What would you think if I told you that the era of near‑unlimited flexibility in pesticide applications is coming to a close? The days of jumping into the sprayer as soon as fields are dry or calling the crop duster the moment conditions turn favorable for pests or pathogens are quickly fading. Change is coming – but why?

Voles have become a significant threat to Idaho agriculture, particularly to alfalfa crops. With some farmers reporting losses of up to 60% or more, understanding the vole life cycle, their resilience and innovative control methods has become critical.

While the eastern U.S. gets bombarded with large broods of cicadas this year, here in the West we face an ongoing threat that’s more than just noise – relentless swarms of Mormon crickets infesting parts of the state.

“Why don’t we just use biologicals and toss out the conventional pesticides?” There are several reasons.

How can something that looks so harmless cause such large crop loss? And what can we do about it?

The “murder hornet,” Vespa madarinia, invasion of western Washington and southwestern British Columbia began in 2020 and continued during 2021.

Integrated pest management (IPM) was first implemented in modern-era agricultural operations during the 1970s, shortly after Silent Spring was written by Rachel Carson in the early 1960s. 

It may not be time to worry, but we definitely should be on guard. Grasshopper numbers (and their cousins the Mormon crickets – actually katydids) often explode following long, dry, warm fall temperatures.