Japanese Beetle Eradication Program

2005

Japanese Beetle Eradication Program

Palisade, CO

Summary and Final Report

Jessica Green, Coordinator

Presented this

16th day of November, 2005

Table of Contents

I.Introduction………………………………….………….….3

Describes the history of Japanese Beetle, and the regulatory concerns for Colorado.

II.Procedure……………………………………………………4

A detailed account of methods and materials used during the 2005 treatment season.

III.Results…………………………………………………………6

Information regarding adult beetle trap count numbers, and highlights of community cooperation and granular application.

IV.Discussion…………………………………………………..9

Inferences about results, as well as suggestions for future monitoring and treatment.

V.Appendixes………………………………………………12

Lists of committee members and benefactors of the program. Dates of public relation events.

Introduction

The Japanese Beetle is a voracious pest that has been in the United States for over eighty years. In the past three decades, Popillia japonica has made a damaging sweep westward. According to the UnitedStates Division of Agriculture Arthropod and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS), Japanese Beetles now inhabit over 30 states. Since the beetle is often transported on fruit and garden exports, an infected state is liable to end up on a ‘restricted from import’ list, which can be damaging to a state’s industry. This is especially true for Colorado. In the year 2000, Colorado exported $4.6 billion worth of agricultural exports. If a population of Japanese Beetles were to be permanently established here, the effects could cost the state billions of dollars, not to mention livelihoods.

JB was first noted in Palisade in 2002. In 2003, 178 traps were set by the Colorado Dept. of Agriculture and it became abundant that an eradication program needed to be established. Since that time, a 3-pronged strategy has been in effect in MesaCounty. Efforts have been focused on mass trapping of adult beetles, insecticide application to kill larvae, and the encouragement of dry-down to reduce the chances of egg survival.

Procedure

PERMISSION SLIPS – The season began on May 16th, 2005 and the first task was to gather consent from homeowners. It was necessary to obtain approval to trespass onto personal property to place traps and apply granular insecticide. Permission slips were dispersed to homeowners via mass mailing through the postal service. Slips were also available for pick-up at local agencies. An extraneous distribution of permission slips was also done by Ute Water, but the only slips needed were for those properties within city limits.

TRAPS – During the first few weeks, mass trapping was initiated. 418 traps were hung at locations as identical as possible to the trap locations of 2004. The traps used were funnel traps, manufactured by Trece Inc. The traps were baited with a ‘double disc’ of floral compound and a JB specific sex pheromone known as Japonilure. The pheromone has been proven to increase capture of adult males, while the floral scent is equally attractive to both sexes.

All traps were monitored on a bi-weekly basis. In addition, as a ‘core area’ of captured beetles developed, those traps were monitored two to three times a week. Captured beetles were sexed, labeled, and kept in vials. Trap count numbers and locations were logged.

MERIT APPLICATION – In 2004, the granular application was done gratis by Tru-Green Chemlawn©. This year, however, bids were taken for the job and Tru-Green did not present one. The winning bid was received by R.E. Landscape Services, of Grand Junction. Five thousand pounds of the granular imidacloprid (Merit) was donated by the Bayer Corporation.

Treatment began on Friday, June 24th, 2005. The Merit was applied using two Lesco rotary push spreaders and a riding spreader. The insecticide was applied at a rate of 2.75 lbs/1000 ft2. Door-hangers were hung after the Merit had been applied. Homeowners were instructed to water the chemical in for approximately 1 hour, or about ¾”deep. Public parks in Palisade were treated by City Works, using the remaining Merit.

DYLOX APPLICATION – Due to the concentration of beetles caught, it was suggested that a second granular treatment be done in the fall. The CDA and Mesa County Pest Management arranged purchase of trichlorfon, an insecticide that is more specific in eradicating later stages of beetle larval development. The Dylox was applied by R.E. Landscape Services on September 28th, 2005. It was only spread on properties within the ‘core area’ of infestation.

Results

PERMISSION SLIPS – Overall, the homeowners of Palisade were very cooperative and supportive of the program. Signed slips were received for all but three properties. The owners of two of these properties (130 Aspinall Ct. and 155 Sunset Cir.) had made agreements with the 2004 coordinator that they would dry-down lawns completely rather than have the Merit applied. The other property (545 Crawford) was concerned about application, but the owners did eventually do a self-application of Scott’s Grub-Ex in early July.

MASS TRAPPING – The first adult beetles captured in the funnel traps were caught during the week of July 6th, 2005. Figure A. shows that the adult flight climax occurred in mid-July, when a peak of 34 beetles was caught during the week of July 21st, 2005.

Total trap count for the 2005 season was 117 Japanese Beetles captured. This can be seen in figure B. However, the reduction is actually more dramatic than apparent at first glance. In 2003, 1232 beetles were captured in 100 traps. The totals for 2004 and 2005 are based on 416 traps.

FIG A. This graph shows that although numbers were greatly reduced, adult flight followed the same pattern as previous years.

FIG B. The dramatic drop in trap numbers is seen here. The 2005 total is a 90.5% decrease from 2003, and an 88% decrease from 2004.

Another important trend to notice is that the beetles caught were confined to a ‘core area’ of roughly 6 blocks. As seen below, more than half (67) of all total beetles (117) were trapped in the Crawford Ln. subdivision, and in the homes adjacent north and south of there.

GRANULAR APPLICATIONS – During the Merit application, approx. 3900 lbs of imidacloprid was applied to 712 properties within the city limits of Palisade. This includes private homes and school turf-grass. The remaining bags of Merit were taken to Palisade Public Works to treat the city parks.

The Dylox application occurred over an estimated 29 acres. This estimate includes total acreage in the Sunset Cir. and Crawford Ln. neighborhoods, as well as W. 5th St. from Elberta Ave. to Peach Ave.

DRY-DOWN – Encouraging homeowners to dry down lawns was an ongoing process during the 2005 season. The importance was stressed on the door-hangers that were hung after treatment, as well as mentioned in every media appearance. Most residents were familiar with this ‘extra precaution’ due to the pamphlet given out in 2004.

Discussion

The community of Palisade was very cooperative and supportive of continuing the Japanese Beetle eradication effort. Although collecting permission slips took over a month, the response was overwhelmingly positive. There were less than a dozen voiced concerns, mostly regarding the safety of the granular insecticide. Imidicloprid was repeated as the granular of choice due to its success in other JB eradication efforts, and because it is labeled as a “very low risk” insecticide, and is widely used on food crops and in veterinary uses. Dylox is also a low risk granular, with higher efficiency at killing early stage larvae.

In future years, there are some areas that could be improved upon with regards to the treatment application. The first issue is with bid proposals and contract agreements for the task of pesticide application. It should be made explicitly clear how many properties are to be treated and the man power necessary to complete the job within a certain time frame. The contractor expressed frustration that details weren’t ‘up to date’ in the agreement.

Also, it should be noted that the work should be completed well in advance of July 1st, the new fiscal year date for the CDA. This time crunch was inevitable, because it was necessary to receive all permission slips to avoid paying the landscapers to return to “spot-treat”. Although paper work was submitted in time, R.E. Landscapes did not receive their payment in a timely fashion. Another budget issue to consider would be developing a bank account just for use by the JB Eradication Committee. This way, grants could be deposited directly, and the coordinator would be able to have a better working knowledge of where monies are coming from, and how they are being spent. This would allow for payment to be dispersed to the contractor directly. Also, money for mailings would be available without involving a third party.

It is important to maintain precision with regards to scientific data. For this reason, it was decided that no additional traps should be hung that were not hung last year. In this way, we can hope that trap counts provide a more accurate comparison between treatment seasons.

Many of the troubles expressed by the 2004 Coordinator seemed to work themselves out naturally, by having the program continue in the same fashion. I express great gratitude to Matt Camper for doing such wonderful ground work. The community as a whole was more cooperative than I had imagined, and from gaining permission to mentioning dry-down, it seemed like “old hat” for many of Palisade’s residents.

I feel that the eradication effort has been very successful in Palisade. The population is now isolated to within a few blocks. If the hot spot area continues next year, it would be worth a closer look as to why that specific zone continues to breed JB. Some things to consider might be soil moisture, attractive vegetation types, or the address that was not treated with Merit either year. Overall, I feel that great strides have been made to rid the area of Japanese Beetle, and I look forward to continued monitoring of the situation.

Appendix 1

Members of the

2005 Palisade, CO. Japanese Beetle Eradication Committee

Brant Harrison, Kokopelli Produce, chairperson

Jerry Cochran, Colo. Dept. of Agriculture

Andrea Judson, Palisade Insectary, Dept. of Agriculture

Bob Hammon, CSU Extension, Entomologist

Albert and Terry LaSalle, CSU Master Gardeners

Fesalene Ashurst, Town of Palisade

Susan Rose, CSU Extension, Horticulture Tech.

Shirley Skinner, CSU Master Gardener, Resident

Curtis Swift, CSU Extension, Horticulture

Galen Wallace, Town of Palisade Trustee

Matt Camper, CSU Entomology Student

Jude Sirota, Mesa Co. Pest and Weed Inspector

Mitch Yergert, Colo. Dept. of Agriculture

Tom McKee, Palisade Greenhouse

Bruce Talbott, Talbott Farms

Appendix 2

Donations and Supporters – THANK YOU!

CSU Specialty Crops Grant

Town of Palisade
ColoradoStateUniversity Extension
Hi-Tech Embroidery
CDA Insectary Staff
Palisade Chamber of Commerce
MesaCounty Library – Palisade
Bud’s Signs
Bayer Corporation
RE Landscape Services
Lisa Peraino – APHIS/USDA

Appendix 3

Public Relations and Media Appearances

05/24/05 – Palisade Town Meeting
05/26/05 – Free Press
05/26/05 – Palisade Tribune
06/ /05 – KKCO News
06/ /05 – Daily Sentinel
06/19/05 – Flyer posted
06/27/05 – KKCO News
07/ /05 – Daily Sentinel
/05 – GrandValley Rose Society
09/22/05 – Palisade Tribune
09/23/05 – Flyer posted
10/18/05 – “Keeping Colorado Free of JB” presentation given at the National Japanese Beetle annual meeting, Los Angeles
(Scheduled) – Present results at next Town Meeting
(Scheduled) – Update at Colorado Weed Management meeting