By HEATHER NOTEBOOM
Special to the Grand Traverse Herald
July 22, 2009 12:00 am Michigan State University has extension offices located throughout the state of Michigan. These local extensions of the university present communities with a number of plant-related diagnostic services for little or no charge. In the summer months, starting in mid-May and ending on Labor Day, Michigan State University Extension in Grand Traverse County hosts an open diagnostic lab on Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at their office on Front Street. The public is welcome to drop off specimens to the office during other times of the week, but specialists may not be on hand to help them immediately. In Grand Traverse County, we are fortunate to have several extension specialists that are willing and able to assist people with any number of questions they may have about pest-related problems with their plants or health diagnostic problems related to their plants. Their goal is to give members of the community timely and accurate information about their plant and pest problems through relevant cultural and environmental recommendations. One way they implement these recommendations is through an approach referred to as Integrated Pest Management (IPM). IPM is a sustainable approach for managing insects, weeds and plant diseases by combining the use of biological controls and chemical tactics in a way that minimizes economic, health and environmental risks. An example of this approach is through a variety of methods used to control box elder bug infestations in homes or other structures before they happen. In Michigan, homes or structures maybe invaded in the fall when the insect attempts to find shelter for the winter months. One approach to prevent and control nearby populations would be to remove female box elder trees that are near your home. Female box elder trees are the preferred host for this specific insect for breeding and feeding. If you truly desire a box elder tree in your landscape as an ornamental or shade tree be sure to get the male. The male does not act as a host for the box elder bug. Long-term goals to ridding your residence of this pest would be to make sure that cracks and crevices are sealed. These insects prefer the south and west side of homes. Other solutions include directly spraying the insect with a 3 to 4 percent solution mix of water and soap by volume. The box elder bug needs to have direct contact with the soapy water for this control method to work. In the case of the box elder bug it is not normally an advisable practice to spray with an insecticide since these pests are a nuisance and do not cause damage to your home, clothing or try to invade stored food. Using a combination of such methods is an approach illustrating IPM in action. To contact MSU Extension's Plant Diagnostic Lab call (231) 995-7082.
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