My research focuses on developing integrated pest management programs in tree fruits that utilize selective insecticides (i.e., IGR's, Bt's, pheromone disruption) to control lepidopteran pest species while promoting biological control of secondary pests. Orchard ecology research programs with Penn State and other universities have been conducted over the last three years in large plot blocks of apples to examine changes in pest and beneficial arthropod diversity and abundance. Other areas of research are field evaluation of experimental and registered insecticides and acaricides for control of tree fruit pests and examining current levels of resistance and the potential for cross resistance in new compounds and types of chemistry; laboratory evaluation of IGR's on stage specificity and sublethal effects on reproduction in leafrollers; and identification and biology of leafhopper parasitoids in tree fruits.
