Staff: Nancy Breisch, Betty Marose, Sandra Sardanelli

The Department of Entomology has been a leader in developing research, extension, and teaching programs to address the needs of clientele in rapidly urbanizing states. Urban dwellers and the plant production and pest control industries that serve them rely heavily on the use of pesticides to address pest related problems.

Pesticide use in the urban environment may exceed that in agricultural settings. The combination of high population density and pesticide use raise concerns regarding the exposure to humans and non-target organisms in urban environments. Moreover, the rapid development of residential property in environmentally sensitive watersheds of the Chesapeake Bay create a need to find tactics that will reduce inputs of pesticides and nutrients into homes, schools, landscapes, and recreational areas.

To address the needs of this nontraditional audience we have developed innovative research, demonstration, instructional, and outreach programs. An annual report of pest management activities and projects in Maryland is available on the Maryland Pest Management Program website. Programs focus on defining the key pests of structures and landscapes and understanding their biology, ecology, and management. Research and demonstration programs emphasize improved methods for pest monitoring and prediction, decision-making, and non-chemical approaches to intervention.

Current investigations include: morphological and phytochemical mechanisms of plant resistance; the design of landscapes and buildings that are refractory to pests and restorative of ecological processes; detection of new plant diseases; evolution and behavior of pests in urban settings; effects of nutrients and water on plant susceptibility to pests; mechanisms underlying outbreaks of secondary pests following insecticide applications; and the selective spatial and temporal placement of pesticides to minimize adverse environmental impacts.