Oregon ranks second in the United States in mint production, with a value estimated worth $28.7 million in 2022. Losses from pests like mint root borer and variegated cutworm can eat into farmers’ profits. These two most ...
Cherry growers in the Columbia River Gorge dread the emergence of X-disease, which makes cherries small, flavorless and unmarketable. At least 239,856 cherry trees were removed between 2015-2023, costing growers an estimated $115 ...
Pests and diseases are the bane of the gardener’s existence. One minute there’s a healthy cucumber, the next it’s a moldy mess. Searching for reliable information can be frustrating, particularly for research-based knowledge ...
Mar 2023 |
Impact Story
Credit Oregon Department of Agriculture (Cropped from original)
In the summer of 2021, Oregon suffered its worst outbreaks of grasshoppers and Mormon crickets in 50 years. Light infestations – six to seven grasshoppers per square yard across 10 acres – will forage as much as one ...
Oregon leads the country in grass seed production, with over 400,000 acres grown each year. Insect pest issues continue to be an issue for Oregon’s grass seed growers, impacting profitability due to both crop damage and the ...
Since the beginning of recorded history, slugs have ravaged crops and today are responsible for billions of dollars in damage – including between $60-$100 million to Oregon’s valuable grass seed industry alone, according to ...
The dreaded emerald ash borer has wiped out millions of ash trees throughout the eastern United States and Canada since it was discovered in Michigan about 20 years ago. As the beetle has moved west, cities have spent ...
Dec 2019 |
Impact Story
Credit Oregon Department of Forestry (Cropped from original)
Sudden oak death (SOD), caused by a non-native pathogen Phytophthora ramorum, has killed more than 1 million oak and tanoak trees in 15 coastal counties in California and thousands of tanoaks in Curry County, Oregon. The ...
Pesticides are important tools for farmers around the globe—ask anyone who has contemplated a hundred acres of cabbage aphids. However, some pesticides are significantly more hazardous than others. Broad-spectrum pesticides carry risks...
After hazelnut varieties developed at Oregon State University saved Oregon’s industry from devastation by eastern filbert blight, hazelnut acreage in Oregon has nearly tripled, marking a full recovery from a disease that nearly ...