This webinar took place on February 1, 2017.
About the Webinar
Spotted wing drosophila (SWD) has emerged as a devastating pest of small and stone fruits worldwide. Losses due to SWD can be as high as 100% and have been valued more than $718 million annually in the U.S. The zero tolerance for SWD in fresh fruit has led conventional growers to make preventative insecticide applications when fruit are ripe. Organic management of SWD is even more challenging due to the low number of effective OMRI-approved materials and limited understanding on the biology of SWD to translate into non-chemical management tactics. In 2015, a multi-regional project was funded by USDA-NIFA through Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (OREI) to develop, evaluate and implement systems-based organic management programs for SWD.
This webinar will provide a comprehensive update on organic management of spotted wing drosophila. It will cover findings of the research conducted during the first year of this project on organically approved strategies including: 1) behavioral strategies to improve monitoring (using more attractive baits and lures) and management (attract and kill approach); 2) cultural strategies to lower SWD populations in the field (canopy and floor management, and using exclusion netting); and 3) chemical strategies (using organically approved insecticides in combination with adjuvants and phagostimulants.
This webinar will be presented by the OREI project team including:
- Dr. Ash Sial (University of Georgia): Ash Sial is blueberry entomologist at the University of Georgia and is Project Director for the SWD Organic Management grant funded through OREI.
- Dr. Mary Rogers (University of Minnesota): Mary is an Assistant Professor at the University of Minnesota specializing in sustainable and organic horticulture food production systems and Co-Project Director for the OREI project.
- Dr. Christelle Guedot (University of Wisconsin): Christelle is the Fruit Crop Entomologist and Extension Specialist at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.
- Dr. Kelly Hamby (University of Maryland): Dr. Kelly Hamby, Extension Specialist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Entomology at the University of Maryland, College Park with a focus on sustainable Integrated Pest Management strategies for various insect pests.
- Dr. Rufus Isaacs (Michigan State University): Rufus is a fruit entomologist at Michigan State University with a focus on developing and implementing insect management programs for small fruit industries.
- Dr. Tracy Leskey (United States Department of Agriculture): Tracy is a Research Entomologist for USDA-ARS at the Appalachian Fruit Research Station in Kearneysville, WV, USA and is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Entomology at Virginia Tech.
- Dr. Vaughn Walton (Oregon State University): Vaughn is a fruit entomologist at Oregon State University with a focus on providing environmentally sustainable and minimal impact pest management strategies for agriculturalists in Oregon.
