Some experts believe pest resistance in almond production may be all but eliminated in the future due to good management and the diversity of products available to growers.
Tools Eliminating Pest Resistance
Almond growers have a lot of options available for pest management. Cooperative Extension Entomology Farm Advisor David Haviland says he could see pest resistance becoming a non-issue if the industry continues to practice integrated pest management with the plethora of tools available. “Case in point, about ten years ago, there was a lot of discussion about pest resistance developing with mites,” Haviland says. “Since that time, a lot of new techniques for controlling mites have become available and at this point, you can rotate those.”
Haviland says a similar case is happening with navel orangeworm. “There’s concerns out there right now about resistance to pyrethroids,” says Haviland. “However there’s diamides, spinosyns, other growth regulators and other options. Most growers, if they spray once or sometimes twice for a specific pest, they don’t have to use the same thing twice and anything they do use is in combination with other techniques.”
The availability of products and techniques allows growers to make a true integrated management system and Haviland says that management style has alleviated many resistance concerns. “When you put a whole plan together, that is what we call integrated pest management,” Haviland says. “You’re not relying on one method, but using every tool available in the best way possible to produce a safe crop. It’s exciting to watch that being done in almond production.”