Year-Round IPM Program Pages
This year-round IPM program covers the major pests of pistachios in California.
About Postharvest
- Why is postharvest important in an IPM program?
- Special issues of concern related to environmental quality: runoff, drift, volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
What should you be doing at this time?
Carry out postharvest sanitation activities:
- Prune trees and destroy infected, dead, and dying branches to reduce inoculum sources for Botrytis blossom and shoot blight and Botryosphaeria panicle and shoot blight.
- Remove and destroy, or disc under, unharvested nuts and mummies from trees and the ground to reduce overwintering sites for navel orangeworm and sources of inoculum for Botryosphaeria panicle and shoot blight. At minimum, shake trees to remove mummies as soon as possible before rain.
Monitor for mealybugs.
- Look for sooty mold on leaves and mealybugs within the clusters.
- Once leaves fall, check tree trunks.
- Note infested trees for monitoring next season.
Survey weeds and keep records . Manage weeds according to the Pistachio Pest Management Guidelines.
Look for vertebrates and their damage and manage if needed:
- Ground squirrels
- Jackrabbits
- Meadow voles
- Pocket gophers
During the fourth week in October for 1- to 6-year-old trees, consider applying zinc sulfate to induce defoliation (prevents winter frost damage) and enhance zinc nutrient levels for spring growth.