Project Overview

Reports

Commodities

• Additional Plants: greenhouse, herbs

• Animals: bees, poultry

• Community and Urban Pest Management: commercial, institution/shelters/municipal buildings/public places, school & child care

• Ecosystem: Ecosystem

• Fruits: apples, apricots, berries (blueberries), berries (brambles), berries (strawberries), paw-paws, pears, small fruit

• Human Health: workers, residents, applicators

• Natural Areas: wildlife

• Pollinators: habitat, honey bees

• Vegetables: artichokes, asparagus, beans, beans (snap), beets, brassicas, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbages, carrots, cauliflower, celery, cucurbits, eggplant, garlic, greens (leafy), greens (lettuces), leeks, okra, onions, parsnips, peas (culinary), peppers, radishes (culinary), rutabagas, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, turnips

Target Pests

Practices

• Pest Management: biological control, botanical pesticides, chemical control, cultivation, cultural control, exclusion, habitat modification, modeling, monitoring/scouting, pesticide application timing, pesticides, prevention, row covers (for pests), traps

• Crop Production: crop rotation, greenhouses, high tunnels or hoop houses, low tunnels, pollination/pollinator health/habitat, row covers (for season extension)

• Natural Resources/Environment: biodiversity, wildlife

• Production Systems: agroecosystems, aquaponics, hydroponics, organic agriculture

• Soil Management: composting, organic matter, soil quality/health

• Sustainable Communities: local and regional food systems, public participation, public policy, quality of life, urban agriculture

Urban farms and community gardens represent a smaller resource base than their conventional counterparts, however, they contribute greatly to food systems that serve audiences that may not have access to fresh and healthy foods. Because urban growers are often beginning farmers and from historically underserved populations it is important to create appropriate, effective, and accessible research-based resources related to critical topics like pest management.  Currently, there are too few research-based IPM resources tailored for the urban agriculture community and additional access barriers continue to exist.

In recognition of the need and to help bridge this gap, NIFA-USDA via the North Central IPM Centers funded the formation of a Great Lakes Urban Agriculture IPM working group to convene urban agriculture professionals, to directly benefit urban growers. The work began in 2016 and has continued to the present. Collaboration among the network of Extension Educators and faculty researchers working within urban agriculture remains central to the working group’s efforts and we have created a set of tools for urban growers to help manage crop production and pest challenges.

The working group has created a total of 15 pest-specific information cards tailored for urban growers.  The group has produced over 200,000 copies in print for distribution to urban growers across 8 states. This past year, the group translated these cards into Spanish and added them to the IPM Centers Resources Database, making them available online for our clientele. In 2022 the group began offering free Urban Agriculture IPM webinars.  In its inaugural offering, they garnered over 500 views across 8 states. The newest set of resources, still in development, is the set of virtual urban farm tours from Midwest cities. The goal of these tours is to facilitate peer-to-peer learning while overcoming the barrier of willingness and ability to travel. With final edits to those tours being completed now, the working group aims to host virtual watch parties with the farm hosts to help disseminate this new resource throughout the region.

The group is seeking renewal for the 2024-25 grant cycle. The objectives for the 2024-2025 working group are: 1) Create 6 additional virtual tours to expand the current offering and include additional locations in the region, 2) Offer 3 free webinars on topics of interest to urban growers, 3) Establish a regional monitoring program for Squash Vine Borer, and 4) Organize an annual networking meeting.

Our new objective (#3) focuses on the uniqueness of the biological processes of pest populations in urban environments as well as recognizes the need to create research-backed resources tailored to urban growers, addressing both the preferred management tactics and recommendations tailored to the scale at which these farms are operating. We are excited for the opportunity to continue the momentum this group has gained and create more resources for urban farmers while simultaneously driving the national conversation’s attention to the great work of urban agriculture in the North Central region.

1. Create 6 additional virtual tours to expand the current offering and include additional locations in the region.
2. Offer 3 free webinars on topics of interest to urban growers.
3. Establish a regional monitoring program for Squash Vine Borer.
4. Organize an annual networking meeting.