Progress report for WRGR23-004
Project Information
Integrated pest management (IPM) is a framework to consider all available tools to sustainably reduce crop damage from pests. In Washington and Oregon, which together comprise most of United States pear and apple acreage, several pests are being managed unsuccessfully due to over-use of pesticides disrupting biocontrol (pest suppression from predators). Pear orchards often apply over 10 insecticide sprays per season at a cost of $2,500 per acre while failing to prevent pear psylla damage, while apple orchardists are turning to diazinon to kill woolly apple aphid despite industry-wide desire to move away from organophosphate pesticides.
There is evidence that integrated strategies that conserve biological agents through wise timing and selection of pesticide sprays keep pear psylla and woolly apple aphid suppressed. A major challenge to adopting these strategies is a multi-year lag in establishment of biological control agents. Insecticide-based management strategies usually extirpate European earwig, a key biological control agent of both pear psylla and woolly apple aphid. This predator has low dispersal ability and will not quickly recolonize orchards once a spray program is revised for biocontrol compatibility.
We propose to support greater transition to integrated pest management in pear and apple with education and training in European earwig releases. Previous projects developed methods to collect and release European earwigs to establish populations in orchards and suppress pests. Our team will share this knowledge with educational presentations and dissemination of educational materials. We will host workshops where stakeholders can collect their own earwigs to release in orchards and report back with monitoring data. This project will reduce roadblocks to adopting integrated pest management and improve pest suppression, saving growers money and increasing their profits while reducing use of environmentally harmful pesticides with human health risks.
Objective 1: Increase knowledge of how to successfully integrate biocontrol in pear and apple pest management, especially in the role of European earwigs and how to conserve them.
- Measure increase in knowledge among at least 200 stakeholders in each of Wenatchee (year 1), and in Wenatchee, Yakima, and Hood River (year 2) regions after educational presentations.
- Increase awareness of predators and parasitoids via three newsletter articles for Tree Fruit Matters, distributing field notebooks with biocontrol pictures and facts to 700 stakeholders across the three regions, and managing a project webpage similar to Orpet et al. (2022).
Objective 2: Facilitate and train tree fruit professionals to monitor, collect, and transport earwigs to inoculate orchards lacking earwigs and increase biocontrol services.
- Document ability of at least 80 stakeholders to collect earwigs at workshops across the three regions and two years.
- Measure success of earwig releases and ability of workshop attendees to monitor earwigs with reports from each person the following year (years 2 and 3).
Objective 3: Increase the number of pear and apple acres using IPM by facilitating the documentation of outcomes and the sharing of results.
- Share at one presentation targeted to each of the three regions and via an open-access peer-reviewed article earwig data from participating stakeholders to show that the predator was established in IPM orchards.
The Pacific Northwest is the main pear and apple production region in the United States. Washington and Oregon comprise 32,000 pear acres (60% of USA pear acreage, $292 million market value) and Washington comprises 172,000 apple acres (59% of USA acreage, market value of $2.5 billion) (NASS 2022).
The most important pear pest, pear psylla, and one of the most important apple pests, woolly apple aphid, are currently unsuccessfully managed in conventional orchards due to unsustainable patterns of pesticide use. Pear orchards often apply over 10 insecticide sprays per season at a cost of $2,500 per acre while failing to prevent pest damage (DuPont et al. 2021). In contrast, orchards following organic or integrated pest management guidelines (IPM) have similar or lower populations of pear psylla in pear and woolly apple aphid in apple because spray programs permit survival of predators and parasitoids (Orpet et al. 2020, DuPont et al. 2021).
Despite its effectiveness, IPM is not widely used to its full value. Insecticides that harm predators and induce woolly apple aphid outbreaks, such as spinetoram and novaluron (targeted against the key apple and pear pest codling moth), continue to be applied despite availability pheromone mating disruption combined with chemical alternatives (Beers et al. 2016).
A major barrier to adoption of IPM in pear and apple is a lag in establishing predator populations. European earwig suppresses pear psylla (Höhn et al. 2007) and woolly apple aphid (Orpet et al. 2019), but earwigs are usually extirpated by conventional insecticides and take years to establish in orchards transitioning to IPM. European earwig has low dispersal ability, usually traveling <30 meters in a season (Orpet et al. 2019). Hence, human-assisted inoculation of orchards with earwigs would reduce pest damage and insecticide reliance, lowering barriers to adopting IPM.
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Milestones |
2023 |
2024 |
2025 |
2026 |
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Pre- award |
Growing season |
Winter |
Growing season |
Winter |
Growing season |
Winter |
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Collaborator meetings |
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Obj. 1 |
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Presentations |
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Newsletters |
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Obj. 2 |
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Workshops (Wenatchee) |
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Workshops (Yakima) |
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Workshops (Hood River) |
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Obj. 3 |
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Earwig counts (pear) |
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Earwig counts (apple) |
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Share results |
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The project will start in April 2022, when Orpet will hold an online collaborator meeting. The team will meet each year to consolidate plans. In combination with activities below, this will help members of the team to be a regional resource on biocontrol and earwigs for stakeholders.
Presentations and newsletters will increase knowledge of earwigs and how to integrate pesticides and biological control in pear and apple. Orpet will deliver presentations, distribute educational notebooks, and manage evaluation surveys. A pre-2023 growing season presentation in Wenatchee (North Central Washington Pear Day, Jan 19) will reach at least 200 stakeholders; post-2023 growing season will include at least one presentation per Wenatchee, Yakima, and Hood River of similar scope.
Workshops will be conducted at research orchards by Orpet and a grant-funded assistant to train stakeholders. We expect 20 stakeholders to attend each workshop. Collaborators will attend workshops and advertise them with their community, and Orpet will manage evaluation surveys.
Earwig counts will be collected by workshop participants the season after releases. Orpet will share results on earwig establishment and labor time to raise awareness at similar venues as the educational presentations and conferences, reaching at least 500 stakeholders in each region via presentations and newsletters articles. The project will also be described in a peer-reviewed article in the open-access Journal of Integrated Pest Management for stakeholders to refer to and for other researchers to learn from.
Cooperators
- (Researcher)
- - Producer
- (Researcher)
Education & Outreach Initiatives
(Objective 1) Increase knowledge of how to successfully integrate biocontrol in pear and apple pest management, especially in the role of European earwigs and how to conserve them
Educational presentations and newsletter articles were shared during 2023. These activities shared information on how to integrated biological and chemical control successfully and included information on the role of European earwigs and how to conserve them.
Thirteen presentations and three newsletter articles are described in the Educational & Outreach Activities section below. Approximately 700 notepads with biocontrol pictures and facts were distributed, mainly in the Wenatchee region, to communicate biocontrol knowledge. A project website was created (https://cahnrs.wsu.edu/tfrec-orpet/earwigs/) to house educational resources and share project outcomes.
These activities included advertisement of the earwig transportation workshops central to the project, so an important outcome was the recruitment of 9 fruit growing operations participating in the workshop.
The pre-approved WSARE evaluation was not distributed at other activities (i.e., education presentations) due to overlap with existing Washington State University extension impact evaluation activities conducted by others. Survey fatigue and low response rates limits the utility of evaluations at these events. However, some evaluation data are available indicating that presentations successfully increased knowledge of biocontrol and especially earwigs. Evaluation information was provided by Tianna DuPont and Ricardo Lima of Washington State University Extension for the following:
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. A pear study circle: phenology-based integrated pest management. Dec 13. 20-min introduction to study circle extension event in Cashmere WA, Dec 13.
- 75 attendees, 23 survey responses
- 76% reported an increase in knowledge a good or great deal
- On person wrote intention to "actively promote earwigs" in free response portion
- Beers, EH, and RJ Orpet. 2024. Woolly apple aphid IPM. North Central Washington Apple Day.
- 184 attendees, 41 survey responses
- 8 people explicitly mentioned earwigs in a free-response about what they learned from the conference, including "I need more earwigs in my orchard" and "there are free earwigs available in Wenatchee!"
- 6 people explicitly mentioned earwig monitoring or releases in a free-response about what the intend to do
- Sayles, M, and RJ Orpet. 2024. 5-min introduction to Pear IPM grower panel. North Central Washington Pear Day.
- 258 attendees, 36 survey responses
- 1 person explicitly mentioned importance of earwigs in a free-response about what they learned from the conference
Additional presentations for the next year (2024) of the project are underway and will include additional evaluations.
(Objective 2) Facilitate and train tree fruit professionals to monitor, collect, and transport earwigs to inoculate orchards lacking earwigs and increase biocontrol services.
An earwig collection and transportation workshop was held in Wenatchee during 2023. Participants saw a demonstration of the use of corrugated cardboard for earwig collection and transportation in buckets. We discussed with each attendee the philosophy behind earwig transportation within an integrated pest management program and each person received educational handouts on pesticide effects on earwigs and tips on earwig transport.
During 2024, three more workshops are planned. One in Wenatchee, one in Yakima, and one in Hood River. Advertising has started and seven people are already signed up across regions (one repeat from 2023 and six new).
The workshop included an evaluation survey filled out by all participants. The survey was reviewed by Washington State University IRB and determined exempt from federal regulation. Findings are described in the Project Outcomes section below. A follow-up survey will be conducted during 2024, and another set of surveys is planned for 2024 workshop participants.
(Objective 3) Increase the number of pear and apple acres using IPM by facilitating the documentation of outcomes and the sharing of results.
Extension presentations and the project website will share outcomes of the earwig transportation workshops to encourage adoption of successful IPM programs in pear and apple. This initiative will start late 2024 and in 2025, after outcomes of the first earwig transportation workshop have been measured.
The anticipated outcome is that people who have tried earwig transportation will report that it helped them increase their acreage under IPM programs. This is expected to be associated with reduced pesticide use and reduced pest damage.
Educational & Outreach Activities
Participation Summary:
Accounting for overlap in presentation audiences, it is estimated that 200 consultants and 400 growers were reached by presentations related to this project.
Presentations which included educational information on earwigs during 2023 and so far during 2024 included:
- Beers, EH, and RJ Orpet. 2024. Woolly apple aphid IPM. North Central Washington Apple Day. 284 attendees.
- Sayles, M. 2024. 5-min introduction to Pear IPM grower panel. North Central Washington Pear Day. 258 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ, A Hanel, R Schmidt-Jeffris, & C Adams. 2024. Sharing earwigs for inoculation biocontrol in pear and apple. Orchard Pest & Disease Management Conference. Jan 11, Portland, OR. 100 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. A pear study circle: phenology-based integrated pest management. Dec 13. 20-min introduction to study circle extension event in Cashmere WA, Dec 13. 75 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. Pear IPM tactics 5-min introduction to grower panel; panelist. NW Hort Expo, Dec 5. 100 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. Pear psylla field day 2023, Aug 16. 20 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. Pear psylla and IPM. North Central Washington Fieldman’s Association breakfast meeting, April 18. 20 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. Pear psylla phenology and management. Decision Aid System workshop webinar, April 14. 3 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. IPM strategy for pear psylla. Hi-Up growers meeting, Peshastin, Feb 22. 12 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. Chemical effects on pear natural enemies and management outcomes. Northwest Wholesale Incorporated Wenatchee Growers Meeting, Wenatchee, Feb 21. 50 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. Integrated pest management and how it works for pear psylla and mites. Okanogan Horticultural Association Annual Meeting, Feb 7. 75 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. Pear psylla control and IPM programs. Northwest Wholesale Incorporated Omak Growers Meeting, Omak, Feb 2. 100 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. Pear psylla integrated pest management. Northwest Wholesale Incorporated Cashmere Growers Meeting, Cashmere WA, Jan 31. 50 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. Integrated pest management and how it works for pear psylla. 76th Annual Lake Chelan Horticultural Meeting, Chelan WA, Jan 21. 70 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ. 2023. Phenology-based integrated pear pest management step by step. North Central Washington Tree Fruit Days Pear Day, Wenatchee WA, Jan 19. 500 attendees.
- Orpet, RJ, M Sayles, C Sater, C McCullough, L Nottingham. 2023. The phenology-based pear psylla IPM program, why it's needed, and how it works. Orchard Pest and Disease Management Conference, Portland OR, Jan 11. 100 attendees.
Newsletter articles included:
- Orpet, R and M Sayles. Third-generation pear psylla outlook, August 2023. Washington State University Tree Fruit Matters. Aug: https://treefruit.wsu.edu/article/third-generation-pear-psylla-outlook-august-2023. Sent to 3,000 subscribers.
- Orpet, R. Managing second-generation pear psylla, July 2023. Washington State University Tree Fruit Matters. Jul: https://treefruit.wsu.edu/article/managing-second-generation-pear-psylla-july-2023. Sent to 3,000 subscribers.
- Catron, K. Rally the troops: free earwigs to be distributed to pome fruit growers at TFREC workshop. Washington State University Tree Fruit Matters. June: https://treefruit.wsu.edu/article/rally-the-troops-free-earwigs-to-be-distributed-to-pome-fruit-growers-at-tfrec-workshop/
- Orpet, R. Woolly apple aphid management in 2023. Washington State University Tree Fruit Matters. May: https://treefruit.wsu.edu/article/woolly-apple-aphid-management-in-2023. Sent to 3,000 subscribers.
Learning Outcomes
Project Outcomes
In 2023, nine producers, consultants, or managers were served by the Wenatchee earwig transportation workshop. All of them received earwigs to release on their tree fruit acreage. All of them reported an intention to monitor earwigs, modify their spray programs to protect earwigs, and improve their advice/counsel to others in 2024. All but one intended to collect and transport earwigs in 2024 using what they learned at the workshop. A follow-up survey in 2024 will confirm these outcomes and assess impact.
Outcomes for the nine stakeholders described above underestimate the full impact of the project, as attendees of educational presentations have increased their knowledge of tree fruit integrated pest management and the role of earwigs even if they did not attend the workshop. On a different project, an industry-wide survey of western pear pest management practices will be conducted at the end of 2024. This survey will document the current extent of integrated management implementation and the use of earwigs.