Pest Management

Conservation Buffers in Organic Systems: Idaho

Conservation Buffers provides guidance on installing buffers in organic production systems to meet the USDA National Organic Program NOP regulations.

Conservation Buffers in Organic Systems: California

This is a collaborative project to build the capacity of conservation professionals to assist organic and transitional farmers in planning and implementing conservation practices through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program Organic Initiative. This guide is part of a series of guides created by Oregon Tilth for use by NRCS staff in the Western Region. Conservation Buffers provides […]

Common NRCS Practices Related to Pest Management on Organic Farms

This document demonstrates how certain NRCS practices that have primary resource protection benefits can also have significant Integrated Pest Management benefits to organic producers.

Conservation Buffers in Organic Systems: Western States Implementation Guide

Conservation Buffers provides guidance on installing buffers in organic production systems to meet the USDA National Organic Program NOP regulations.

Tea Time in the Tropics

This book critically evaluates the phenomenon of compost tea and provides a thorough discussion of the composition and process of making compost.

Pasture and Grazing Management in the Pacific Northwest

A book that provides knowledge of ecological processes involved in pasture growth and utilization and an understanding of how management influence those processes for good or bad.

Anaerobic Soil Disinfestation to Control Soil Borne Pathogens Webinar

In the webinar the presenters briefly review the development and use of anaerobic soil disinfestation (ASD) techniques for control of soil borne pathogens in various crops and regions around the world, and then focus on the current state of knowledge and use of ASD in California primarily for strawberry production. We discuss the latest research […]

Earwigs Found to be Beneficial in Apple Orchards

Sustainable Agriculture Fact Sheet                                           April 2020 Crop: Apples                            Need: Discovering whether earwigs are pest, neutral or beneficial insects in apple orchards States: Washington                                                                                                                                    Background: Woolly apple aphids are a serious pest in apple orchards and are difficult to control with current insecticides. However, beneficial insect predators can […]

Fresh Growth Podcast

Fresh Growth: Approaches to a More Sustainable Future from Western Ag Practitioners introduces you to farmers and ranchers from around the western United States who are finding innovative sustainable practices that enrich the natural resources we all care about. These successful multi-generational operations experiment with new ideas and are making it pay. Listen in as […]

Using Beneficial Insects to Combat Pests and Engage Growers

Sustainable Agriculture Fact Sheet                     July 2020 State: California                                Commodity: Wine grapes Need: An economical way to control leafroll virus, which is spread by vine mealybugs Summary: Leafroll virus is infecting California grapevines at an alarming rate due to an aggressive insect vector, the vine mealybug.  Leafroll virus infections reduce crop yield and quality, decrease a […]

Farmer and Rancher Research in the West

Making changes on the farm or ranch involves taking risks. One or two years spent experimenting can lead to a financial hit too difficult to recover from. That’s where Western SARE’s Farmer/Rancher and Professional + Producer grants help out. Grantees, like the ones highlighted in this report, come up with the possible solution to a problem they face on their farm or ranch, propose a way to research the idea, and then Western SARE provides the critical support needed to experiment.The projects explore sustainable solutions to problems through on-farm research, demonstration, and education. It is expected that the results are shared with other producers. The highlights you’ll read here are just a fraction of the creative projects attempting to solve real-world problems the grants programs have funded. 

Supporting Agriculture in the Pacific Islands

Western SARE's 2019 Extension Project

IPM for Coffee Berry Borer

When the coffee berry borer arrived in Hawaii 2010, Suzanne Shriner had a hard conversation with her parents. “I sat down with them at the kitchen table and told them we might have to get out of the coffee business,” she remembered. “It was a pretty sober moment, and it wouldn’t have been a good […]

Winter 2019 Simply Sustainable

In this Issue: Regenerative Ag Pollinators and Canola Cover Crop Resources Pioneer Award and more

Winter 2018 Simply Sustainable

In this Issue: Building Capacity for Blackfeet Farmers Training for Micronesian Extension Agents A New Breed of Ranchers Agritourism Opportunities Benefits from Owls  And more

Pueo are Much More than Pest-Management

If you can encourage a threatened native species, help control non-native pests, benefit the state’s farmers and preserve a culturally important icon, you’ve hit an ecological grand slam.  That’s exactly what the University of Hawaii’s Melissa Price is trying to do with the islands’ pueo owls. The striking, dark birds are a species of short-eared, […]

California Strawberry and Research on Compost for Strawberry Health

California strawberry production is at a pivotal point, struggling with new plant diseases due to the phase-out of the fumigant methyl bromide. This video explores the current issues facing strawberry growers in California and explains the use of compost to suppress disease and promote strawberry plant health.

How Well Does Biodegradable Plastic Mulch Degrade in Compost and Soil?

Biodegradable plastic mulches are now commercially available, and they are designed so that they can be tilled directly into the soil to degrade. Their adoption could alleviate the disposal problem of polyethylene mulch, but there is the need to evaluate how well they degrade under different environmental conditions.