PRO awards four research projects

By Cindy Green

For over a decade, AURI has funded research and demonstration projects that promise to reduce the use of pesticides in agricultural production. This summer, the competitive Pesticide Reduction Options program awarded grants to four projects, which are outlined below.

Impact of crop rotation on
canola diseases
Minnesota Canola Council
PRO Grant: $40,000

Canola production has been on the increase since 1990, when low wheat prices and diseases encouraged interest in alternative crops. U of M researchers Paul Porter and Brian Jenks are studying crop rotations and their impact on canola diseases, as only a limited number of fungicides are available to canola producers.

New pest management strategies
for strawberry growers
Minnesota Fruit and Vegetable
Growers Association
PRO Grant: $40,000

Minnesota’s 750 acres of strawberries are valued at about $3 million. To protect the high-value crop and control tarnished plant bugs and strawberry weevils, growers often spray insecticide four times a season. However, new federal regulations threaten the loss of two popular insecticides. U of M entomologist William Hutchison is studying ways to reduce insecticide use in strawberries, such as determining pest levels that can be tolerated before it’s economically necessary to spray. He’s also evaluating pest-resistant cultivars.

Fusarium head blight and common waterplantain in cultivated wild rice
Minnesota Cultivated Wild Rice Council
PRO Grant: $22,000

Minnesota’s 18,500 acres of cultivated wild rice contribute $41.6 million to the state’s economy. But the crop’s economic viability is plagued by blight and common waterplantain, a perennial weed. Robert Nyvall of the U of M Research and Outreach Center in Grand Rapids is leading studies on fusarium head blight’s impact on yields and methods to control it. Currently, there are no registered pesticides for the disease. The project is also investigating whether a common fungus, Rhynchosporium alismatis, can retard the growth of common waterplantain. A frequent broadleaf in cultivated wild rice, waterplantain can reduce yields by as much as 50 percent.

Management of black vine weevil
Minnesota Landscape and
Nursery Association
PRO grant: $35,795

The black vine weevil and strawberry root weevil are major nursery pests that contaminate landscapes when container plants are transplanted. U of M entomologist Vera Krischik is leading studies on using B. bassiana fungus to control the pests. Results will be reported through a U of M Extension bulletin, Web site, journal articles and nursery training events.