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Illinois Pesticide Review


November / December 2017


The PSEP Team Welcomes Two New Specialists

Maria Restrepo-Turner joined the PSEP team on October 30, 2017. She grew up in central Illinois on her family's farm. This provided her with the love of and familiarity with agriculture, horticulture, and animal science. She studied at Southern Illinois University and received both her Masters and Bachelor's degrees in agriculture education with an emphasis in agriculture safety and health.

In the last 12 years, Maria has worked side-by-side with producers conducting field research on soybeans, corn, and even organic vegetable production. She also delivered pesticide recertification programs for thousands of producers and commercial applicators with the Purdue Cooperative Extension Service in Pike County, Indiana, focusing on drift management, personal protection, fertilizer application, and environmental stewardship.

She has been active with the master gardener program, small and beginning farmers, Master Cattleman's program, and diagnostic crop training clinics.

Maria is excited to be back in Illinois and looks forward to being closer to family. In her free time she is chasing around her twin boys, raising a garden, riding horses, and driving miniature donkeys. She looks forward to working with producers and commercial applicators in the coming years.


Maria Restrepo-Turner

1201 S. Dorner Drive

Room 1007

Urbana, IL 61801


Maria Turner (mailto:email@example.com)

Sarah Hughson became an Extension Specialist in Entomology and a member of the Pesticide Safety Education Program (PSEP) team in the Department of Crop Sciences in October, 2017. She grew up in the metro Detroit area and developed a love for the outdoors and agriculture on regular trips to northern Michigan.

Sarah received a B.S degree in biology from Saginaw Valley State University, followed by M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Entomology from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her graduate research focused on western corn rootworm beetle behavior related to insect resistance management requirements in Bt cornfields. This research included the study of beetle movement based on the identification of Bt proteins in their gut contents, flying beetles collected from 30 ft scaffolding, and the reproductive physiology of female beetles.

With previous expertise in field crops pests, Sarah is now working toward developing expertise in insect pests of ornamental plants and turf. She looks forward to working with pesticide applicators and operators to promote good Integrated Pest Management practices and with local gardeners to encourage further understanding of the insects and other arthropods they encounter.


Sarah Hughson

Plant Science Laboratory

1201 S. Dorner 1013



Sarah Hughson (mailto:firstname.lastname@example.org)

Submitted by the PSEP team

Dicamba Use on Soybeans: Training for Illinois Applicators Engenia, XtendiMax, and FeXapan are now Restricted Use Pesticides and require Dicamba Training.

On October 13, 2017, USEPA issued revised labels for the three dicamba products that are labeled for use on genetically engineered crops, including soybeans: Engenia (BASF), XtendiMax (Monsanto) and FeXapan (DuPont). IT IS ILLEGAL TO USE ANY OTHER DICAMBA PRODUCTS ON SOYBEANS.

USEPA made Engenia, XtendiMax and FeXapan Restricted Use Pesticides, which means that only certified applicators (private applicators and commercial applicators) can purchase these products and a record of sale must be kept by pesticide dealers who sell the products.

The new labels for these products require that all applicators of the product must be trained on the proper use of these products; this includes private and commercial applicators and operators. You must make and keep a record of the application, and proof of training must accompany the record of application.

The Illinois agriculture industry is working together to offer classroom training opportunities for private applicators (farmers), commercial applicators and operators to ensure all applicators have the opportunity to use these products properly in 2018, in accordance with the new label requirements.

There are significant changes in the product labels that must be followed and the training will provide detailed explanations and examples of proper dicamba use. At this point, only classroom training is being offered to fulfill the training requirement in order to ensure thorough understanding of the labels and provide interaction with the instructors.

The website, https://ifca.com/IllinoisDicambaTraining, provides a list of dates and locations where the training will be offered, free of charge to certified applicators and operators, and to anyone who is interested in learning more about the use of dicamba herbicides. This website will be continually updated with additional meeting locations, so check back if you don't see one in your area at this time.

Growers who plant Xtend soybeans are encouraged to attend the training, even if they do not plan to apply dicamba themselves; it is important that everyone in the stewardship chain understands the proper use of these products and effective weed management principles.

Registration is fast and easy and handled through the above-mentioned website. Please pre-register for the classes to enable updates involving any possible class changes. Upon registering, you will receive a confirmation email. The classes will last approximately 90 minutes.

Those who participate for the entire class will receive a certificate of completion that can be utilized as proof of training for recordkeeping purposes. Trainers reserve the right to cancel classes if less than 25 people are registered, and will notify you accordingly if you have pre-registered. No food service will be offered at these classes.

The website has a very thorough Frequently Asked Questions section. This link will take you there directly: https://ifca.com/IllinoisDicambaTraining/FAQs. One misconception we are hearing frequently is that participation in a pesticide safety education clinic provided by the University of Illinois Pesticide Safety Education Program (PSEP) is sufficient for applying dicamba in soybean. Unfortunately, this has all changed for the 2018 growing season. Dicamba-specific training is now required and will be offered after many commercial and private pesticide training and testing clinics as a one-stop-shop. However, registration is separate:

PSEP Clinics - http://web.extension.illinois.edu/psep/training/index.php

Dicamba Training - https://ifca.com/IllinoisDicambaTraining/Register

Every state is different in terms of training and restrictions. In Missouri, Extension agents will train the applicators. In other states, industry will provide the pre-approved trainings. In Arkansas, in-season dicamba applications have been banned.

It is unknown how things will play out next summer. If there is much injury, the label will simply expire at the end of 2018. Applicators can help ensure future use of this new tool by abiding by the new label and training requirements.

Adapted from the "Illinois Dicamba Training" website by Michelle Wiesbrook (mailto:email@example.com) on 12/5/17.

Application Recordkeeping: Focus on Environmental Conditions

When applying crop protection products, a good steward is one who can identify and record the environmental factors that may negatively impact making an application; particularly, the possibility of spray drift. New label language states: "Avoiding spray drift at the application site is the responsibility of the applicator." A wise sprayer operator must possess the ability to assess the environmental conditions at the field location to determine how best to spray the field, or maybe decide it would be best not to spray that field, or part of that field, at that time. Instruments that assess environmental conditions are available to assist applicators in making good decisions. Making the correct measurement is the critical first step. Record the information measured to document the application conditions. Quality records help mitigate against any misapplication allegations, such as a drift complaint. Many of the items listed below are based on past legal experiences with applications involving spray drift litigation.

The following guidelines should help you measure and accurately record environmental conditions at the application site.

1. Document any instrument used by recording the manufacturer and model number. Accurate portable weather instruments are recommended. Portable weather instruments are available that log and store data, and aid in auditing and recordkeeping. Some will have Bluetooth/wireless capabilities.

2. Environmental measurements include wind speed and direction, temperature, and relative humidity.

3. At a minimum, record data at the start and finish of the job. Consider more often as conditions change or for a job that lasts over a longer period. For example, make observations when tank refilling for larger fields. Time stamp all observations with a.m., p.m., or military time.

4. Take meteorological readings as close to the application site as possible. Be advised that the weather data received via a smart phone or local weather station may not be accurate for the location being sprayed.

5. Note the specific location where the measurement was made, such as GPS coordinates, field entry point, field location, etc. Check the label to see if it requires a specific observation location in relation to the treatment area.

6. Make all measurements as close as possible to the nozzle release height (boom height) and in an area not protected from the wind by the spray machine or your body. For aerial applications, six feet is suggested when using a hand held instrument.

7. Record wind speed averaged over a 1 to 2 minute time span. Note the time the observation was recorded. Most instruments give an average over a period of time. Make sure the instrument's anemometer is facing directly into the wind.

8. Do not record winds as variable or with a range i.e. 4 to 8 mph – an average gives a better indication of the transport energy. Light and variable winds, where directions may change several times over a short period, can be more problematic than higher speed winds in a sustained direction. Observe any label restrictions on wind speed.

9. Wind direction requires a similar averaged measurement. Record direction in degrees magnetic from a compass (0-360°). The use of alphabetic characters, i.e., N, S, NW, to indicate wind direction is discouraged. The key for determining direction is to have an accurate assessment method: trees moving, dust, smoke, a ribbon on a short stake, etc. Face directly into the wind and record the direction from which the wind is coming. A ribbon on a stake with the ribbon blowing directly at your body is a simple fail safe approach. Movement of smoke, particularly from moving aircraft, or dust may help determine direction.

10. Record temperature and humidity since they can be helpful in determining temperature inversion potential. It may be advisable to record both temperature and humidity well before and after the application for this purpose. In fact, recording a morning low and an afternoon high would be useful regarding determining the potential for an inversion. Take temperature measurements with the instrument out of direct sunlight. Shade the instrument with your body or spray equipment. This is especially critical if you are trying to assess temperature differentials for determining if an inversion is in place.

11. Be alert to field level temperature inversion conditions which typically occur from late afternoon, can be sustained through the night, and into the next morning. Beware, inversions can start mid-afternoon. Observe conditions such as the presence of ground fog, smoke layers hanging parallel to the ground, dust hanging over the field/gravel road, heavy dew, frost, or intense odors (i.e., smells from manure or stagnant water from ponds are held close to the surface when inversion conditions exist). Inversions commonly occur with low (less than 3 mph) to no wind speeds. Spraying in calm air is not advised. If a mechanical smoker is used, note wind direction and smoke dissipation with a time stamp.

12. Note any variances due to terrain or vegetation differences, tree lines, buildings, etc.

13. Initial or sign all recordings to indicate who made the observation(s).

For the PDF files of this fact sheet, click below.
Page 1: https://my.extension.illinois.edu/documents/960171212171217/pasted-graphic-3.pdf
Page 2: https://my.extension.illinois.edu/documents/960171212171217/pasted-graphic-4.pdf

Written by: Bob Wolf and Dennis Gardisser Pesticide Safety Education Program