December 22, 2005
Crop workshop game show places pests in 'Jeopardy!'
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - They'll take "Bugs, Burrs and Blights" for $200, Alex.
Farmers and agribusiness people attending Purdue University's 2006 Crop Management Workshops in January could find themselves with signaling buttons in hand, competing in an agricultural version of the game show "Jeopardy!"
"Pestardy!" will test players' knowledge of insects, weeds, crop diseases and other yield-robbing nuisances, said John Obermeyer, Purdue Extension entomologist and workshop coordinator. Players emerging from "Final 'Pestardy!'" victorious will win prizes.
"We wanted to put together, in a fun way, the signs and symptoms of pests and their damage to crops," Obermeyer said. "That's how we came up with 'Pestardy!' We'll have a board with categories just like the television show, and participants will try to accumulate as much money as possible.
"In the end, all of us will be winners as we learn about pests and their damage."
Corey Gerber, director of Purdue's Diagnostic Training and Research Center, will serve as "Pestardy!" host.
Preparing for pests in the upcoming crop season is the focus of the annual workshop series, which takes place at five locations across Indiana from Jan. 23-27.
"The Crop Management Workshops are where we discuss what's happening with field crop pests," Obermeyer said. "Not only do we have specialists speaking about pest trends but also about pesticides, pesticide application and safety."
Commercial pesticide applicators and agribusiness people usually make up the largest portion of each workshop's audience, Obermeyer said.
"They earn several points toward their pesticide licenses for attending," he said. "We also talk to them from the perspective of how they interact with producers, especially from the pest management spectrum."
The daylong workshops feature Purdue Extension and Purdue-based specialists. Sessions include:
• "You Know You Are at a Pesticide Applicator Meeting When You Hear Someone Utter the Phrase ..." - Joe Becovitz, Office of the Indiana State Chemist.
• "Insect Management Decisions for 2006" - Obermeyer.
• "Field Crop Diseases in 2005, Implications for 2006" - Greg Shaner and Andreas Westphal, Extension plant pathologists.
• "Weed Management Update 2006" - Bill Johnson, Extension weed specialist.
• "Pesticide Transportation and Securement" - Fred Whitford, coordinator, Purdue Pesticide Programs.
In addition, Johnson and Whitford will lead a discussion on pesticide application issues, Obermeyer said.
"They are going to team up and go over pesticide application dynamics," he said. "We're not talking about what nozzles to choose and things like that, but rather other considerations such as pesticide penetration into the crop canopy and what effect wheel tracks are having on yield with some of those applications."
The first workshop runs from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CST Jan. 23 at the Porter County Expo Center, 215 E. Division Road, Valparaiso. Remaining workshops are scheduled from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. EST at the following dates and locations:
• Jan. 24 - Wells County Community Center, 1240 S. 4-H Road, Bluffton.
• Jan. 25 - Holiday Inn, 2480 W. Jonathan Moore Pike, Columbus.
• Jan. 26 - Community United Methodist Church, 1548 S. Hart Street Road, Vincennes.
• Jan. 27 - Purdue University Memorial Union, 101 N. Grant St., West Lafayette.
Workshop registration is $60 per person, which includes lunch and a copy of the 2006 Purdue Corn and Soybean Field Guide. To register, contact Paul Horngren of Purdue's Conference Division at (800) 359-2968 or by e-mail at pghorngren@purdue.edu. Register online.
Enrollment is limited.
For more information about workshop sessions, contact Obermeyer at (765) 494-4563 or by e-mail at obe@purdue.edu.
Writer: Steve Leer, (765) 494-8415, sleer@purdue.edu
Source: John Obermeyer, (765) 494-4563, obe@purdue.edu
Ag Communications: (765) 494-2722;
Beth Forbes, forbes@purdue.edu
Agriculture News Page
Related Web site:
Purdue University Department of Entomology
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