E-Mail
IMAGE: Releasing infertile adult pink bollworm moths from airplanes by the billions to disrupt reproduction of moths in the wild was an important factor in eradicating this pest in the U.S.. view more
Credit: Agricultural Research Service-USDA.
Maricopa, Arizona, December 21, 2020 Genetically engineered cotton and classical pest control tactics combined to rid the United States and Northern Mexico of a devastating pest, according to a new study by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and University of Arizona (UofA) scientists published in the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
For most of the past century, the pink bollworm was the major cotton pest in the Southwest. For decades, cotton growing in Arizona, California, Texas, and New Mexico was only possible because farmers sprayed pesticides an average of 12 times a year, nine specifically against pink bollworm. Some farmers sprayed as often as 25 times a year without reaching control. In 1990,
Contact: Kim Kaplan
Maricopa, Arizona, December 21, 2020 Genetically engineered cotton and classical pest control tactics combined to rid the United States and Northern Mexico of a devastating pest, according to a new study by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and University of Arizona (UofA) scientists published in the
For most of the past century, the pink bollworm was the major cotton pest in the Southwest. For decades, cotton growing in Arizona, California, Texas, and New Mexico was only possible because farmers sprayed pesticides an average of 12 times a year, nine specifically against pink bollworm. Some farmers sprayed as often as 25 times a year without reaching control. In 1990, pink bollworm cost cotton growers $48 million in Arizona alone.