Year-Round IPM Program Pages
When planning for possible pesticide applications in an IPM program, consult the Pest Management Guidelines, review and complete this checklist to consider practices that minimize environmental and efficacy problems.
Choose a pesticide from the UC IPM Avocado Pest Management Guidelines for the target pest considering these factors:
- Impact on natural enemies and honeybees. For more information, see Protecting Natural Enemies and Pollinators.
- Potential for water quality problems using the UC IPM WaterTox database.
- Impact on aquatic invertebrates. For more information, see Pesticide Choice (), UC ANR Publication 8161.
- Chemical mode of action if pesticide resistance is an issue. For more information see Herbicide Resistance: Definition and Management Strategies (), UC ANR Publication 8012 (PDF).
- Endangered species that may be near your site. Find out using the Department of Pesticide Regulation’s PRESCRIBE program.
Before an application:
- Ensure that spray equipment is properly calibrated to deliver the desired pesticide amount for optimal coverage.
- Use appropriate spray nozzles and pressure to minimize off-site movement of pesticides.
- Choose sprayers and application procedures that keep pesticides on target.
- Avoid spraying during these conditions to avoid off-site movement of pesticides:
- Wind speed over 10 and under 3 mph
- Temperature inversions
- Just prior to rain or irrigation (unless it is an appropriate amount, such as when incorpo-rating a soil-applied pesticide)
- At tractor speeds over 2 mph
- Identify and take special care to protect sensitive areas (for example, waterways or riparian areas) surrounding your application site.
- Review and follow labeling and regulations for pesticide handling, personal protection equipment (PPE) requirements, storage, and disposal guidelines.
- Check and follow restricted entry intervals (REI) and preharvest intervals (PHI).
After an application:
- Record application date, product used, rate, and location of application.
- Follow up to confirm that treatment was effective.
Consider water management practices that reduce pesticide movement off-site:
- Consult relevant publications.
- Orchard Floor Management to Reduce Erosion , UC ANR Publication 8202
- Reducing Runoff from Irrigated Lands: Causes and Management of Runoff from Surface Irrigation in Orchards , UC ANR Publication 8214
- Consult the Department of Pesticide Regulation Ground Water Protection Program (GWPA) website for pesticide information and mitigation measures.
- Limit irrigation to amount required using soil moisture and evapotranspiration (ET) monitoring .
- Install an irrigation recirculation or storage and reuse system.
- Use drip rather than sprinkler or flood irrigation.
- Consider the use of cover crops.
- Consider vegetative filter strips or ditches.
- Install sediment traps.
- Use polyacrylamide (PAM) tablets in furrow irrigation or sprinkler irrigation systems to improve soil infiltration and prevent off-site movement of sediments.
- Apply polyacrylamides in sprinkler irrigation systems to prevent runoff.
- Redesign inlets and outlets into tailwater ditches to reduce erosion.
Consider orchard floor management practices that improve soil structure and reduce erosion.
- For more information, see UC ANR Publication 8202, Orchard Floor Management Practices to Reduce Erosion and Protect Water Quality .
Consider practices that reduce air quality problems.
- When possible, reduce volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions by decreasing the amount of pesticide applied, choosing low-emission management methods, and avoiding emulsifiable concentrate (EC) formulations.
For more about mitigating the effects of pesticides, see the Mitigation page.