CATEGORY 7/8 TRAINING WORKSHOPS

A series of 3 training workshops on residential, commercial, institutional, and public health pest management will be offered February 24-26, in Versailles, Elizabethtown and Madisonville.

Consider these facts:

• According to a statewide poll of Kentucky households, 93 percent expressed concern over finding insects in their home.
• Three out of four (75%) also expressed concern about using pesticides to control pests in the home.
• Each year, the majority of specimens sent to the Entomology Department for identification are found around structures.
• More than 90 percent of all consumer complaints received by the Kentucky Department of Agriculture involve termite treatments and real estate transactions.

Ants, fleas, termites, cockroaches, wasps, spiders, rodents, etc. affect the quality of life of all Kentuckians, both urban and rural. Each workshop will be an intensive, full-day session, packed with practical, state-of-the-art advice on how to diagnose and prescribe solutions to pest problems. While the workshops are oriented toward pest control operators (PCOs), health department, public housing, school, and food processing personnel, they are also a valuable learning experience for agents and specialists.

Dates, times, and locations are as follows:

• Feb. 24, 1997- Woodford Co. Ext. Off., Versailles, KY; 8:25 am - 4:15 pm. (Initial/recertification training).
• Feb. 25, 1997- Hardin Co. Ext. Off., Elizabethtown, KY; 8:25 am - 4:15 pm. (Initial/recertification training).
• Feb. 26, 1997- Lakeshore Country Club. Madisonville, KY; 8:25 am - 4:15 pm. (Initial/recertification training).

There is no charge for agents or specialists wishing to attend these workshops. Tests will be given at the end of each session for those who need to take it.

KENTUCKY COMMERCIAL PESTICIDE APPLICATOR TRAINING SESSIONS

In all locations:

• Categories 1, 4, 10, 12 - 8:30 AM to Noon; Testing at 1:00 PM.
• Categories 2a, 3, 10, 12 - 9:45 AM to 2:00 PM; Testing at 2:00 PM

• February 11 - Boyle Co. Ext. Office, Danville
• February 13 - Boone Co. Ext. Office Burlington
• February 18 - Fayette Co. Ext. Office, Lexington
• February 20 - Pulaski Co. Ext. Office, Somerset

There is no registration fee for any of these meetings.

IPM TRAINING

The 1997 IPM Scout Training School will be held Thursday, March 13, at the University of Kentucky Research Center in Princeton. The IPM training is a day-long program that teaches weed, insect and disease identification and the procedures to use when scouting fields for pests. Pests of corn, soybeans, small grains and alfalfa will be covered.

The program will begin at 9:00 AM central time and end at 4:00 PM. Farmers, agri-businessmen and others who make decisions or give advice on pest management can benefit from the training. This training is offered free of charge and is open to anyone who would like to attend.

This training has been accredited for 5.5 CEU's for Certified Crop Advisers. CEU's are 2.5 in Crop Production, 2.5 in Pest Management and .5 in Soil Fertility. For more information contact Patty Lucas at the University of Kentucky Research and Education, telephone 502/365-7541 extension 218. Registration will be taken the morning of the meeting.

DISINFECTING TOOLS, FLATS, AND EQUIPMENT USED IN GREENHOUSE AND FLOAT SYSTEMS IS A KEY STEP IN DISEASE CONTROL
by William C. Nesmith

Due to space limitation, a full review of this topic is not currently possible. A detailed report was given last year in the Feb. 5, 1996 issue, volume 730. In the current issue, we only have space to provide an update on changes.

What is available to disinfect trays? Steam, methyl-bromide fumigation, chlorine-bleach, and quaternary ammonium chloride salts, are available in Kentucky. None of these materials have been totally effective in killing all the pathogens. Each has positive and negative points, which were clearly addressed in the 1996 update.

• STEAMING TRAYS: In our studies, steam has been the most effective disinfectants - does the best job of killing the range of pathogens we are facing in Kentucky. But its cost is high and some items are damaged by steaming. I especially recommend it to commercial transplant producers.
• FUMIGANTS: Methyl bromide with 1% chloropicrin has been almost as effective as steam in some of the testS. It provides excellent control of Rhizoctonia and other fungi on the surface of the tray. It will greatly reduce the level of Pythium, but has not been as effective as steam or proper bleaching in reducing Pythium, probably because a significant amount of Pythium is found embedded in the tray. We find great variation in the amount of control provided within the lot of trays. It is important to use an air-tight plastic seal, pre-wet the trays, and avoid large stacks of trays. Methyl-bromide is heavier than air, so it sinks, therefore, the best results occur with long, short stacks rather than tall stacks. We have found little control is provided at the low rates, so use the maximum labeled rates (3 lbs/1000 cubic feet). Certain types of styrofoam trays appear to be more easily damaged. Pay attention to all labeled precautions and temperature requirements.
• CHLORINE BLEACH: Chlorine bleach solutions have given a high level of control, but, overall, are not as effective as either steam or properly conducted fumigation. We have found little benefit to using more than 10% solution. Without proper aeration and post-washes, salt residues can cause serious problems, especially with older trays that tend to soak up more materials. Bleaches work best when the trays are washed with soapy water, then dipped several times into clean 10% solution, followed by covering them with tarp to keep them wet over-night with the bleaching solution. Afterwards, the bleach solutions should be washed from the trays with clean water or water plus a Q-salt listed below, followed by aeration - to eliminate the chlorine and salts of chlorine. Workers safety issues are also important with bleach. It is important that the bleach solution remain below pH 6.8 and that new solutions be made up every 2 hrs or whenever it becomes dirty, which ever comes first. Organic matter will remove the active ingredients quickly.
• Q-SALTS (Quaternary ammonium chloride salts): These are marketed under such names as Greenshield, Physan, and Prevent as solutions containing 20% ammonium chloride. Many growers are using them, but the effects are not as positive as some believe, based on our testing. I believe there greatest benefit is in the final wash and on exposed surfaces in the greenhouse. In all our tests, they have always provided some control, as compared to using soap washes only, but have always been inferior to any of the above mentioned methods.

1997 BLUE MOLD CONTROL PLAN FOR BURLEY
by William Nesmith

On January 21-22, 1997, a seminar series was held in Lexington, Kentucky to address blue mold of burley tobacco. The objectives were to inform farm leaders in the Burley Belt about the serious threat generatedby blue mold and to formulate belt-wide control strategies. This meeting was co-sponsored by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company and the University of Kentucky. At least 15 agricultural scientists and more than 500 farmers and industry leaders were involved.

The following is the blue mold control plan resulting from this meeting, which was based on information presented by all the speakers at the Burley Tobacco Farmer Blue Mold Meeting and discussions which followed. The consensus was that this plan should be used to guide community efforts to control blue mold throughout the Burley Belt.

GENERAL STRATEGIES FOR DISEASE CONTROL

• Manage your own crop as much as possible
• Make the environment less favorable for the fungus to survive and infect your tobacco
• Use more than one control method
• Keep the fungus out of the Burley Belt and your community for as long as possible
• Protect tobacco plants when they are most vulnerable
• Manage plant beds, greenhouses, and fields to favor burley, not blue mold
• Manage the crop to get to harvest quickly, but not prematurely
• Don't forget about other diseases!

PLAN TO PROTECT TRANSPLANTS FROM BLUE MOLD

• Grow your own plants, or buy them from a reputable, local source
• Follow recommended greenhouse hygiene and sanitation practices
• Don't seed earlier than 7-9 weeks before transplanting!
• Manage temperature and ventilation systems to minimize leaf-surface moisture by reducing relative humidity and condensation
• When blue mold advisories have been issued, remove plant bed covers, weather permitting to aid drying.
• Irrigate beds early enough to dry before nightfall
• Follow a recommended clipping schedule (remove clippings and dispose of them far from transplants)
• Use a regular, preventative-fungicide spray program
• Promptly destroy ALL plants within the system, should blue mold develop in beds or greenhouses
• Do not set any plants from a blue mold infested source
• Destroy excess plants as soon as you know they're not needed (or maintain a fungicide program until plants are used)!

PREVENTATIVE SPRAY PROGRAMS FOR TOBACCO TRANSPLANTS

• Use one of the following fungicides: Ferbam (Carbamate), Mancozeb (Dithane), or Dimethomorph & Mancozeb (Acrobat MZ) - if labeled
• Begin as soon as plants can tolerate the chemical
• Continue sprays until plants go to the field
• Apply every 5-7 days until plants are set or destroyed
• Use 3 gal/1,000 sq. ft. of spray solution for small plants, increasing to 6-12 gal/1,000 sq. ft. as plants grow!

Greenhouses: Use 2-3 lbs of Carbamate or 0.5 lb of Dithane/100 gal of spray solution (2-3 Tablespoon/gal for Carbamate or 1 tsp/gal of Dithane) 1/2 to 1 lb of Acrobat MZ (1-2 tsp/gal) [if labeled]

Plant beds: Use 2-3 lb of Carbamate or 1 lb of Dithane/100 gal of spray solution (2-3 Tablespoons/gal of Carbamate or 1 Tablespoon/gal of Dithane) 1/2 to 1 lb of Acrobat MZ (1 Tablespoon/gal) [if labeled]

BLUE MOLD CONTROL RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE FIELD

• Select a blue mold management plan BEFORE you transplant that involves both Cultural Practices and Fungicides!

CULTURAL PRACTICES TO IMPROVE BLUE MOLD CONTROL

• Field Selection: avoid shady, wet-natured locations with poor air drainage, for example: sites near streams
• Row and Plant Spacing: avoid close plant spacings that favor disease development, for example: 48" rows with 20"plant spacings would also save labor, reduce barn space requirements, & make it easier to spray.
• Fertilization: avoid excess N-fertilization follow recommendations for your state!
• Topping and Sucker Control: early topping and improved sucker control slow disease progress!
• Harvest: don't cut fields early to avoid blue mold losses remember: In health crops, you gain 200 lb/acre/week after topping, but in some instances, it may be advisable to destroy or early-harvest part or all of a field with blue mold to reduce the threat to nearby tobacco!

BLUE MOLD CONTROL FUNGICIDE USE RECOMMENDATIONS

• For Ridomil-Sensitive Blue Mold: Use Ridomil Gold applied broadcast preplant and at layby - 1 pt PPI + 0.5 pt to row-middles at layby; apply PPI treatment within 3-7 days of transplanting use flat-fan nozzles on drops to apply layby soil treatments. These Ridomil treatments will not control all types of blue mold but are also of great value as controls for Pythium diseases and Black Shank.
• For Ridomil-Resistant Blue Mold: Use Protectant Fungicides - Dithane DF or if labeled Acrobat MZ.

  • Start Protectant Fungicide sprays early - when resistant blue mold has been predicted for your area
  • Don't wait until you see blue mold on your farm
  • Adjust spray schedule according to weather conditions
  • Use Blue Mold Forecast System and Local Extension Advisories!

  You need maximum coverage to get good control with Protectant Fungicides!

  To obtain good coverage with a boom sprayer, you need to:

  • Use high pressure (100-250 psi): hydraulic sprayers: piston or diaphragm pump, hollow cone nozzles
  • Use a skip row in the crop, wide enough for your tractor or use properly equipped high-clearance sprayers
  • Use drop nozzles so that leaves at the bottom and middle of the plant get sprayed as well!
  • Use plenty of spray solution:
    • 20 gal of water/acre before layby
    • 40 gal of water/acre near layby
    • 60 gal of water/acre when plants are waist high
    • 80 gal of water/acre when plants are chest high
    • 100 gal of water/acre when plants are shoulder high or near topping
  • Air blast sprayers: mix fungicide at 2X concentration. Apply 1/2 the gal/acre used with the hydraulic sprayer, being careful to spray all plant surfaces!