant concern at this time are that grass clippings and trees that appear to have Imprelis damage. Grass clippings from turf treated with Imprelis should not be used as mulch and also should not be used as compost and especially not be disposed of through municipal compost facilities. The same is true for trees that appear to have suffered from Imprelis damage; no part of the tree should be used as mulch and especially should not be put out for municipal collection.

Please make sure to read our August 8, 2011 "Imprelis Update" blog article and corresponding references for much more detailed information on this issue. Also, because many Master Gardeners have received many questions from homeowners, a Penn State Extension fact sheet, Imprelis, was developed to provide general information.

Consumer and Youth Outreach Education

We have significantly expanded our efforts in this area over the past year, in large part thanks to the support of Master Gardener coordinators and volunteers. We had a very successful Ag Progress Days where we used our mini-golf course to provide an educational message about signal words on pesticides and other household products. In addition, at Ag Progress Days we introduced the finalists for the first ever “Pennsylvania Poison Prevention Poster Contest” and began soliciting votes to determine the “winning” poster in each of the five age groups. You can view the posters and vote for your favorites on our website at: http://pested.psu.edu/contest.

2011/2012 Winter Meeting Topics

Below is a list of the presentations that are being developed to be presented by Pesticide Education Program staff members, Extension Educators, and Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Inspectors for recertification update training.

• Airblast Sprayer Calibration
• Pesticide Storage and Handling
• Sprayer Nozzle Selection
• Fate of Pesticides in the Environment
• Pesticide Spill Management
• Surfactants in the Environment
  
• Fumigation Regulatory Changes

Contact Information

We want to hear from you, so please contact us with your ideas, questions, thoughts, etc.

Kerry Richards, Director: kmh14@psu.edu
Sharon Gripp, Information Specialist: sgripp@psu.edu