MINIMIZING PESTICIDE CONTAMINATION OF FLOWERS DURING ORNAMENTAL PLANT PRODUCTION

The over-arching goal of this project is to identify management practices that can minimize exposure of pollinator species to pesticides used in ornamental plant production when the plants are market-ready. To achieve this goal, information is needed aboutpesticide applications (how, when, and how much), pesticide transport dynamics within the plants (based on initial application method and partitioning into different tissues), and pesticide dissipation kinetics once plants are established in the landscape.The objectives of this project are to:1) Characterize the influence of pesticide application method, rates, and timing on contamination of floral resources in an herbaceous and a woody ornamental species.2) Evaluate the feasibility of using predictive regression models for characterizing contamination of pollen and nectar with pesticides based on concentrations in leaves to schedule when pesticide applications can be made to minimize contamination in plants going to market.3) Determine how quickly pesticide contamination in floral resources dissipates once treated plants are transplanted into the landscape.