Michigan Commercial Category 1A - Field Crop Bundle
This course bundle will fulfill the recertification category requirement for Michigan Commercial Applicators holding a Field Crop Pest Management (Category 1A) certification. This course bundle must be paired with a Michigan Commercial Core 8 Credit Bundle to complete recertification requirements as this course bundle does NOT contain any commercial core training. Click on Course Details for a complete list of courses.
BUNDLE CONTENTS:
- Field Crop Pest Management – 5 credits
- Pest Identification: Corn, Soybean, and Grain Sorghum – 2 credits
- Pest Identification: Rice, Cotton, and Peanuts – 1 credit
Fruit Crop Pest Management
Course Description
Pesticides protect plants and animals from insects, nematodes, weeds, and diseases; improve the efficiency of food productions, and provide for greater crop yields. This course outlines various invasive pests of fruit crops and how an applicator can effectively treat pest infestations while protecting themselves and maintaining productive fruit crop yields intended for human consumption.
After completing this course users will be able to:
- Identify invasive pests of fruit crops, including insects, weeds, diseases, and nematodes.
- Operate and properly calibrate various types of application equipment.
- Outline effective practices for the management of various pest populations.
Pest Identification: Corn, Soybean, and Grain Sorghum
Course Description
Corn Insect Pests. This course goes over in detail the many insects that threaten corn yield. Each species is identified according to various stages of maturity, the signs and symptoms exhibited, and the type of biological, cultural or chemical control recommended for each.
Soybean Insect Pests. This course details the various types of insects that affect soybeans, including early-season insect pests, stem and petiole feeders, and defoliators. Treatment and control strategies for specified insects within these groups are detailed throughout this lesson.
Grain Sorghum Insect Pests. Sorghum represents a large portion of the U.S. export industry. It is a versatile crop that is used as a grain, forage or sweet crop. It is subject to infestation by a variety of insect pests. Good production practices can help reduce infestation when sampled regularly from emergence to maturity. This course will outline how to manage for these pests in a timely and efficient way.
Course attendants will learn specifics on:
- The major pests currently affecting corn crops in the United States today.
- How to develop strategies to manage and control corn insect pests.
- Early season insect pests: how to recognize, control and prevent
- Multiple soybean fruit and pod feeders, the extent of damage each causes, and prevention techniques
- Identify the different groups of grain sorghum pests and which insects within those groups are most harmful.
- Identify the vegetative and grain-filling stages of plant growth.
Pest Identification: Rice, Cotton, and Peanuts
Course Description
Rice Insect Pests. This section details the major and the minor pests commonly associated with rice crops. These include weevils, stink bugs, armyworms, aphids, borers, midges, and more. Students will learn to identify insects at various stages of maturity and to recognize specific insects based on the damage done to the crop.
Cotton Insect Pest and Management Strategies. This section will demonstrate how to identify insect pests in cotton, and outline the most common management strategies. Major insect pests in cotton include thrips, plant bugs, stink bugs, bollworm, budworm, beet armyworm, fall armyworm, spider mites, and others.
Peanut Insect Pests. This section will cover the major pests commonly associated with peanut crops. These include thrips, cutworms, lesser cornstalk borer, threecornered alfalfa hopper, rednecked peanutworm, peanut burrower bug, and several defoliators.
After completing this course participants will be able to:
- Outline the most common insect pests of rice, the damage they cause, and prevention methods for each.
- Describe the impact these pests have on the yield and quality of rice grain.
- Identify various insect pests typically found in cotton.
- Develop management strategies to control these pests.
- Discuss the most common insect pests of peanuts, the damage they cause, and prevention methods for each.