Delivery of Pest and Natural Enemy Profiles in Cotton Cultivars in the Florida Panhandle

Cotton in the Florida Panhandle is located in an ecological transition zone between temperate and subtropical climates and exists in a distinctive landscape consisting of a mosaic of natural vegetation, forests and crop fields comprised primarily of cotton and peanut. This plant diversity results in variable phenology of plants and arthropods within this agroecological system. While some technical publications reporting pest and beneficial insects in cotton elsewhere are available, specific information is needed to deliver IPM/IRM recommendations to producers in the Florida Panhandle. The NIFA CPPM EIP subproject: Delivery of Pest and Natural Enemy Profiles in Cotton Cultivars in the Florida Panhandle has the objective to generate and provide the necessary region-specific science-based knowledge of the pest and beneficial insects associated with cotton to extension agents and producers. This project is a collaborative work between researchers and extension agents. Pest sampling in cotton sentinel plots and commercial fields have been performed to document the phenology of pest occurrence in the region. Focus meetings have been performed with farmers to identify the needs and improve the delivery of technical information. Extension materials and meetings have been prepared to disseminate the information gathered during the execution of the project.