Annual Reports

1997—IPM Education and Publications

The IPM Education and Publications office compiles publications, photographs, and other educational materials to assist growers, pest control advisers, landscapers, home gardeners, and others in their efforts to carry out IPM programs in the field. Although several other types of publications and educational tools are produced, the backbone of the IPM publications effort consists of three publication series: the IPM manuals, the UC IPM Pest Management Guidelines, and the Pest Notes. The IPM manuals are 100- to 250-page books providing in-depth information on the range of pests that attack a given commodity; they are extensively illustrated with color photographs and line drawings. The UC IPM Pest Management Guidelines is an updatable series written by UC faculty, specialists, and advisors containing brief biologies and up-to-date management information including the University's suggestions for chemical and nonchemical controls in various agricultural crops and turf. Pest Notes is a series of short publications on specific home, garden, landscape and nonagricultural pest problems.

The IPM Education and Publications staff includes (back row, left to right) Senior Writers Steve Dreistadt and Larry Strand, who work principally on producing IPM manuals, and Administrative Assistant Shawn King; (front row, left to right) desktop publishing specialist and Assistant Editor Margaret Brush, UC Cooperative Extension IPM Specialist Mary Louise Flint, who is Director of IPM Education and Publications; UC IPM Pest Management Guidelines and Pest Note Coordinator Barbara Ohlendorf, Senior Writer Patricia Gouveia, who is writing an IPM study guide for pest control advisers; and Garden CD-ROM Coordinator Cheryl Reynolds. Photo by Kathy Garvey.

Accessing IPM Publications

Information contained in the Project's IPM publications are available in several different forms and from various sources. The staff are committed to utilizing multiple media to enhance distribution of pest management information to a variety of audiences.

UC DANR Communication Services. All the IPM manuals and Pest Management Guidelines are for-sale publications that can be ordered from the UC Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources Communication Services offices at UC Davis and Oakland. Pest Management Guidelines are available either as a set of 36 by subscription or as single crop guidelines. Slide sets of all the photographs contained in the IPM manuals are also available from the Communication Services office at UC Davis.

UC Cooperative Extension Offices. IPM manuals, Pest Management Guidelines, and Pest Notes can be purchased at most county UC Cooperative Extension offices. Look for the UC Cooperative Extension listing in the government pages of the white pages of your phone book.

World Wide Web. The UC IPM Pest Management Guidelines and the Pest Notes are also available on the Web. The WWW editions of these publications include thousands of color photographs of the pests and damage symptoms plus hyperlinks to information such as degree-day tables or detailed monitoring recommendations. The electronic format allows frequent updating as pesticide registrations and other management information changes.

Other. A few free publications are available directly from the IPM Education and Publications office. See Appendix D for a listing of publications and sources.

New or Revised for '96-97!

The UC Statewide IPM Project is committed to keeping its publications up-to-date as well as releasing new titles on topics important for pest managers. Several publications were newly released or revised in the last year. Color Photo Supplements for the Pest Management Guidelines. IPM programs require accurate identification of pests and beneficials, so there is a need for good color photographs for all crops. However, development of in-depth IPM manuals with hundreds of pictures and detailed information takes many years and substantial funds and we have only been able to produce them for about 15 crops over the last 15 years.

A sampling of publications produced by IPM Education and Publications in 1996-1997. Photo by Kathy Garvey.

To fill the need for color photographs, we initiated a series of color photo supplements. Together with the updated Pest Management Guidelines for the appropriate crop, they will make a complete pest management package. Color photo supplements were produced for sugarbeets and dry beans in 1996 and for onion/garlic in 1997. They will be sold through Cooperative Extension offices and Communication Services. Barbara Ohlendorf and Larry Strand work closely with workgroups and photographer Jack Kelly Clark to get the needed photographs; Peg Brush produces them using digital images.

Second Edition of Integrated Pest Management for Cotton in the Western United States. The long-awaited revision of the cotton IPM manual was released in late 1996. The revision was coordinated by Barbara Ohlendorf and involved over 40 faculty, specialists, and advisors. This edition contains substantial new information on plant mapping and major revisions of many of the pest chapters.

Fourth Edition of Integrated Pest Management for Tomatoes. The Project's most popular agricultural crop IPM manual was revised for the fourth time in 1997. This new edition of Integrated Pest Management for Tomatoes features expanded sections and new monitoring and treatment guidelines for stinkbugs, aphids, and whiteflies; new ways to use weather forecasting models in disease management and updated information on weed management. Larry Strand worked with tomato experts throughout the University to complete this update.

Second Edition of Pests of the Garden and Small Farm. The first edition of this book, which provides least toxic pest management methods for pests in gardens and small, diversified organic farms, has sold 15,000 copies and is the primary pest management resource on fruits and vegetables used by Master Gardeners throughout the state. The second edition, also written by Mary Louise Flint, features updated sections for many pests and crop plants.

UC IPM Pest Management Guidelines Revisions. The UC IPM Pest Management Guidelines require constant updating to keep them current. Barbara Ohlendorf worked with the authors of over 20 of the 35 guidelines to produce updates over the last year.

Pest Notes. The Pest Notes series for home, garden, and landscape was launched in early 1995. Twenty-three new Pest Notes were released in 1996-97, bringing the total number to 46. The Pest Notes were also put on the IPM Project's WWW site and illustrated with hundreds of color photographs and line drawings.

Photos on the World Wide Web. The IPM Education and Publications staff selects the photos for inclusion in the Pest Management Guidelines on the IPM project WWW site. Not only are these photos being used by people going directly to our site, but many other University of California programs, such as the Vegetable Crops Center, the Pomology Center, and the Environmental Horticulture Department, have made the guidelines and photos a key feature of their WWW sites. This is a continuing project; over the next year, we expect the images and hyperlinks to increase and improve substantially. In 1997, a major project was to get life cycle collages, including seedling, mature plant, flower, and other key identifying characters, for about 75 common weed species on the Web.

Major Projects Under Way

Natural Enemies Handbook. The Natural Enemies Handbook: The Illustrated Guide to Biological Pest Control is in press and expected to be released in early 1998. This approximately 180-page book will contain 170 color photographs and over 120 line drawings of common natural enemies of agricultural, landscape, and garden pests. The book provides information on identifying, conserving, enhancing, and releasing biological control agents. Mary Louise Flint and Steve Dreistadt are authors.

IPM Manuals and other books. New IPM manuals are being compiled for stonefruits (Larry Strand) and floriculture (Steve Dreistadt). The stonefruits manual is a major production involving the stonefruits workgroup and covering apricots, peaches, nectarines, plums, prunes and cherries. The floriculture manual will include pests of over 100 flower and ornamental foliage plants and has been an active project involving many members of the floriculture workgroup.

IPM Study Guide for Pest Control Advisers. An integrated pest management textbook is being prepared for people studying for the California Pest Control Adviser (PCA) examination. In the past, PCAs have not been examined specifically on the principles of IPM. This project, which also includes the development of new exam questions in the area of IPM and other licensing areas, will set new baseline knowledge standards for pest control advisers in California, with increased expectations in integrated pest management. Senior Writer Patricia Gouveia is compiling the study guide and working closely with experts and practitioners to develop knowledge expectations (or performance objectives) in all areas in which pest control advisers are licensed. This project's genesis came directly from requests from the major professional pest control consultant association in the state, the California Agricultural Production Consultants Association (CAPCA); the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (CDPR) is committed to using the study guide and exam questions in its regulatory programs. Funded by grants to Mary Louise Flint from the US EPA, CDPR, and the USDA, this project involves close cooperation from all these agencies as well as representatives from CAPCA, AAIE, and an interdisciplinary group of specialists and advisors from the University of California. The study guide will be completed in 1998.

A CD-ROM for Gardens and Landscapes. A demonstration version of a CD-ROM-based program for diagnosing and managing problems in vegetables and fruit trees was unveiled at the International Master Gardener Conference in July 1997. This program is being developed to assist horticulture advisors, master gardeners, retail nursery personnel, and others who advise home gardeners. Team members on this project include PGR Cheryl Reynolds, Principal Investigators Mary Louise Flint, Computer System Manager Joyce Strand, and Fresno County UCCE Horticultural Advisor Pam Elam and an advisory team of horticultural advisors, master gardeners, and retail nursery personnel.

Cheryl Reynolds (left) demonstrates a preliminary version of a CD-ROM for Gardens and Landscapes at the International Master Gardener Conference in Sacramento, California. Photo by Mary Lou Flint.

The CD-ROM will allow a user to specify visual symptoms or look at color photographs to identify a problem. Once the problem is identified, the system provides recommended management strategies emphasizing least toxic alternatives. Woody ornamental modules will be added in 1998 and the whole program will be field tested by master gardener offices around the state and in Oregon and Washington

Awards. Two IPM Education and Publications staff were recognized for their outstanding contributions this year. Barbara Ohlendorf won the Outstanding Support Staff Award for the UC Cooperative Extension Distinguished Service Awards for her work coordinating the Pest Management Guidelines, Pest Notes, and the writing of Integrated Pest Management for Apples and Pears. Larry Strand won the DANR Statewide Programs Recognition Award for his outstanding work in cataloging and maintaining the massive UC IPM photo collection.

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