Lexington, Kentucky 40546
      
Nursery Update - A Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service Update for the Kentucky Nursery Industry
    
By Amy Fulcher, Extension Associate - Nursery Crops
University of Kentucky Department of Horticulture
Update #30
April 20, 2005

Surfactants
Surfactants should be used if the label states to and not used otherwise. If a surfactant is not recommended on the label one may already be included in the product. Phytotoxicity can occur from too much surfactant. Generally, insecticides and fungicides come with a surfactant if one is needed. Surfactants more commonly need to be added to herbicides. Environmental conditions and plant factors (age, architecture, leaf morphology and leaf arrangement) may decrease herbicidal activity. Adjuvants are commonly used to improve herbicide performance.

  • Adjuvants are any product added to a spray solution to enhance or modify its performance.
  • Surfactants are specialized additives, formulated to improve the emulsifying, spreading, sticking and absorbing properties of liquids.
  • The five surfactant classes are: nonionic surfactants, crop oil concentrates, nitrogen-surfactant blends, esterified seed oils and organo-silicone surfactants.
  • Herbicide, weed species and environmental conditions affect surfactant performance.

Spray solution adjuvants are available for a variety of purposes. Some of the more common uses include: antifoam or defoaming materials, compatibility agents to aid mixing herbicides in spray solutions, buffer solutions to change spray solution pH, foam markers and dyes, suspension aids to improve herbicide suspension in spray solutions, tank cleaners and neutralizers, and surfactants.

Source: How Surfactants Work Colorado State University Pub. #564
 

Cultural
Herbicide Drift
Document any incidence of spray drift as soon as the event is noticed. Be sure to file a report with the Kentucky Division of Environmental Services. Keep records on the temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and direction, especially on days that spraying occurred on neighboring property. Also record plant damage or unusual growth patterns. A digital camera can be helpful in documenting spray activities and the progression of symptoms during the season. However, some feel that digital images are too easily altered and that a Polaroid instant camera or similar product is a better choice. Have plant tissue analyzed immediately if damage is suspected; the residual may not be present at the end of the season. Call the Division of Environmental Services for more information, 502-564-7274.

 
 

Putting Integrated Pest Management to Work in the Nursery
for nursery owners and nursery employees
May 25, 2005
Location: Boone County Extension Office and Ammon Wholesale Nursery, Inc.
$20 per person

8:30-10:30 “IPM for the Nursery: What it is and How to Control Pests with IPM in Your Nursery” - Craig Adkins, NCSU Area Specialized Agent - Commercial Horticulture
10:30 - 10:45 Break
10:45 - 11:30 "Alien Invaders" – Joe Boggs, OSU Extension Educator and Horticulture Specialist
11:30 - 12:00 “Maple Miseries – The Latest on Combating Leafhoppers, Flatheaded Appletree Borer, Shoot Boring Caterpillars, and Maple Mites” - Bonny Miller, UK Entomology M.S. Student
12:00 - 1:00 Lunch travel to Ammon Wholesale Nursery
1:00 - 1:30"Using Technology to Out-Smart Pests: Pheromone Traps, Phenology, Tissue and Leachate Analysis, and Soil Sampling” – Amy Fulcher, UK Extension Associate for Nursery Crops
1:30 - 3:30 “Scouting Field and Container Nurseries for Insects and Diseases” - Craig Adkins, NCSU Area Specialized Agent - Commercial Horticulture
3:00 pm Pesticide CEU sign-up (5 general hours and 1 category specific for 3, 10, 12, and 19)

Autumn Blaze® 4/14/05
Red Sunset® 4/14/05
October Glory® 4/14/05

On Thursday, 4/14/05, the second set of leaves had not reach dime-size in central KY nurseries on Red Sunset® or October Glory® red maples. This could've changed very quickly with the warm weather we've had since then. (Geograpic location within Kentucky as well as microclimates will affect plant development, so be sure to scout.) The second set of leaves on Autumn Blaze® had surpassed dime-sized in some locations. Because shoot boring caterpillars appear to prefer Red Sunset® over October Glory® and Autumn Blaze® growers may want to consider timing sprays to coincide with Red Sunset® development. Because of the delayed development of cold-stored liners, growers may want to plan on scouting fields seperately that have been planted this year with liners that were in cold storage and prepare for spraying them a little later. Talstar is an effective control for shoot boring caterpillar. Watch for a second wave of shoot boring caterpillar in early August.

Source: Scouting report provided by Derrick Hammon, courtesy of KY IPM and Commercial Insect and Mite Control for Trees, Shrubs, and Flowers. UT PB1589.


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