Pest Identification of Common Landscape, Turf, and Interiorscape Pests | Arizona Approval #24400

Instructor: Sarah Racine

This two-hour course will help professionals manage a wide array of pests found in landscape and interiorscape environments. All lesson material is approved by the Arizona Department of Agriculture’s Environmental Services Section and covers various aspects of pest identification and control.

The course begins with an overview of invertebrate and vertebrate pests, weeds, and disease agents. Their impact on landscapes, turf, and interiorscapes is highlighted along with treatment strategies and environmental considerations.

Lessons explain how to identify common invertebrate pests like arthropods (insects, spiders, mites, and other groups) by focusing on body structure, developmental stages, and targeted treatment strategies. Additionally, the course addresses managing vertebrate pests such as gophers, moles, and rabbits, alongside disease-causing pathogens like fungi, bacteria, and viruses.

Find out how to identify and manage weeds and other nuisance plants. Learn about obstacles that prevent effective control and why crabgrass, dandelions, and clover spread rapidly. Weed development, classification, life cycles, and physical features (flowers, leaves, stems, roots, and seeds) are also described.

The course concludes with lessons that provide strategies for identifying and managing pests in different environments. For landscape and turf areas, grubs, cutworms, Japanese beetles, moles, voles, and deer are covered. Then, the course discusses common interiorscape pests such as spider mites, fungus gnats, aphids, and mealybugs.

Throughout each lesson, there are continual quizzes designed to test the student’s knowledge and help them apply what they’ve learned.

Upon completion, participants will have a robust understanding of pest identification and control techniques required to maintain the vitality and integrity of various plant settings.