Joanne Whalen, Extension IPM Specialist; jwhalen@udel.edu
In the 2009 edition of the Delaware Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations, you will notice a number of changes agreed upon by the entomologists from the five-state region that work collaboratively on this publication. These changes include:
1. Common names for insecticides now listed in book – As I am sure you are aware, chemicals (including pesticides) have scientific names based upon their chemical structure (i.e. the chemical name). In many instances, these chemical names are long, complicated and understandable only by those with a technical background in chemistry. Therefore, EPA encouraged the development and use of “common names.” The common name of an insecticide is the name given to an active ingredient and it is used in lieu of the chemical name on a day-to-day basis. In many cases, insecticides with the same common name are sold under numerous trade/brand names. A number of years ago we started to list Ambush and Pounce as permethrin (the common name for both products) because there were a number of other “generic permethrins” in the market place. A more recent example is the availability of numerous trade/brand names with the same common name — bifenthrin (examples include Bifenthrin, Brigade, Capture LFR, Sniper, and Fanfare). With the increase in the number of generic insecticides and mixtures of compounds containing older chemistry as well as new chemistry, it became extremely difficult to include all of the trade names and rates for any one insecticide. Therefore, we decided that it would be more useful to list the common names with a few examples of the more available trade/brand names in parenthesis as well as “OLF” to denote that “other labeled formulations” are available.
2. Rates Removed – It also became apparent that, in a number of cases, different generics with the same common name are labeled on different crops. In other cases, different generics with the same active ingredient have different formulations so the rates are different. In addition, a number of the new combinations of generics are using different rates compared to the original rates of stand alone chemistry. The only way a producer or applicator can choose the correct product and rate is to read the label. A combination of all of these factors resulted in a decision to leave rates out of the 2009 edition. Labels are always changing so it is important to read all labels on the pesticide container before applying any pesticide. In some cases, the labels you find online or even in label books may not be the most recent label or may have changed after printing.
3. Restrictions – A number of years ago, we removed the restriction box from the recommendations because of the increasing number of new or different restrictions on labels relating to use patterns, resistance management, rotations etc. Since the label is the law, it is critical that the user read the label to be aware of all restrictions as well as the correct use rate.
If you have any questions about these changes, please feel to contact Joanne Whalen at 302-831-1303 or send an e-mail to jwhalen@udel.edu.