Are you worried about pests on your urban farm or in your garden? In the next installment of the Urban Ag Webinar Series, Ashley Dean will share the best Integrated Pest Management methods for urban settings. The webinar is set for Thursday, March 20, from 1 p.m. to 1:40 p.m. on Zoom. To participate, please register online.
Dean is an extension specialist for field crop entomology at Iowa State University. During the webinar she will provide an overview of the types of pests, strategies for urban farms and additional resources for further learning. Her presentation will be followed by a live Q&A session.
Dean earned a bachelor’s degree in agronomy and a master’s degree in entomology, both from Iowa State University. In her current role, she coordinates the Iowa Moth Trapping Network, the Regional Corn Rootworm Monitoring Network and the Iowa Pest Alert Network. She spends her summers on the road conducting research trials related to insect pests in Iowa field crops and speaking at field days. She also helps to develop educational resources and delivers presentations about field crop insect pests.
A video recording of the webinar will be published after the event on the ISU Extension and Outreach Urban Agriculture Webinars page.
Integrated pest management can help urban farmers increase productivity and economic competitiveness while reducing risks to human health and protecting the environment, said Kathleen Delate, Iowa State University professor and extension organic ag specialist.
“Urban agriculture offers many pathways to integrated pest management and controlling invasive pest populations. Through urban agriculture, you can contribute to a thriving population of beneficial insects in your city in addition to providing local food for yourself and your community,” Delate said.
Visit the ISU Extension and Outreach Urban Ag website to learn more about starting an urban farm, browse urban ag resources and see upcoming events.
Authors:
Graham Sandersfeld
Extension urban ag outreach specialist
515-294-5116
grsfeld@iastate.edu
Kathleen Delate
Departments of Agronomy and Horticulture
515-294-7069
