As a part of the Agency’s effort to build a more user-friendly website, EPA has redesigned its online information about protecting pets from fleas and ticks to make it simpler for visitors to find the information they need quickly and easily.
The Agency has reformatted the content using various tools to allow readers to scan content quickly. Additionally, these resources are now easier to read on mobile devices.
Daniel R. Suiter, UGA Department of Entomology & Michael E. Scharf, UFL Department of Entomology and Nematology
The MSDS provides specific information about a product’s toxicity and is expressed as an LD50. LD is an abbreviation for lethal dose, and 50 refers to 50 percent of the test animal’s population. An LD50, therefore, is a specific dose (or quantity) of a product known to be lethal to half (50 percent) of the test animals (typically lab rats) exposed individually to the reported dose. Because of the calculations involved in determining lethal doses, the LD50 is the most commonly reported value because it represents the most accurate average based on responses of test subjects. For example, LD50 is generally more accurate than LD25, LD75, or LD99 (the doses that are lethal to 25, 75, and 99 percent of the test population).
There is an inverse relationship between product toxicity and LD50 value. Products with lower LD50 values are more hazardous and pose a greater risk than products with higher LD50 values (Figure 1). For example, product A with an LD50 = 400 mg/kg is more toxic than product B with an LD50 = 600 mg/kg. In other words, to kill 50 percent of a group of test animals would require less of the more toxic product A (LD50 = 400 mg/kg) than the less toxic product B (LD50 = 600 mg/kg).
For liquid concentrates, the LD50 reported on the product’s MSDS is for the product in its concentrated form (i.e., before it’s mixed in water). For most ready-to-use products, such as most granules, baits, and dusts, the MSDS-reported LD50 is for the product in its useable form because these products can be used when purchased (i.e., they do not require further dilution or mixing).
For products that must be diluted in water, the resulting LD50 increases considerably upon dilution. The diluted product becomes much less hazardous, where hazard is a function of a product’s concentration and the amount of exposure to it. Consider the insecticide Premise 0.5 SC. In its concentrated form, it is 5.65 percent imidacloprid. When diluted in water to the usable concentration of 0.05 percent imidacloprid, the active ingredient has undergone a 113-fold reduction in concentration. As a consequence of dilution, the product’s potential hazard is reduced considerably.
How is a Product’s LD50 Determined? LD50s are most commonly determined by testing the product’s acute (single dose), oral toxicity against laboratory rats. To obtain the data necessary to calculate an LD50, a single dose (quantity) of the candidate product is force-fed to each one of a known number of healthy rats. The procedure is repeated for multiple doses of the product. At some pre-determined time after exposure, mortality is tallied. From these mortality data, statistical tests are then used to compute the product’s LD50.
Because the LD50 of all products is determined by the same methodology and in the same manner (acute, oral toxicity to laboratory rats), we are able to compare LD50 values among and between all products to determine the relative risk associated with these products.
In some cases, a product’s LD50 cannot be calculated as a single value because not enough of it can be force-fed to the test animals to induce sufficient mortality to enable the toxicologist (scientists who study how pesticides work at the molecular level) to calculate an LD50. In cases where test animals cannot be killed by force-feeding, the LD50 is often reported as >2,500, >5,000, or typically another large, even, round number. The number is usually preceded by a greater than sign (>), indicating that the product is not very toxic to laboratory rats. In such cases, toxicologists are essentially making the statement, “We cannot calculate the LD50 because we cannot give the test animals enough product to kill enough of them to allow us to calculate an LD50. Therefore, we believe that the true LD50 is larger than the highest dose we have tested.”
In addition to determining a product’s acute, oral toxicity to rats, scientists may also determine the product’s toxicity when it is absorbed through the skin (called dermal toxicity) or breathed (called inhalation toxicity). Other animals on which oral, dermal, and inhalation toxicities may be determined include mice, quail, rabbits, and mallard ducks. These additional pieces of toxicological information, and associated ecological considerations, can be found on the MSDS in a section on environmental considerations.
Past trainings and webinars have been recorded and made available online. For more information, click on the links below. Not all webinars originate from Georgia, so not all information may be pertinent to our area.
This website lists the available online trainings.
Sharon Dowdy is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
Lawns in Metro Atlanta and north Georgia counties covered in warm-season grasses like centipedegrass or St. Augustinegrass will likely show signs of cold damage this spring as a result of the recent snow and ice storms, says University of Georgia Extension turfgrass specialist Clint Waltz.
“The temperatures were down in the single digits for 60 hours, so we are likely to see some losses, especially in common centipedegrass. Also, there is a lot of St. Augustinegrass in Atlanta, especially in shady areas. You’ll be able to see (the cold damage) when it doesn’t green up this spring,” said Waltz, a scientist in the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. “There’s still a little bit of a question mark about lawns in south Georgia.”
No protection
Homeowners and landscapers caring for common centipedegrass should not “be surprised to see it come out thin and spotty,” this spring he said. “It’s going to take a some work to get it back into shape over the summer growing season.”
Centipedegrass and St. Augustinegrass have no below ground rhizomes. They grow above the ground through stolons, or runners. This makes recovery and regrowth of these species more difficult.
Waltz says homeowners can choose to turn the cold damage into an opportunity for change.
Tifblair centipede – Georgia Integrated Cultivar Release System
“With the potential loss of some centipedegrass and St. Augustinegrass, this would be the year to consider converting your lawn to something more cold hardy like zoysiagrass. Then you won’t have to worry about every ninth year when we get a very cold winter,” he said.
For those who decide to change to a new turfgrass variety, Waltz recommends cold hardy UGA-bred TifBlair centipedegrass or a zoysiagrass variety. “Zoysiagrass is pretty cold hardy species. I’d be surprised to see it damaged,” Waltz said.
Time will tell for bermudagrass
Waltz is unsure what’s ahead for homeowners with bermudagrass lawns. “If you could tell me what the weather is going to be like, I can tell you how the grass is likely to recover,” he said. “If the weather warms up and stays warm, then bermudagrass will probably be fine, but if we get another snow or if it drops down into the teens after we have 30 to 50 percent green-up, the cold snap will cause the grass to go dormant, and it is possible it won’t green-up again.”
Warm temperatures tell the grass it’s springtime, but when temperatures drop, the plant doesn’t know how to respond, he said. If early April brings 65 degree temperatures, the grass will begin to sprout. If a late frost occurs, the new “succulent grass tissue” can be lost, Waltz said.
“Tifway is not a particularly cold hardy cultivar of bermudagrass. TifSport, TifGrand and Patriot are and will likely do fine,” Waltz said.
Homeowners can help their bermudagrass lawn by doing nothing.
“After the cold we’ve had, there is really nothing you can do. Just let (the lawn) green-up on its own and don’t fertilize it,” he said.
Don’t listen to the commercials
Ignore television commercials, radio and print ads that advise fertilizing lawns.
“Don’t listen to the marketing when they say ‘Now is the time to fertilize,'” Waltz said. “When we get into March Madness and you start hearing the personalities that know sports but don’t know about turfgrass tell you to fertilize your lawn, disregard all that.
“Clint Waltz is telling you that when it comes to warm-season grasses hold off on that first nitrogen application until late April or early May,” he said.
Bermudagrass, centipedegrass, St. Augustinegrass and Zoysiagrass should be fertilized when the soil temperature is consistently 65 degrees and rising at a 4-inch soil depth, he added. Usually this is late April or early May in Metro Atlanta.
For more on turfgrasses in Georgia, see the UGA Extension website www.GeorgiaTurf.com.
Merritt Melancon is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
For decades families have relied on NOAA weather radios to alert them to hazardous weather conditions near their homes. Updates in technology now give the public options for staying abreast of weather conditions while on the go.
Dozens of smartphone apps and mobile phone alert services now allow you to track storms and receive emergency alerts even if you’re away from your weather radio or TV.
“People should definitely have some kind of notification that can provide them with warning of incoming severe weather when they are outside away from television,” said University of Georgia agricultural climatologist Pam Knox.
Knox notes that while many communities maintain emergency alert sirens, people may not always be where they can hear the sirens when an emergency strikes – especially if they live in a rural area.
Since most people keep their phones with them — while in the car, in the garden or on a hike. These news apps and services can provide life-saving advanced notice when a storm is approaching, Knox said.
The new apps generally fall into two categories: alert services that send texts or emails to subscribers when severe weather is on the horizon and apps that use push alert notifications (whistles, buzzers, sirens) to inform you of bad weather based on your current location.
Alerts by text
Many municipalities and counties are using text alert systems, like Nixle, to alert the public to everything from icy roadways and serious traffic accidents to missing people. For the most tailored information, mobile phone users may want to check with their local police or fire departments for information on local systems.
Mobile phone users may also receive wireless emergency alert text messages through their cell phone provider. These are alerts sent out locally by the National Weather Service and local emergency management personnel. Phone users should check with their carrier to configure their phone to accept these alerts. Visit www.ctia.org/wea for more information on the system.
Paid services are also available to deliver emergency alerts to cell phones via text. Free services are provided by commercial weather services like The Weather Channel, which delivers daily forecasts.
Cell phone users can also sign up for a wide range of text alerts from FEMA. Most deal with disaster preparedness, helping people find shelter or assistance after a disaster strikes. Subscribe now at www.fema.gov/text-messages to be prepared for severe thunderstorm and tornado season.
Weather alert apps
The second option for using your cell phone as an emergency alert device is to download one of the many available weather alert apps. There are several options to chose from at the Apple’s App Store and Android’s Google Play.
Accuweather.com, The Weather Channel, Ping4alerts, Weather Underground and The Red Cross offer free apps that will cause cell phones to buzz, ring or vibrate when the National Weather Service issues a severe weather alert.
The Red Cross alert apps are event specific. They send out audible alerts only when tornado or hurricane warnings have been issued. Due to their serious nature, these alerts are sent more infrequently. Red Cross apps also provide disaster preparedness and recovery information.
Advanced weather and emergency apps are available for a fee. Topping the list at the high end are apps like Radar Scope, which for $9.99 provides real-time, highly-detailed weather radar images, to NOAA Weather Radio, which for $1.99 provides audible National Weather Service alerts and reports the closest lightening strike in your area.
While most weather apps pull their information from the National Weather Service, none were created by the service. NWS does maintain a list of suggested mobile products at www.weather.gov/subscribe and operates mobile.weather.gov, a version of its website that is optimized for smart phones.
NOAA has a series of apps for both iPhone and Android phones, but most address wildlife issues and marine conditions.
Jennifer Davidson, ANR Agent, Muscogee County Extension, UGA
According to the Georgia Department of Agriculture website,
The Georgia Department of Agriculture is required by O.C.G.A. § 50-36-1 to verify citizenship/immigration status for all public benefits issued. All public benefits are defined in the law as certifications, licenses, registrations, state grant, etc. All new and renewal licenses are required to complete a notarized affidavit and provide one form of acceptable documentation as defined in O.C.G.A. § 50-36-1. The department will implement this change online no later than July 1, 2013. As directed by law, GDA will utilize the Federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program operated by the United States Department of Homeland Security.
So what does that mean to the average landscape company? In order to renew your contractor or applicator license, you must send in a copy of one of the approved documentation (usually a driver’s license) and a notarized affidavit (found online at http://agr.georgia.gov/verification-of-lawful-presence.aspx), along with the renewal forms and a check for contractor license or applicator license.
You may mail or fax your affidavit and a copy of your authorized documentation to our customer service center for upload. The Licensing Division fax number is 404-586-1126.
You can also upload the paperwork online (http://www.agr.georgia.gov/licensing.aspx). Click the online log-in tab. Use the username and password provided on your renewal invoice. You just have to have the capability of uploading documents.
Will we need to do this on a yearly basis? No, luckily, documents will only need to be submitted one time. Companies will only have to resubmit when their respected ownership changes.
The folks at the Georgia Department of Agriculture are friendly and available if you need to call or have further questions (404-586-1411 or 855-4-AG-LICENSE (855-424-5423)). Also, contact your local Extension office if you need any other help (1-800-ASK-UGA).
As you receive the Landscape Alert emails, we want you to use this information from UGA to continue to improve the services you offer and to give you a competitive advantage in the landscape and turf industry. Here are some ideas on how to do this:
When you receive an Alert on a recent pest outbreak:
Use the Alert information to train workers how to look for this pest and how to determine if some type of control is needed. This may offer the opportunity for a sale to your customer.
If you see the pest in a landscape, notify the client that you have found this pest and if there is any need for concern. Even if you do not have to manage the pest, the client will appreciate this information and this will build your rapport with your client.
Leave a copy of the specific Alert on that pest with the client or direct them to the Alerts.
Link to the Alerts on your website or re-issue the Alerts to your customers in your own email newsletter, as a mail out, etc. Please keep the original author’s information on whatever you publish so the readers will know the information comes from UGA.
Use Alerts for training workers (especially on rainy days!)
You could also make a notebook of pertinent Alerts and other information and put it in every vehicle to use to identify problems.
Train workers using the online bilingual safety videos
Listed under Safety Training for Landscape Workers. This improves safety, protects workers and reduces liability. Make certain that your insurance provider knows that you provide this training and certify that all workers have been trained. This free online program includes a certificate upon completion.
If an Alert mentions that it is time for a particular type of service (aerating, planting, seeding, mulching, etc.) then begin to promote that service with your customers.
Information from UGA will help the customer understand the importance of performing these services at the right time of the year and can lead to further sales for your business. These turf calendars can also help with this.
Alerts can help you to train your customers.
Some customers may not realize the need to follow recommendations that you make concerning proper watering, timely maintenance, etc.
Many landscape problems are actually due to improper care. Information from the Alerts or other UGA publications can help you to make your point when you encourage homeowners concerning their responsibilities to properly maintain their landscapes. This might include proper watering, mowing, pruning, fertilization, etc. You could also train the client to look out for certain types of pests or other problems and then to contact you for control measures.
Landscape Alert readers also receive information on upcoming trainings and events.
Keep your certifications up to date with these trainings.
Make certain your clients know of your certifications, memberships and trainings you attend so they will realize the ongoing training you receive. You could publish a short article once a year to let clients know of your ongoing training or of recent certifications that employees receive.
Bookmark these online or print a copy for your use.
Share these publications with clients as you work to provide the best service possible for them. They will appreciate the fact that your recommendations are backed by UGA research and information.
My hope is that Landscape Alerts help you as you serve your customers!
Elmer Gray, University of Georgia, Entomology Department
With this winter’s unusually cold temperatures, the question of how these conditions affect insects is sure to arise. It is of little surprise that our native insects can usually withstand significant cold spells, particularly those insects that occur in the heart of winter. Insect fossils indicate that some forms of insects have been in existence for over 300 million years. As a result of their long history and widespread occurrence, insects are highly adaptable and routinely exist and thrive, despite extreme weather conditions. Vast regions of the northern-most latitudes are well known for their extraordinary mosquito and black fly populations despite having extremely cold winter conditions.
The question then arises, how do insects survive such conditions? In short, insects survive in cold temperatures by adapting. Some insects, such as the Monarch Butterfly migrate to warmer areas. However, most insects use other techniques to survive the cold.
Southern House Mosquito, Pest and Diseases Image Library, Bugwood.org
In temperate regions like Georgia, the shortening day length during the fall stimulates insects to prepare for the inevitable winter that follows. As a result, many insects overwinter in a particular life stage, such as eggs or larvae. Many mosquitoes overwinter in the egg stage, such as our common urban pest the Asian Tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus), waiting for warmer temperatures and sufficient water levels to hatch in the spring. Another technique is to take advantage of protected areas, as do adult Culex mosquitoes overwintering in the underground storm drain systems. Other insects overwinter as larvae or pupae in the soil, protected from the most extreme temperatures. However, this still doesn’t answer how insects survive freezing temperatures, only to become active as warmer temperatures return.
All insects have a preferred range of temperatures at which they thrive. As the temperature drops below this range the insects become less active until they eventually cannot move. A gradual decline in temperatures, coupled with a shortening day length, serves to prepare an insect to tolerate freezing temperatures. Several factors are important to this tolerance.
The primary thing that an insect has to avoid is the formation ice crystals within their body. Ice crystals commonly form around some type of nucleus. As a result, overwintering insects commonly stop feeding so as to not have food material in their gut where ice crystals can form. This reduction in feeding will also result in a reduction in water intake.
A degree of desiccation increases the concentration of electrolytes in the insect hemolymph (blood) and tissues. In addition, insects that can tolerate the coldest of temperatures often convert glycogen to glycerol. These electrolytes and glycerol create a type of insect antifreeze. This will lower the freezing point of the insect to well below freezing, a condition described as supercooling. When this occurs, the insect can withstand extremely cold temperatures for extended periods.
However, at some point insects will suffer increased mortality, possibly due to desiccation, toxicity or starvation. Nevertheless, insects are well adapted to survive freezing temperatures, especially after a few 100 million years to perfect their systems. It is generally assumed that introduced pest insects from sub- and tropical areas would be more susceptible to extended cold spells, but depending on their ability to find local refuges and their numbers and adaptability, they likely will remain viable and persist as pests as well.
In summary, entomologists don’t expect the cold winter to have a significant impact on insect populations this spring. Local conditions related to moisture and overall seasonal temperatures (early spring/late spring) will play a much more important role in insect numbers as we move from winter to summer and prepare for the insects that will be sure to follow.
Past trainings and webinars have been recorded and made available online. For more information, click on the links below. Not all webinars originate from Georgia, so not all information may be pertinent to our area.
This website lists the available online trainings.
Dr. Nancy Hinkle, Professor in the Department of Entomology at the University of Georgia.
People list spiders as one of their greatest fears. This webinar helps you to identify and to understand the biology of spiders common in Georgia. Click here to view the webinar For more webinars in this series, see All Bugs Good and Bad 2014 Webinar Series.
Information from Daniel R. Suiter, Michael D. Toews, and Lisa M. Ames, UGA Department of Entomology
Several dozen insect species infest food and non-food products of plant and animal origin commonly found in homes. Most of these stored product pests are small beetles or moths. Often the first sign of a stored product pest infestation is the sudden, unexplained and persistent presence of numerous insects in a particular area of the home.
The UGA Department of Entomology has an excellent resource for identifying and controlling stored product pests in the home. The following article on Indianmeal moth is an excerpt from this publication. See the entire publication here.
The Indianmeal moth (approximately 1/2 inch long) is the most common stored product pest found in homes, where it commonly infests cereal and other grain-based foods.
The Indianmeal moth, Plodia interpunctella, is the most common stored product pest in homes, where it infests bird seed, breakfast cereals, and other consumables.
Indianmeal moths are most commonly found infesting food items in kitchen cupboards, but adults may be found throughout the home because they are excellent fliers and readily disperse from the food item they are infesting. Adults may be found well-away from the larval food source.
Adult Indianmeal moths are distinctive in appearance. Their wings are bi-colored, and alternate between beige and copper. Moths are most active at dusk, when they can be seen (indoors) flying while searching for mates and food. During the day, moths can be found resting motionless on walls and ceilings, often near their larval food source. Adults are shortlived and do not feed.
Indianmeal moth larvae (approximately 5/8 inch long and dirty-white to pink to greenish colored) often crawl away from feeding sites before they pupate.
Indianmeal moth larvae, just before they pupate, are approximately 5/8 inch long, cylindrical, and dirty-white to a faint pink or green color. Larvae produce visible silk webbing in the items they infest and generally pupate close to the items they are infesting.
Just prior to pupation, larvae crawl away from their feeding site to pupate at the intersection of a ceiling and wall or similar seam within the cupboard, including spaces between walls and shelves and in the tight folds of packaging. Another favorite pupation site is between the corrugations of cardboard boxes. When looking for Indianmeal moths, inspectors should look between a product’s cardboard box and liner by lifting the liner out of the box.
A telltale sign of Indianmeal moth infestation is the presence of silk webbing produced by larvae.
For information on control read these sections of the publication:
