A group of crop pest management and food safety researchers across the U.S. is currently gathering grower and ag industry information on field equipment sanitation practices with the ultimate goal of designing research to address needs of the agricultural industry and consumers.
Spring canola acreage in Eastern Washington has increased dramatically over the past five years. Much of this increase has been driven by the inability of growers to control multiple herbicide-resistant Italian ryegrass in other crops, such as wheat and pulse crops.
I'll share some initial findings from our project, which explores the use of pulse electric fields to eliminate soil pests in hardwood nursery beds, with a particular focus on the impact on weed populations.