pest scouting guide — Plant & Pest Advisory

March 31, 2025 Tim Waller and William Errickson

Register for the NEW – 2025 Ornamental IPM Program PLUS Boxwood Blight, Pest emergence, Updates

Ornamental IPM 2025 v1 flyer

Please consider signing up for the NEW 2025 – Rutgers Ornamental IPM Program.

The focus of this program is to provide timely updates on pest, disease, and weeds impacting commercial ornamental producers. The webinars will focus on the most important pests for a 2 week interval, will be recorded, and will be shared shortly thereafter with Spanish overdub (spoken word). The trap packages are in an effort to find grower led solutions for monitoring economically important pests throughout the multiple regions of New Jersey. Please consider joining this program for its inaugural year.

Registration includes:

Site visit to your ornamental nursery/farm from Rutgers agents
Delivered printed IPM resources (Guides, factsheets, bulletins)
Free pheromone & sticky trap kit + guidance on setup/monitoring
Access to live bi-weekly webinars (Zoom)
(First session NEXT TUESDAY 4/8 @ 12PM)
Every Second and Fourth, Tuesday, April through September
Webinars will be recorded – posted later with Spanish overdub

This program is free, however registration is required.

click here to Register

Boxwood Blight Risk Assessment as of 3/4/2025
Region	Location	CODE	31-March	1-April	2-April	3-April	4-April	5-April
Southern	Upper Deerfield	NJ50	Very Low	Very Low	Very Low	Low	Minor Risk	Very Low
Central	Howell / Freehold	NJ10	Minor Risk	Very Low	Very Low	Low	Minor Risk	Very Low
Northern	Wantage	NJ79	Low	Very Low	Very Low	Low	Risk	Very Low
			M	T	W	TH	F	S
Please check YOUR LOCAL risk (click here)

Please download and print the Rutgers Nursery and Landscape Pest Scouting Guide or Conifer and Christmas Tree Pest Scouting Guide and refer to this post “Obtaining your local growing degree-days (GDD)” for additional information. (See pest scouting guides for complete list of references)

Please SHARE what you SEE!! If you see a pest, disease, otherwise interesting or troublesome issue please report it to the Working Group by following the QR Code on the front of the Pest Scouting Guides or by filling out this reporting form.

Keep reading for more resources!

February 6, 2025 Tim Waller

Southern NJ Nursery Round Table : Next Monday & Delaware BTM Updates

Nursery Round Tables – I am hosting these free events at the Cumberland RCE (291 Morton Ave, Millville NJ)

Free RSVP here: https://forms.office.com/r/hJhesNgBxv Or RSVP at: 856-451-2800 ext 1.

February 10th – Hands on Growing Degree-days. We are going to sit down with computers (I have 10+ laptops), our cellphones, and a tablet to see how easy it is to use GDD calculators. We will then compare with the Rutgers Pest Scouting Guides (this is the guide; https://plant-pest-advisory.rutgers.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/LONT-PSG-DISTRIB-2023.pdf)

Like the idea of using growing degree-days, but are unsure how to use the online calculators or other resources – THIS IS FOR YOU. On Monday 2/10 – we will be using laptop computers (I have 12 on-site), tablets, and smart cellphones to access and explore online growing degree-day calculators. We will then use the Rutgers Pest Scouting Guides to line up when to expect these pests and will discuss treatment opportunities with overlapping pest populations.

-Each person will use all three technology methods to obtain their local growing degree-days. – By the end of the training you will be able to access and utilize this powerful tool anywhere.

February 24th – 2025 Playbook: We will be discussing emerging threats like Box Tree Moth and numerous plant diseases we need to be prepared for. The session will conclude with a 30-minute CORE credit session. 1 unit – CORE obtained-only.

Note you don’t HAVE to be from southern NJ, however I would appreciate you being with a nursery or other commercial ornamental operation. I just want to facilitate thoughtful communication. Registration greatly appreciated.

____________________________________________________

ALL DELAWARE NOW QUARANTINED (DA-2024-47)(as of 12/4/24)

Subject: APHIS Establishes Box Tree Moth (Cydalima perspectalis) Quarantines in Delaware and Pennsylvania

To: State, Tribal, and Territory Agricultural Regulatory Officials

Effective immediately, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), in cooperation with the Delaware Department of Agriculture and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA), is adding the entire State of Delaware and Erie County, Pennsylvania to the box tree moth (BTM; Cydalima perspectalis) quarantined area. APHIS is taking this action in response to the confirmed detections of BTM in a residence in Little Creek, Delaware, on July 11 and in Lakeside Cemetery in Erie, Erie County, Pennsylvania, on August 29. PDA has established an intrastate quarantine area for BTM that parallels the Federal quarantine. This Federal Order supersedes Federal Order DA-2024-17.

The attached Federal Order (click here) and additional information about BTM are located on the APHIS box tree moth webpage. For additional information, you may contact:

Matthew Travis
National Policy Manager
580-240-5394
matthew.a.travis@usda.gov

If you see, or think you see this pest, or its damages in New Jersey please contact:

RCE -Cumberland Co. Nursery Agent: Tim Waller – twaller@njaes.rutgers.edu
Nursery Inspection Program Manager: Sarah Katzenbach – sarah.katzenbach@ag.nj.gov (609) 406-6939

Please educate yourself about this in-bound pest here – Resources:

Video: Click here for- “Demystifying Box Tree Moth” – HRI
Factsheet: Box Tree Moth: Fact Sheet, Management & Visual Guide
OSU Guide: What to look for with Box Tree (Boxwood) Moth
USDA-APHIS Box Tree Moth : APHIS BTM Landing page
[Draft] Compliance agreement: National Plant Board – Box Tree Moth

Filed Under: Christmas Trees, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Nursery, Turf Tagged With: 2025 nursery IPM, box tree moth, BTM, CORE Points, Cumberland Extension, Early Season Pest Scouting, field nursery, GDD50, Growing degree-days, Nursery, Nursery IPM, pest scouting guide, PSG, Southern NJ, Twilight Meeting

April 30, 2024 Tim Waller

Nursery Update 4/30/24 -Boxwood blight, borers, flea beetles

Please note: The Rutgers Nursery and Green Industry Working Group is working to deliver regular pest and disease updates throughout the season. These will be in addition to important alerts, critical topics, and pesticide credit opportunities. This tool is made for you, the commercial agriculture business, so please let us know if there are particular topics you would like to see included in the regular update.

Email: twaller@njaes.rutgers.edu Phone: 856-451-2800 Ext. 1.

Insect Pests

*Projected GDD50 accumulation as of 4/30/2024*
CODE	Location	1-Apr	1-May	1-Jun	1-Jul	1-Aug
NJ50	Upper Deerfield (South)	47	237	696	1408	2308
D4116	Bridgeton (South)	45	172	632	1346	2243
KMIV	Millville Airport (South)	57	249	676	1362	2237
NJ05	Greenwich (South)	53	247	716	1436	2338
NJ10	Howell (Central)	33	172	551	1191	2026
N59	High Point (North)	18	117	440	990	1711
USPEST.ORG – Model: *simple average/growing degree-day*, Min: 50F – Max: 95F, NMME forecast
Forecast: 7-month NMME based seasonal climate forecast (USPEST.ORG) – *Subject to change regularly = Check Often*

Keep reading for more ALERTS – Boxwood Blight risk this week – Red-headed flea beetle timing, borer activity, and upcoming pests.

February 21, 2024 Thierry Besancon

The 2024 Mid-Atlantic Weed Control Guide for Agronomic Crops is now available!

The 2024 Mid-Atlantic Weed Control Guide: Essentials for Agronomic Crops is now available for purchase from Penn State Extension in print ($10) or as a digital download ($8). A bundle that includes both versions can be purchased for $18. More information about this guide is available at https://extension.psu.edu/weed-guide.

Penn State Extension (Dwight Lingenfelter and Dr. John Wallace) produces this publication in cooperation with the University of Delaware (Dr. Mark VanGessel), the University of Maryland (Dr. Kurt Vollmer), Rutgers University (Dr. Thierry Besancon), Virginia Tech (Drs. Michael Flessner and Vijay Singh) and West Virginia University (Dr. Rakesh Chandran).

The guide contains essential tables about herbicide recommendations and general use guidelines for corn, sorghum, soybean, small grains, forages and farmstead.

It also offers herbicide effectiveness ratings on problem weeds such as henbit, horsenettle, horseweed/marestail, palmer amaranth and waterhemp, common pokeweed, common ragweed, giant ragweed, annual ryegrass, broadleaf and curly dock, johnsongrass and shattercane, lambsquarters, milkweed and hemp dogbane, Canada thistle, and other species.

Featuring updated herbicide tables from the 2023-24 edition of the Penn State Agronomy Guide, this condensed, quick-reference manual highlights basic information about herbicide-use recommendations and herbicide effectiveness on common weed species in the region.

Filed Under: Commercial Ag Updates, Field, Forage & Livestock Tagged With: herbicide, pest scouting guide, weed control

June 14, 2023 Tim Waller, William Errickson and Steven K. Rettke

Nursery Pest and Disease Update 6/15/2023

In this edition:

Insects:
- MORE Scale crawlers emerging
- Borers
- Beetles
Diseases:
- Oomycete root diseases (Phytophthora, Pythium, Phytopythium)
- Leaf spots / foliage diseases
- Boxwood Blight – reminder
- Virus observations
Nutrient Management
- Managing Soluble Salts by monitoring EC
- Plant Tissue analysis
Plant Spotlight:
- American Holly (Ilex opaca)
Cumberland Nursery / NJNLA – Twilight: tonight (6/15) for NURSERYMEN ONLY (contact twaller@njaes.rutgers.edu or 856-451-2800 Ext. 1. for details)

Please click “read more” below to get updates on pests, diseases, and other important resources for the week of 6/15/2023.

May 24, 2023 Tim Waller

Get ready for bagworms…NOW

Days-old bagworm = critical management target – T. Waller – RCE

Bagworms should begin hatching NOW through – 4 weeks in NJ, beginning in the southern regions. Now is an optimal time to get this pest on your radar and prepare materials or approaches to attack first/second instar caterpillars. The control window for this pest is typically between 600-900 GDD₅₀ when they begin to hatch and become airborne, i.e. the “ballooning” phase. It is important to check for egg-hatch prior to applications for greatest chemical efficacy, and to continue scouting as they often hatch and develop at asynchronous rates.

It is critical to target these insects EARLY!

Bagworm management – mechanical: If eggs have not hatched: hand-remove sacs/bags. Typically female/egg filled sacs are higher in the canopy so keep that in mind while scouting. This removes the problem from the field or landscape.

Treatment options for Lepidoptera (caterpillars) to have at the ready – containing: B.t. (Bacillus thuringiensis), spinosad , bifenthrin ), cyfluthrin, carbaryl, chlorantraniliprole, cyclaniliprole, cyclaniliprole + flonicamid, Lambda-cyhalothrin, cyantraniliprole, Indoxacarb. NOTE – Lethal pesticide doses are important, as sub-lethal doses can trigger early pupation, making the pest all but invincible to chemical or biological treatments. Follow label exactly.

IT IS CRITICAL TO ROTATE MATERIALS (Rotate between IRAC groups)

DISCLAIMER: The label is the law, always refer to it for allowable host crops, use-restrictions, application rates, reapplication intervals, re-entry intervals (REI), and mix compatibility information. Production and pesticide information on this site are for private/commercial pesticide applicators and landscape professionals only, and are NOT for home gardener use. Provided materials represent examples and do not cover all possible control scenarios. Please contact your local agent or chemical sales representative for more information or to discuss additional pest management options.

BAGWORMS (600-900 GDD) (Bagworm hatch prediction as of 5/24/23)
Crop type	Common Name	Scientific Name	GDD Min (50F)	GDD Max (95F)	Reference	Developmental / Target Stage
Conifer mostly, many minor hosts	Bagworm	Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformis	600	900	RU	Larvae (early instars) – ONLY CONTROL WINDOW
Region	Location	Station	Date (600 GDD)	Date (900 GDD)	*Treatment window	*Bagworm Hatch – Predictions only, SCOUTING is critical! Treat as soon as larvae detected.
South	Upper Deerfield	NJ50	31-May	14-Jun	14 days
Central	Howell / Freehold	NJ10	9-Jun	23-Jun	14 days
North	High Point	NJ59	15-Jun	2-July	17 days

Please download and print the Rutgers Nursery and Landscape Pest Scouting Guide or Conifer and Christmas Tree Pest Scouting Guide and refer to this post “Obtaining your local growing degree-days (GDD)” for additional information. (See pest scouting guides for complete list of references – cited within lists below)

Filed Under: Christmas Trees, Landscape, Nursery, & Turf, Nursery, Turf Tagged With: 2023 Christmas tree IPM, 2023 nursery IPM, bagworm, Christmas tree, Christmas tree IPM, GDD50, hatch, Insect management, insect pests, Nursery, Nursery IPM, pest scouting guide