Project Overview

Reports

Commodities

• Additional Plants: other

• Agronomic: peas (field, cowpeas)

• Vegetables: beans (dry), lentils

Target Pests

Practices

• Pest Management: cultural control, decision support system, monitoring/scouting, pesticides

• Crop Production: crop rotation, cropping systems, intercropping

• Soil Management: soil microbiology

Pulse crops including field peas, chickpeas, and lentils are vitally important to rural economies in semi-arid growing regions of the U.S. and address the need for climate smart crops that require less fertilizer and water for optimal production. Consumption of these pulses and other legumes has been shown to reduce cholesterol, lower cancer risk, and aid in diabetes management. The U.S. domestic market for pulse crops continues to expand and has created attractive commodity prices in regions where the traditional wheat-fallow cropping system has become economically unsustainable. In 2023, over 1.7 million acres of lentils, field pea, and chickpea were planted in the U.S.

Pulse crops enhance soil health through biological nitrogen fixation and facilitating the adoption of no-till crop production. However, adoption of these crops is limited by disease, insect pests, and weed problems which vary seasonally and are expanding to different growing regions as adoption of these crops grow. New growers need resources to learn to identify and manage pests of pulse crops while experienced growers are starting to see new disease issues due to short crop rotations, fungicide resistance and introduction of new pests. New and re-emerging diseases and pests include root rot, herbicide resistant weeds, fungicide resistant Ascochyta blight and anthracnose, and pea leaf weevil, among others. Responding to these challenges requires the collaborative and multi-regional development and implementation of IPM strategies as well as educational and outreach efforts on the part of the pulse crop scientific community. The Pulse Crops Working Group (PCWG) members address this need by developing outreach materials which improve diagnosis and management of pulse diseases and pests, increasing collaboration among research groups and facilitating direct interactions with pulse crop growers and other stakeholders.

To build on previous success, we will maintain our website to house all the materials the PCWG has generated and a directory of PCWG members so that we are easily contacted by stakeholders. We will keep broadcasting on our social media to directly engage with growers and other stakeholders. Furthermore, we will update our highly popular dignostic card series and distribute more copies. We will engage with stakeholders to determine the most pressing topic where there is an identified knowledge gap and this will determine the location and content of the video. Anticipated short- and medium- term impacts are increased collaborations among researchers resulting in delivery of improved IPM strategies, outreach materials better targeted to grower needs, and improved access to IPM related information for pulse crops. Longer term impacts include increased coordination among pulse crops researchers around the globe and increased grower adoption of IPM strategies.

1) Foster collaborative relationships among researchers, students, extension professionals,
and industry stakeholders through face-to-face meetings and virtual interaction to
address IPM research priorities.
2) Facilitate and encourage student and early career professionals’ (ECP) participation in
PCWG events and collaborative research and outreach efforts.
3) Determine grower and industry needs for research, education, and outreach materials
to increase adoption of IPM practices.
4) Collaboratively produce educational materials to meet identified grower needs including
updated pea and lentil diagnostic series, a website to house PCWG outputs/blog articles
and a social media presence through which we can disseminate and promote these
materials along with timely pest updates.