07/06/05 Money for I.P.M. research programs?

This is the final year of two, five-year research programs centered on integrated pest management and how to improve such programs in apple and pear orchards in the Northwest, and pear and walnut orchards in California. Needless to say, while the research teams behind the programs want to continue their work, the amount of continuation will be based on available funding. Jay Brunner of Washington State University's Tree Fruit Research Station in Wenatchee says the group of scientists and supporter from Washington State University, Oregon State University, and University of California  Berkeley are currently seeking both federal and private monies. And what they obtain will determine if the program will continue on an annual basis, or long term. BRUNNER: The timeline really is based on what granting funds are available. Most of them are competitive so we have to get our best ideas down on paper and sell those ideas to the granting agencies. In the meantime, the teams for both research projects will continue to share what they find with growers, and use feedback from growers to shape future objectives in developing biological controls for pests, and implementing both soft pesticides and pheromones for mating disruption. BRUNNER: The summary of the results, and the deliver of the results, to the growers has been a continuing process.