One of the most common insect pests faced in the nursery and landscape, Japanese beetles are also one of the most problematic to control for many reasons.

“Japanese beetles are very difficult to manage because they just keep coming,” says Dr. Daniel Potter, professor of entomology at the University of Kentucky. “They can fly long distances and are attracted to plants that other beetles have already fed on. You can control them one day, but there are going to be more flying in an hour later.”

Active in most areas of the country from late May through August, Japanese beetles are not picky when it comes to food sources and are known to feed on more than 300 types of plants, trees and shrubs. The beetles will also feed on flowers and fruits.

“If you look at the standard chemistries we’re currently using as sprays for control of Japanese beetles, none provide residual control for more than about 14 days,” says Dr. Carl Redmond, research scientist at the University of Kentucky. “You’re talking about having to reapply materials over their entire flight period, which lasts about two months.”

Among foliage-feeding insects, Potter finds Japanese beetles to be the most important, requiring residual protection because of their insatiable feeding and lengthy flight period.

Acelepryn® insecticide from Syngenta provides as much as four weeks of residual protection from Japanese beetles as a foliar spray.

“We’ve done several Japanese beetle trials looking at dosages and different ages of residue in the field. Acelepryn has performed as well or better than any standard out there on the market,” says Redmond. “It is superior in residue length. We’ve gotten control of up to four weeks for Japanese beetles from a single application, which is a major advantage.”

Targeted control

Acelepryn is also labeled for control of caterpillars, including eastern tent caterpillars, fall webworm and bagworms, and sawfly larvae. It offers a unique mode of action to help mitigate resistance concerns.

Neonicotinoids and pyrethroids have long been used to combat insect pests on trees and shrubs, but concerns about their potential hazard to bees have resulted in label restrictions on those types of products.

“The active ingredient of Acelepryn is chlorantraniliprole in IRAC group 28,” says Nancy Rechcigl, technical services manager for ornamentals at Syngenta. “It is a unique class of chemistry that offers an alternative for those looking for newer chemistries to add to their programs.”

Acelepryn has no signal word on the label and is registered as reduced-risk by the U.S. EPA under its Reduced Risk Program. Its active ingredient is target-selective, providing control of leaf-chewing insect pests without affecting beneficial insects such as bees and biological control agents.

“Acelepryn is unique in that foliar sprays will provide extended protection from a broad range of leaf-chewing pests with very low hazard to bees,” says Potter. “In our experiments, we have evaluated Acelepryn in real-use outdoor scenarios and have seen no impact on bees. The product is also quite compatible with biological control.”

In addition to its favorable environmental profile, Acelepryn offers a four-hour REI and requires minimal personal protective equipment. Its long residual activity also leads to fewer applications, saving time and resources for applicators.

Product flexibility

Acelepryn can be used in commercial and residential landscapes. It can be applied to ornamental plants, trees, shrubs, bulbs and Christmas trees.

The product can be sprayed directly on leaves to control chewing insect pests, or as a bark application to ward off pests like clearwing borers.

When applied as a foliar spray, the leaves of plants are protected from Japanese beetles and lepidopteran pests. Acelepryn does not show strong contact activity, but once the treated leaves are ingested by pests, mortality will occur.

“Acelepryn should be applied before infestations reach damaging levels, especially on larger plants,” says Rechcigl. “Curative applications are often not successful with pests like Japanese beetles because they can very quickly cause damage and spread.”

A unique innovation

Acelepryn provides a unique tool for combatting Japanese beetles, caterpillars, and sawfly larvae on trees and shrubs. It has a novel active ingredient that provides excellent pest control while also demonstrating very low hazard to both humans and beneficial insects.

“The combination of strong efficacy, long residual as a foliar spray and very low hazard to non-target organisms is a unique combination,” says Potter. “Acelepryn controls a lot of important chewing pests, gives you the flexibility of not having to apply it over and over again, and provides a very favorable environmental and hazard safety profile.”

Federal registration of Acelepryn for use in nurseries and greenhouses is expected in summer 2018.

Learn more by visiting www.GreenCastOnline.com/Acelepryn

1A reduced-risk pesticide use is defined as one which may reasonably be expected to accomplish one or more of the following: (1) reduces pesticide risks to human health; (2) reduces pesticide risks to non-target organisms; (3) reduces the potential for contamination of valued, environmental resources, or (4) broadens adoption of IPM or makes it more effective. Acelepryn qualifies under one or more of the above criteria. All photos are either the property of Syngenta or are used with permission. © 2018 Syngenta. Important: Always read and follow label instructions. Some products may not be registered for sale or use in all states or counties and/ or may have state-specific use requirements. Please check with your local extension service to ensure registration and proper use. Acelepryn^®, GreenCast^® and the Syngenta logo are trademarks of a Syngenta Group Company. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

As the horticultural market continues to innovate and evolve, insects and diseases remain an ongoing challenge. We are continually impressed by the commitment of growers to maintain clean, pest-free growing environments and are proud to be part of this unique industry.

We are honored to partner with Greenhouse Management and Nursery Management once again to recognize the extraordinary individuals who have made substantial achievements in the horticulture industry. Congratulations to the Class of 2018 Horticultural Industries Leadership Award winners: Nancy Buley, J. Frank Schmidt & Son Co.; Barbara Jeffery-Gibson, Jeffery’s Greenhouses; Jim Monroe, Greenbrier Nurseries; Amy Morris, N.G. Heimos Greenhouse/Millstadt Young Plants; Peter Orum, Midwest Groundcovers; and John Hoffman, Hoffman Nursery.

These recipients have demonstrated exceptional leadership and commitment, and have positively impacted customers, businesses and the industry as a whole.

Syngenta remains committed to partnering with you to help you grow your success. Earlier this year, we introduced Advion^® fire ant bait to the nursery market, providing a fast and effective tool for growers with outdoor operations. We continue to offer convenient Multipaks to provide you added value and the opportunity to purchase broad-spectrum products in one convenient package.

Our broad portfolio of plant protection products is designed to offer greenhouse and nursery growers efficient, proven and effective solutions for insect, disease and shelf-life management. We’re proud of the innovative brands you have come to know and trust, such as Mainspring^® GNL insecticide and Mural^® and Segovis^® fungicides, and we continue to invest in research and development for new solutions. One of these new developments, Acelepryn^® insecticide, is expected to receive federal registration this summer and will help you better control key pests on ornamental plants, trees and shrubs.

Again, congratulations to the recipients of the 2018 Horticultural Industries Leadership Awards! Thank you for the vital role you play in growing strong, healthy and beautiful plants.

Tripp Trotter
Head of Marketing, Turf and Ornamental
Syngenta

©2018 Syngenta. Important: Always read and follow label instructions. Some products may not be registered for sale or use in all states or counties and/or may have state-specific use requirements. Please check with your local extension service to ensure registration status. Acelepryn^®, Advion^®, Mainspring^®, Mural^®, Segovis^® and the Syngenta logo are trademarks of a Syngenta Group Company. Syngenta Customer Center: 1-866-SYNGENT(A) (796-4368).

When a grower uses supplemental lighting in their greenhouses, the goal is to help their plants — annuals, perennials, produce and others — grow as healthily and as efficiently as possible. With the right amount of supplemental light, a grower can expand their growing season, growing 24/7 or, in some cases, speed up production time.

There, however, is a catch: Using supplemental lighting is not as simple as buying fixtures on the internet, installing them in the greenhouse and then reaping the rewards a few weeks later. With lighting, growers need to be mindful of how much photosynethically active radiation (PAR) is actually being provided by the fixtures. To do that, they need to measure their light, most commonly with a quantum light meter and/or light sensors.

“You're not going to be able to calculate your daily light integral (DLI) [with a handheld quantum light meter], but it's a good way of going into your greenhouse and seeing what the light intensity is when it's bright outside or what the light intensity is when it's cloudy,” says Dr. Roberto Lopez, an assistant professor and extension specialist at Michigan State University specializing in controlled environment specialty crop production. “Obviously, it's going to vary from day-to-day and from one season to the other. But at least it's going to give you kind of a snapshot of what your light levels are and whether you should be using supplemental lighting or whether you should be using your shade curtains.”

Light measurement options

Light meters are not a new technology — although Lopez says they have become more widely used by greenhouse growers over the past few years — and there are a number of options available to purchase, ranging in cost from a few hundred dollars to over $1,000. In Lopez’s opinion, there is one type of light meter growers should invest in because it measures the wavelengths of light that are utilized for photosynthesis.

“Having a light meter is important, but having a quantum meter is even more important,” he says. “A quantum meter is basically measuring the light that a plant perceives in the PAR range (400 to 700 nm) and that’s what we're most concerned with. If you have a foot candle meter, it is basically just measuring the light that we can see as humans and that's not what we are concerned with in this particular situation.”

Additionally, Lopez says that you need to do your homework and ensure the light meter you purchase is calibrated with the type of lights you are using in order to give you the most accurate readings possible. For example: If a grower has LED fixtures, but the meter is not calibrated for use with LEDs, their readings are going to be incorrect. The cost is higher for quantum sensors, but if growers want accurate readings, the extra cost is necessary, Lopez says.

There are also other ways to measure light in the greenhouse. One option is light sensors that can be paired with light meters to measure exact wavelengths and light intensity. According to Dave Johnson, a senior product manager at Li-Cor, there is also software growers can purchase to track different light measurements over time and give their readings context over months and years.

“Ultimately, in a greenhouse, you are trying to grow your plants most effectively, most efficiently as far as energy is concerned, as far as water is concerned,” Johnson says. “And so what you’re looking at, potentially, is figuring out that best way to do that with the light sources in your greenhouse.”

Best practices

Although Lopez says the cost of a light meter can be intimidating for some growers, he says it is a must for growers who have invested in supplemental lighting. It can also help inform future decisions about whether or not to add more lighting.

“Sometimes it may be under [what you expect],” Lopez says. “Sometimes it may be over. Over isn't necessarily a bad thing, but being able to go in at night when those lights are on and take your own measurements is quite important. Being able to determine what light intensity your fixtures are putting out, then you can use that to calculate your supplemental DLI and determine whether that light intensity is sufficient or if you’ll need to add more lights.”

Johnson says that having the ability to properly measure light is important for smaller greenhouse operations even though they may only have a few light fixtures in the greenhouse.

“I think it’s still important [for smaller growers],” he says. “The main thing driving growth is light. If you don't know what your light level is or don't have some kind of control on your light, you’re kind of at a disadvantage.”

Once a light meter is purchased, both Lopez and Johnson say the key is to actually use it. Lopez recommends taking measurements “as often as you can” — several times a week at minimum, especially if the greenhouse is not fitted with an automated environmental control system that manages the lights — and recording the readings. From there, a grower can determine if the lights are aiding plant growth or wasting energy, and what the next step should be.

“Use it,” Lopez says. “Don’t just have it on your desk.”