Wyoming Producer Priorities and Perceptions of Alfalfa Insect Pests

Although insect pest management in alfalfa (Medicago sativa L. [Fabales: Fabaceae]) hay remains a major challenge in the Western United States, we know comparatively little about the producer priorities and perceptions of alfalfa insect pests. Given the importance of alfalfa to Wyoming agriculture, we sought to better understand producer priorities regarding insect pest management in alfalfa. We developed a survey instrument that was mailed to 3,141 individuals by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). We received 634 returned surveys, a response rate of 20.7% of all Wyoming alfalfa producers. Respondents were asked to list all insect pests they had encountered in their experience growing alfalfa, and then to select the most problematic from the list they generated. Sixty-six percent of respondents named alfalfa weevil Hypera postica (Gyllenhal; Coleoptera: Curculionidae) as the most problematic insect pest they had encountered. Eighteen percent of respondents named grasshoppers (Orthoptera) as most problematic, and 8% of respondents named aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Producers indicated a variety of agronomic, economic, biological, and weather-related reasons that rendered these insects as problematic pests. For each of the three most problematic pests, insecticide application and early harvest of hay were practiced by the largest number of Wyoming producers according to our survey results. For all three of these pests, insecticides are both used most often and considered most effective by the most respondents. These findings suggest an important opportunity for future research on integrated insect pest management.