My Turn Tomorrow’s IPM — Not Your Granddad’s Jalopy
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love to race the freeway transition from concept to practice. and country roads. I’m Remember the first time your daddy put you on a pretty good at it, accord- tractor? Not one of these new-fangled tractors. I’m ing to me. I’m not so talking about the one with no cab, no Alan Jackson sure you would get that same playing on the stereo and no air conditioning blasting. opinion from other people The one where you had to figure out what a clutch who have ridden with me over meant other than hanging onto something that was the years. I love zipping in about to buck you off in the dirt. and out and knowing the best In those early days of IPM, trying to make the “inteway to avoid freeway backups gration” part work was tricky. DDT, toxaphene, chloriwith side routes. In my previ- nated hydrocarbons and other broad-spectrum materiVern ous life, I was most certainly a als over the top of a cotton crop weren’t exactly “selecCrawford handsome, famous NASCAR tive,” let alone “integrated.” Mites, in particular, were driver. good at smirking at a passing spray rig. There is one thing I hate about driving. It’s other drivWe had a few pesticides that were touted as “selective.” ers. They don’t seem to fully appreciate the finer skills Back then, part of that message was correct. They were necessary to get from point A to point B, and often, so selective they didn’t kill anything. Or hardly anything. they’re in my way when I’m trying to do the same thing In those first few years, there were growers who lost or with more finesse — if I do say so myself. almost lost their farms trying the IPM approach. But Driving a car is an integrated endeavor requiring we kept one foot on the gas and raced forward trying to multiple skills, a lifetime figure it out. of learning, a few hic60 years now, “IPM was almost an idea ahead of andIt’swebeen cups along the way and have a handful of its time. In theory, it made sense.” pesticides that are selecalways the frustration of never getting where you tive enough to make IPM want to go fast enough. It’s almost like Integrated Pest more feasible. We also have GMOs and seed technology Management. I’ve spent 60 years or so of my life barrel- that make it easier to integrate other factors. One thing ing down that road. I’m still involved one way or anoth- frequently overlooked in IPM is timing. Often, it is more er in my so-called “retirement.” critical than the pesticide’s efficacy. Over the years, a lot When I emerged on the scene in the late ’60s as an of work has been done on pesticide application timing ag chemical salesman, there was a lot of buzz about a as it pertains to heat units, degree days, weather forenew way to manage cotton with fewer pesticides and casts and what is happening in your neighbor’s field. make friends with the “good” bugs — “Integrated Pest I still believe the best IPM material we ever had was Management.” The university guys were into it. Some of Temik. It gave us time to delay foliar applications and the more progressive growers were into it. I was into it didn’t upset the beneficials or make the mites mad. because nothing gets my attention more than a cocka- We don’t have that option in California now. Many of mamie idea that might work. our options are limited. Looking forward, if we can get The first few years were kind of a disaster. When something like they have in Arizona to address plant you give a kid a car to learn how to drive, you don’t bugs, I think that would unleash some real power of start him/her out in a Porsche with a manual written in IPM in this state’s agriculture. We just need to introduce German. California was not — and still is not — the rest common sense into some of California’s legislation. I’ll of the Cotton Belt. We’re a little different out here — not hold my breath. But not my tongue. so much by choice as by circumstance. Gotta run! That McFarland exit is coming up and IPM was almost an idea ahead of its time. In theory, Highway 99 traffic is bugging me. Time to get creativie it made sense. What grower wouldn’t like to cut bug in getting from point Here to my Wasco home. sprays and utilize beneficials to help fight the war? The biggest problem was we didn’t have the tools or tech— Vern Crawford – “Vern from Kern” nology — not to mention the expertise — to smoothly Wasco, California Cotton Farming’s back page is devoted to telling unusual “farm tales” or timely stories from across the Cotton Belt. Now it’s your turn. If you’ve got an interesting story to tell, send a short summary to csmith@onegrower.com. We look forward to hearing from you.
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COTTON FARMING | AUGUST 2022
COTTONFARMING.COM
