IPM Network Established

This year I will again be capturing moths to attempt to follow and predict activity. This spring I will be trapping Black Cutworm Moth as well as Armyworm. Many times blanket applications of insecticide are put down to act as an insurance against early season pests such as black cutworm, but is this really needed and thus economical. Last year my site in Franklin County never reached the threshold level of moths to feel that we had enough pressure to worry with cutworms. I also didn't hear of any issues with cutworms locally, but that doesn't mean they didn't happen. The question arose from this study last year, how irregular can these moth patterns be over large areas? In other words, if I scout one area of the county do I really get a full picture of the pressure? Well with the hope to answer this question this year I'll have 8 trapping sites across the county. These sites will be located in State Line, Mercersburg, Mont Alto, Chambersburg, St. Thomas, Shippensburg, Path Valley and Pleasant Hall Areas. Hopefully we will see uniformity in numbers and times of catches with these traps. I will also be updating you on what the pressure is like via this blog. Hopefully we can get great data off of this and start minimizing our reliance on 'insurance sprays.' This will save on our bottom line as well as possibly preserve beneficial insects that can help us control some of our pest populations.