Learn about opportunities to receive continuing education hours. October is upon us and before you know it, we'll be wrapped up in the busy holiday season. If you hold a license or certificate from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) and have a last name that begins with letters A through L, this is your year to renew. DPR encourages license and certificate holders to avoid the end-of-the-year rush and submit renewal applications by November 1.

Early renewal has its advantages. DPR can take up to 60 days to process a renewal application. Submitting applications now not only avoids late fees and gives you time to fix any problems that DPR may find, such as not having enough continuing education (CE) hours to renew, but also ensures that you will have your new certificate or license by the first of the year.

Without a renewed license in hand, you are not allowed to use or supervise the use of pesticides after January 1, 2019 until you receive it. You also run the risk of having to retest if there are problems with the renewal application and not enough time to fix them.

If you need a few last-minute credits, take a look at the online courses the UC Statewide IPM Program (UC IPM) offers:

Laws and Regulations

• Proper Selection, Use, and Removal of Personal Protective Equipment (1.5 hours) $30.00 charge NEW for 2018
• Proper Pesticide Use to Avoid Illegal Residues (2 hours) $40.00 charge
• Providing Integrated Pest Management Services in Schools and Child Care Settings (1 hour Laws and Regulations and 1 hour Other)

Other

• Citrus IPM: California Red Scale (1 hour)
• Citrus IPM: Citricola Scale (1 hour)
• Citrus IPM: Citrus Peelminer (1 hour)
• Citrus IPM: Citrus Red Mite (1 hour)
• Citrus IPM: Cottony Cushion Scale (1 hour)  
• Citrus IPM: Forktailed Bush Katydid (1 hour)
• Pesticide Application Equipment and Calibration (1.5 hours)
• Pesticide Resistance (2 hours)
• Tuta absoluta: A Threat to California Tomatoes (1 hour)
• Urban Pesticide Runoff and Mitigation: IPM – Pesticide Properties (1 hour) 
• Urban Pesticide Runoff and Mitigation:  Impact of Pesticides - Urban Pesticide Runoff (1 hour)
• Urban Pesticide Runoff and Mitigation: Water Quality and Mitigation:  Bifenthrin and Fipronil (1 hour)
• Urban Pesticide Runoff and Mitigation: Herbicides and Water Quality (1 hour)

UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) is also offering monthly webinars on specific pest issues for CEUs. More information can be found on the UC Ag Experts Talk website. 

Check out the list of DPR-approved continuing education courses. For more information about license renewal, visit DPR's licensing and certification webpage.

Learn about pest management and other training opportunities from UC IPM.

USDA-ARS Spence Research farm

1572 Old Stage Rd.

(36.628792, -121.540791)

Thursday October 18^th, 9 am to 10:30 am

UC Cooperative Extension will host a field day at the USDA-ARS Spence research farm to show a field trial evaluating water use in drip irrigated celery.  This is an opportunity to see first- hand the effect of water management on celery growth.   We will discuss using weather data for scheduling irrigations using the CropManage online tool, water application monitoring using flowmeters, soil moisture monitoring using tensiometers, and the feasibility of improving irrigation scheduling using satellite-based tools.  This is a joint project among UC Cooperative Extension, CSU Monterey Bay, NASA-Ames, and the USDA-ARS. The project is funded through the USDA-Specialty Crop Grant Program, administered through CDFA.    Cooperators include Dole Fresh Vegetables, Inc., and Wilbur Ellis. 

Location: The trial is located in a field adjacent to Spence Rd.  Enter the ranch from the west side of Old Stage Rd. Turn right at the water reservoir and drive to the end of the road.

For more information contact Michael Cahn, Irrigation and Water Resources Advisor: 831-759-7377, mdcahn@ucanr.edu

It has been a couple of “rough” weeks managing the diamondback moth (DBM), Plutella xylostella (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), in the Central Coast. Based on my conversations with some PCAs, we are managing large populations of this moth, resulting in high infestations in cole crops like broccoli and Brussel sprouts. Larvae of this insect will typically feed on the underside of the leaves, rasping the epidermis and generating this characteristic “window panning” that results on perforations later on (Fig. 1). Diamondback larvae will also feed on the plant's growing points, floral stalks, and even on flower buds.

Fig.1. Characteristic window panning injury from Diamondback larva feeding on a broccoli leaf.

It seems like populations have been building up during early summer in our area, resulting in enough individuals, at this point, generating significant injury in cole crops. PCAs have been recommending spraying several different insecticides to reduce the infesting populations in affected fields, since damage has been beyond tolerable. For instance, after one of my field visits, I was able to spot affected larvae in treated fields (Fig. 2). Treatments are working, I believe we need to continue being ahead of future DMB infestations.

Fig. 2. Dark colored insecticide-poisoned and dead Diamondback larva collected from an insecticide treated broccoli field.

Some information to consider:

• Scout early. If you have transplants or direct seeded seedlings, pay a visit more often. We are dealing with a large DBM population right now. There will be a high chance that those fields may ended having DMB earlier than expected during this time of the year.

• Use of adjuvants. The waxy nature of cole crop leaves represents a challenge for insecticide deposition in the canopy. Make sure that you are using a spreader/sticker adjuvant to potentially reduce any pesticide “sliding off” from the waxy leaves.

• Rotate pesticides. Consider using different classes of insecticides, before using different active ingredients within the same class. For instance, using an avermectin and then a diamide, instead of using chlorantraniliprole and cyantraniliprole (two different active ingredients within the diamide class) back to back. Using different modes of actions will help to delay potential issues of developing insecticide resistance in our DBM populations.

Celebrate National Honey Bee Day by brushing up on your knowledge of bee protection—check out the newly revised Best Management Practices to Protect Bees from Pesticides and Bee Precaution Pesticide Ratings from UC IPM. These resources will help you strike the right balance between applying pesticides to protect crops and reducing the risk of harming our most important pollinators.   

The best management practices now contain important information regarding the use of adjuvants and tank mixes, preventing the movement of pesticide-contaminated dust, and adjusting chemigation practices to reduce bee exposure to pesticide-contaminated water. The Bee Precaution Pesticide Ratings have also been updated to include ratings for 38 new pesticides, including insecticides (baits, mixtures, and biological active ingredients), molluscicides (for snail and slug control), and fungicides.

Most tree and row crops are finished blooming by now, but it is a good idea to learn about bee protection year-round. Visit these resources today to choose pesticides that are least toxic to bees and learn how you can help prevent bees from being harmed by pesticide applications.