b'Its imperative that as an industry we take a proactive approach in protecting TIPpollinators. operationpollinator.comIf Im asking a farmer to change howhelp farmers make those decisions aboutreduce any potential pesticide drift to theyve always done something, they wantapplications, he says. these areas of conservation that are often justification as to why, he says. We haveBest practices range depending onembedded within a field.Recently, prairie to give them the direct benefits, and in thisthe crop, but Burd says its common forstrips were added as a practice within the case, its often about managing costs.scouts to check various areas of a fieldConservation Reserve Program for the Not only is an IPM strategy good foronce a week. 2018 Farm Bill, which could help to su-the land, but its also often a cost savingspport the adoption of this practice.for farmers when scouting reports showAttract Predators Cooke agrees that targeting applica-that insect levels arent high enough toEnsuring pesticides are correctly andtions is important, especially around ma-need an insecticide application. safely applied is another important IPMnaged habitats. Cooke says farmers can also beaspect.We always advocate for producers to incentivized through financial assistanceSome insecticides will affect benefi- follow the label instructions and use best programs, such as the Natural Resourcescial insects along with the target pest,practices to ensure applications are not Conservation Service. Burd says. In a good IPM approach, thisdrifting to other areas or habitats, he says. Perhaps, most important, is protec- is limited by scouting and making theIts an important safety measure to ting the longevity of the insecticidesapplications at threshold levels and evenprotect pollinators, but Cooke says adding that do work when infestations are highchoosing a pesticide that has little impacthabitats to farms can also actually help enough to warrant them. to beneficial insects. reduce pest pressures on nearby crops. If you are spraying too much or atAnother management strategy forCooke notes that these areas do the wrong time, it can lead to resistance,insect control is attracting predatoryrequire management, which could classify and once that happens, the losses will beinsects. Cooke says this can be donethem as insect farmers.much higher, Burd says. Its extremelyby adding lucrative habitats to adjacentHowever, he believes these tasks dont important as a long-term strategy forcropland.overlap with farmers commodity crop sustainability. In greenhouse settings, IPM oftenneeds. relies more heavily on predator insects. Its not competing with the produc-Best Practices Biological control can be effective,tion year, he says.Though each operation has its own bestespecially for fruit and vegetable mar- Plus, ONeal says row-crop farmers practices, the three basic steps for a suc- kets, ONeal says.arent the only ones using IPM. There are cessful IPM strategy are to identify pests,But there are other cultural controls,applications for beekeepers as well. to use good scouting techniques tosuch as rotating corn and soybeans toHives are at risk for pests just like crops determine population levels and to selectdisrupt rootworm lifecycles, for example. are, and farmers have to use scouting and the right products when applications aremiticides to control those issues, ONeal needed.Aiding Beneficials says. Its important they do that respon-The use of insecticides is part of anIPM isnt just about eliminating prob- sibly so the varroa mite doesnt become IPM approach after scouting and usinglematic insects. Its also about workingresistant just like we are concerned about an appropriate threshold to trigger thewith beneficial insects. Farmers can useresistance to insect pests of crops.application, Burd says. marginal land to create additional forageIts all about balance.Cooke says in his area, nearly all farmersfor pollinators. The best IPM approach is to allow rely on crop consultants to determine whenWe have farmers who are puttingbeneficial insects to survive when they insecticide applications are necessary.prairie strips in their fields, while usingare present and only make applications to In addition, state Extension officesIPM in such a way that the strip persists,a crop when a particular threshold of that often have resources for farmers lookingencouraging habitat for pollinators whilepest is reached, Burd says.to better understand pests of concern.still farming commercially, ONeal says.While farmers using an IPM approach Burd says there are several optionsResearch is still being done on thelikely dont consider themselves as far-available for farmers including traps, andlong-term value of these prairie stripsming insects, they are certainly manag-farmers using an IPM system can developfor pollinators, including honey bees anding them.scouting routines with the help of univer- monarchs, but right now, providing thisIPM is not about following set rules; sities and other support. habitat and the diverse forage within itbut rather, its using these tools to pro-Many universities have helped set upis producing a noticeable result. Farmersmote a better future, ONeal says. SWthe threshold and scouting techniques toand Extension specialists are working to SEPTEMBER 2019SEEDWORLD.COM /23'