Integrated Pest Management

Cooperative Extension & Outreach | ANR | Integrated Pest Management

Integrated Pest Management

When dealing with agricultural pests — whether insects, weeds, or plant diseases — UOG Extension recommends employing Integrated Pest Management, or IPM.

WHAT IS IPM?

Integrated Pest Management, or IPM, is an ecological strategy that uses a combination of effective, yet environmentally conscious, tactics to reduce pests and their damage.

IPM tactics can include biological, chemical, physical, and cultural practices and can be applied to both agricultural and non-agricultural environments.

4 Steps to Integrated Pest Management:

Prevent pests.
In agriculture, some prevention methods include mowing, crop rotation, trap crops, companion planting, delay of planting, and selecting pest-resistant plant varieties.
Identify the pests.
Accurate identification is the first step to effective pest management. Take advantage of UOG Extension's free insect diagnostics and identification service (click the Services tab above).
Monitor activity.
Seeing one pest on a plant does not necessarily require action. Monitor the pest population and set an action threshold — or the point at which you will take action to prevent an economic threat or unacceptable harm to your crop.
Take action to control the spread.
If it becomes clear that prevention methods are no longer effective, start with the most effective and least risky forms of pest control, such as weeding, trapping, or use of targeted pheromones to disrupt mating. If less risky controls are not working, the next step would be targeted pesticide application. Broadcast spraying of non-specific pesticides is a last resort.

Here are some tips when applying controls for specific types of pests:

Insect control

Monitoring to know what insect pests and beneficial insects you have is critical.
When a pest is found, you do not always need to apply a control.
- If it is a small number, it is better to just let the natural systems control the pest. You can sometimes effectively crush or spray the pests with water. Another mechanical control method often used is floating row covers to protect crops from insects (but be careful of the heat retained).
- Only apply a control if there is a large outbreak.

Weed control

Weed control is especially important in new plantings.
A range of weed control practices can be used on the farm:
- Mulch
  - shredded paper and cardboard
  - organic mulch or organic materials
  - plastic mulch (must be removed annually)
- Cover crops, green manure, and living mulches, such as sun hemp, red velvet bean, and sweet potato
- Mowing

Disease control

Disease control starts with selecting an appropriate variety for disease resistance.
Windbreaks minimize physical damage to plants, which can provide an entry point for diseases.
Maintain open airflow throughout your production areas by not planting plants too close.
Practice crop rotation to reduce the buildup of disease associated with a particular plant family.
Mulch to prevent rain splashing soil particles from carrying disease onto the plants.
Perform crop sanitation by disposing or composting crop residue.

Crop Pests

Pest	Crops affected	Indicators
Asiatic corn borer	corn	caterpillars boring into whorls and stems of young plants larvae feeing on tassels and boring into stems and ears of mature plants broken stem or tassel at tunnelled region
Banana skipper	banana	eggs laid in groups on lower side of banana leaves rolled, or eaten, leaf ends decreased banana bunch size
Banana weevil	Banana, cocoa	Weak plants with slow growth and smaller bunch sizes Tunnels in rhizomes filled with brown or black debris
Beanfly	Various species of beans, including yard-long beans, pole beans, and mungo beans	Single laid eggs on leaves near the petioles or leaf stalks Swollen or cracked stems Maggots feeding on stem of seedlings just above ground level Seedlings fail to grow, leaves drop prematurely
Bean pod porer	Various species of beans, particularly yard-long beans and pole beans	eggs in the flower buds caterpillars inside pods, bore holes
Citrus leafminer	Lemon, lime, tangerine, other citrus	Whitish track in citrus leaves created by larvae Oval eggs laid under a citrus leaf near the midrib Dried leaves, if heavily infested
Cluster caterpillar	taro, cabbage, tomatoes	Clusters of eggs under leaves covered in brown scales
Coconut rhinoceros beetle	coconut palms, betel nut palms, sago palms, and date palms, pandanus	V-shaped palm branches, whitish grubs in soil
Coconut scale	coconut and other palms, pandanus, banana, papaya, guava, avocado, cacao, cassava, tea, breadfruit, sugarcane, cotton, rubber	Small, flat, whitish scale with waxy, semitransparent covering on underside of leaves Stunted palm leaves or lack of coconuts
Cowpea aphid	legumes, yard, longbeans, winged beans	Small bugs found on the growing points of a plant (tips, flowers, and developing bean pods)
Eriophyid mites	wild ferns	microscopic mites, white in color erinea (gall-like structures) on leaf blades
Fruit-piercing moth	Citrus, guava, mango, papaya, pomegranate, eggplant, tomato	Pinhole-sized puncture in fruits leaving a dry, spongy cavity, early fruit drop
Green scale	guava, coffee, chico, citrus, soursop, sweetsop,mango, banana	Black leaves Oval-shaped, flat, clefted scales found along veins of leaves
Hemispherical scale/helmet scale	guava, coffee, cotton, eggplant, okra,citrus, soursop, sweetsop, mango, tea, banana	Black leaves Yellow-brown to dark brown, dome-shaped/half-sphere scale found on leaves, small twigs, shoots, and fruits
Leafminer	Most severely affects beans, but also tomatoes, cucumber, melon, bell pepper	White track on leaves Leaf loss and decreased production
Mango shoot caterpillar	Mango, siniguelas, cashew	Eggs laid singly near new growth on twigs, bud scales, leaves Tiny green caterpillars (with red spots if older) Larvae consuming new leaves, tender shoots, flowers and sometimes the fruit Inhibited fruit production from flowers being eaten
Melon aphid/cotton aphid	cucurbits, citrus, eggplant, peppers,taro, okra, banana, cotton, coffee, cocoa, Piper, tomato, beans, sweet potato, potato	Small yellow, light green, or dark green bugs with black heads and cornicles feeding on underside of leaves Wilting or downward curling leaves; small or distorted leaves; wrinkled, cup-shaped leaves
Okra leafhopper	eggplant, okra, cotton, potatoes	Eggs on the midrib of leaves Pale green bugs on the underside of leaves. Nymphs move sideways when disturbed. Adults fly and have a tiny black spot on each wing. Curled leaves at the edge and leaves with brown dead spots with a yellow halo.
Phalaenopsis mite	Phalaenopsis and many other genera of orchids	very small reddish mites, viewable only with a hand lens speckled white areas that turn into brown sunken pits death of leaves, in severe cases
Philippine ladybeetle/Cucumber ladybeetle	tomato, eggplant, potatoes, husk tomatoes cucumber, pumpkin, melons	Brown parallel scrape marks on leaves Bright yellow eggs laid in a cluster on underside of leaves Bright yellow spiky larvae Dull orange adult beetle with many black spots
Red-banded thirps	Mango (worst damage at seedling stage), cashew, cocoa, avocado	Lower surface of leaves have dark, rusty appearance with numerous small, shiny black spots of excreta. Curled leaf edges Loss of leaves in older trees. Setback in growth for seedlings. Yellow nymphs with bright red band around abdomen. Dark brown adults of about 1 mm.
Red orchid scale	orchids, particularly cattleyas, dendrobiums, and vanilla	scales on leaves that have circular, moderately convex and dark reddish brown shields
Spiraling whitefly	Many fruit trees and ornamentals, commonly plumeria, guava, sea grape, and coconut	Reduced plant vigor and fruit yields, sooty mold on leaves Eggs on underside of leaf in a spiral pattern Small, dusty-white insects resembling a tiny moth. Can cover entire lower side of leaves. Nymphs covered in a waxy, white substance and secrete a sticky juice.
Sweet potato whitefly	cabbage, broccoli, sweet potato, tobacco, eggplant, cotton, soybean, hibiscus, and more than 300 species of plants	singly laid eggs on top or underneath leaves oval, scale-like objects that are greenish-white in color adults appear as tiny white flies less than 1 mm long, usually found on underside of leaves or flying around plant stunted, discolored plants
Striped mealybug	Sweet potato, cassava, coffee, cacao, citrus,guava. Common on tomatoes and eggplants,particularly on water-stressed plants.	Fuzzy bugs in large clusters. Bugs are powdery white with a pair of purplish dorsal stripes and two long wax tails. Eggs laid laid alongside the adults
Taro hornworm/Taro hawkmoth	plants in thetaro family: Colocasia taro, Alocasia taro, and various ornamental plants, such as Caladium and Amorphophallus	Green caterpillar with a distinctive reddish horn on posterior end Large holes in leaves, usually starting at the outer edge of the leaf Single eggs on taro leaves
Taro root aphid	taro and closely related plants	Yellow aphid usually covered with a mass of fine cottony and waxy threads Looks like white mold on the taro roots and on the leaf sheaths Extensive damage is frequently cooincidental with drought conditions during early plant growth
Taro planthopper	taro	Yellow leaves Eggs laid in twos in small holes of the midrib, petioles, or petiole bases of taro plants Adults are black with white patch, short-winged usually but long-winged in cooler periods Adults and nymphs both hop and congregate on underside of leaf
Turnip aphid	cruciferous crops	yellowish or greenish aphids found in colonies on lower side of leaves yellowing leaves and wilting plants black sooty mold develops on honeydew produced by aphids
Vanda orchid scale	orchids	flat, circular or pear-shaped, light-brown scales found in the internode dark patches on stems and leaves
Wooly whitefly	Citrus, guava, surinam cherry	Sooty mold organisms that look like fluffy wool, which can build up into a heavy crust Premature leaf drop and defoliation in citrus
Yam rust mite	yams	purplish-gray microscopie mites on surface of leaves and cultivated yams curled and chlorotic young leaves reddish brown discolorations on older leaves

Tree Pests

Pest	Trees affected	Indicators
Flame tree looper	Flame trees (Delonix regia), yellow poinciana (Peltophorum pterocarpum), Desmanthus virgatus, Cassia fistula, Leucaena leucocephala	Foliage stripped except for midrib, smaller leaves, death of branches, desynchronized flowering Yellowish or bluish-green eggs laid singly on leaflets Green or black and white caterpillars, cocoons constructed of webbing and leaves
Tangantangan psyllid	Primarily tangantangan (Leaucaena leucocephala), but also observed on monkeypod (Samanea saman), flame tree (Delonix regia), Desmanthus virgatus, and Prosopis pallida	Stunted, bunchy appearance of terminal branches, loss of leaves, death of terminal growth, low pod production Plants resprouting from base Damage in drier spot of the plant Small green or yellow insects in high quantity that hop or fly readily, eggs laid on new growth

Vines

Chain of love, Mexican creeper, mountain rose, confederate vine, hearts on chain	shrubs and trees	quick-spreading vine that smothers shrubs and trees heart-shaped leaves of 3-5 inches long, distributed alternately on stems bright white or pink flowers
Dodder	field crops, ornamentals, trees, forest plants	leafless vine with slender orange or yellow stems white flowers in clusters along the vines seeds produced in large quantities

Pesticide Sprayer How-To Videos

Backpack Sprayer Calibration

Boom Sprayer Calibration

Quick Tip: Checking Nozzle Distance

Quick Tip: Taking Proper Notes

Quick Tip: Clearing a Clogged Nozzle

Pesticide Training & Certification Materials

Applying Pesticides Correctly: A Guide for Private and Commercial Applicators (CORE Manual) (Revised 1991)

Insect and Disease Identification

For a free insect or disease identification, bring the insect or photos to Agriculture & Life Sciences Building, Room 105, during working hours, or contact: