Scouting Vegetables for Pests

The cornerstone of any Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program is regular scouting of the crop at hand. It’s important that the scouting or monitoring practices are done systematically and at regular intervals. In order for a scouting program to be effective, you must be familiar with what the crop should look like, which can be tricky in the case of some unusual cultivars of vegetables. You also must know the key pests of each crop. This publication will help you know what insects and diseases to look for on each particular crop family, when they are likely to be a problem, how you can monitor their population levels, and at what threshold levels you should consider controlling the population to prevent crop loss.