Most of the peas for processing in the U.S. are grown in the upper Midwest, with over 220,000 ac in the region. A variety of insect pests colonize peas in the Midwestern U.S. each year, causing direct damage via root, leaf or pod feeding. In most years however, the major concern with insect pests in peas is the likelihood of several species surviving the harvest process to become contaminants in the final product. The most common species detected in processing plants include: alfalfa caterpillar, celery looper, cabbage looper, stinkbugs, and occasionally grasshoppers. Development of IPM methods for this system is challenging due to the diversity of arthropod pests, species biology, behavior, and respective windows of optimal control by insecticides. The system is further complicated by species such as the Colorado potato beetle, which are not pests of peas, but are attracted to weeds such as eastern black nightshade. Because of the beetle's size, it makes it through most of the contaminant screens during processing. Based on lepidopteran larval and pupation developmental times, management strategies have been developed to provide maximum control of the insect complex with a single well-timed insecticide spray (pyrethroid) 10 days before harvest. Although this approach has worked well in most years, the method failed during 2001 in some areas of southern Minnesota. This presentation will focus on suggestions for the contaminant concerns in 2001, recent modifications to the "10-day model," and the need to balance IPM programs for lepidopteran pests with transient pests such as stinkbugs.
Keywords: FQPA, vegetables
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