From the Field
How Does Codling Moth Mating Disruption Work?
Wednesday Jun 10, 2026
Mating disruption dispensers work by releasing synthetic pheromone which prevents or delays males from finding females, thus reducing the reproductive rate of the population. Now is the time to decide which dispensers to place in the orchard so you have enough time for ordering and to organize your work force.
Monitoring Codling Moth Damage
Wednesday Jun 10, 2026
Monitoring codling moth at the end of each generation gives a good indication of the success of your management program and where in the orchard damage occurs. The sampling protocol for the Taiwan protocol can give you good accuracy and is simple to implement. Banding trees can serve as monitoring and control technique.
Spider Mite Control During the Summer
Monday Jun 01, 2026
There are currently lots of options to control spider mites in orchards. However, preventing outbreaks by avoiding pesticides toxic to predatory mites and their alternative prey is always first choice. If uncontrolled, spider mites can go through a single generation in 7-10 days during summer and increase their numbers exponentially. Monitoring helps to follow spider mite population growth and to intervene when necessary.
What is DAS?
The Decision Aid System (DAS) is a collaborative project between WSU Extension, the WSU Agricultural Research Center, and partners in agricultural industries. The DAS is a web-based platform designed to transfer time-sensitive information to decision makers. We run insect, disease, disorder, and horticultural models to predict on-farm conditions in real time, and link these site-specific forecasts to appropriate management and pesticide guidelines.
