Project Overview

Reports

Commodities

Target Pests

Practices

Washington and Oregon are home to over 3/4^th of the nation’s pear acreage. In this region, one of the main production challenges is the insect pest pear psylla. It causes damage when honeydew, the waste product of the immature form, lands on fruit and causes black marks. High damage and management costs have placed pear psylla in the highest research priority category by the Fresh and Processed Pear Committee commodity group. In Washington, pear orchards are often sprayed over 10 times per season at a cost of $2,500 per acre in materials just for pear psylla. Intensive management may be counterproductive, as current research suggests excessive spray programs induce pear psylla problems by disrupting biocontrol. Researchers have hypothesized that pear psylla is less of a problem in Oregon than in Washington due to a shift towards areawide adoption integrated pest management in Oregon since the 1980s. Therefore, ongoing research and extension work Washington is evaluating and promoting integrated pest management. To conduct this work effectively, current pest management practices among regions need to be documented to test assumptions about differences between regions. Baseline data are also needed now to assess project impacts in the future. Therefore, we propose to conduct a survey of Washington and Oregon pest management practices. This new survey is needed because available data from other sources are incomplete, lacking resolution on pesticide use and pear-specific tactics like honeydew wash-removal. The Pear Bureau has agreed to share with the investigators a list of pear grower addresses, and the investigators will design a scientific survey with implementation assistance from Washington State University’s Social and Economic Sciences Research Center. Similar surveys were conducted in 1990, 2000, and 2011. Data from the previous surveys will allow for assessment of changes over time. The main output from this proposal will be a peer-reviewed publication outlining current practices and changes in western pear-growing regions. Findings will also be shared at presentations and newsletters to help growers understand how pear psylla is managed more or less effectively in different regions. The proposed survey will help researchers, extension staff, and growers guide the pear industry towards areawide integrated pest management adoption, resulting in lower management costs, less economic loss, and less pollution.

Objective 1. Design and Conduct a Comprehensive Pear Pest Management Survey

We will design a survey targeted for distribution to approximately 800 pear growers an 200 pest management consultants in Washington and Oregon to quantify pest management practices and costs.

Objective 2. Analyze Survey Data

We will analyze data from the survey in objective 1 alongside data from the previous 1990, 2000, and 2011 surveys to assess change over time in Washington and Oregon pears in the metrics collected.

Objective 3. Share Results

Findings will be submitted for publication in the open-access Journal of Integrated Pest Management, incorporated into at least 10 extension presentations, and presented at one academic conference.