San Luis Obispo County's diverse crops and appealing landscapes also attract invasive and destructive insect pests and plant diseases due to the pleasant climate.
To combat this, in 2022, over 8,700 residents volunteered for the County Department of Agricultural/Weights and Measures’ Pest Detection Trapping Program to search for exotic and destructive insects.
More than 2,500 traps were set and moved throughout the county, with residents offering their fruit trees, gardens, or landscape plants as monitoring locations.
Martin Settevendemie, the County Agricultural Commissioner/Sealer, urges residents throughout the county to volunteer their locations for monitoring as the 2023 insect trapping season commences.
Martin Settevendemie, the County Agricultural Commissioner/Sealer, urges residents throughout the county to volunteer their locations for monitoring as the 2023 insect trapping season commences.
In 2022, Pest Detection Trappers from the Agricultural Commissioner's office checked traps for exotic insects, such as Mediterranean, Oriental, Mexican, and Melon Fruit Flies, Asian Citrus Psyllid, Spongy Moth, Japanese Beetle, Glassy-winged Sharpshooter, and Light Brown Apple Moth, almost 35,000 times.
The partnership between the residents and the Agricultural Commissioner's office helps implement a comprehensive and effective pest detection program. The triangular-shaped, open-ended cardboard box with a sticky surface that holds an insect attractant specific to a particular pest is the most commonly used insect trap. Larger, bright yellow sticky sheets of cardboard are used for general pest detection, and the traps are placed out of reach of children and pets.
According to Settevendemie, early detection efforts such as the ongoing trapping program protect local agriculture and home-grown fruits and vegetables by intercepting pests at very low populations, increasing the likelihood of successfully eradicating invasive pests. Community participation strengthens the detection program, supports local agricultural producers, and helps protect the environment. The county runs the trapping program in collaboration with the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
Anyone interested in hosting insect traps is urged to contact the County Agricultural Commissioner's office at 805.781.5910 or submit their information online by filling out the "Permission to Trap in My Yard" form.
The partnership between the residents and the Agricultural Commissioner's office helps implement a comprehensive and effective pest detection program. The triangular-shaped, open-ended cardboard box with a sticky surface that holds an insect attractant specific to a particular pest is the most commonly used insect trap. Larger, bright yellow sticky sheets of cardboard are used for general pest detection, and the traps are placed out of reach of children and pets.
According to Settevendemie, early detection efforts such as the ongoing trapping program protect local agriculture and home-grown fruits and vegetables by intercepting pests at very low populations, increasing the likelihood of successfully eradicating invasive pests. Community participation strengthens the detection program, supports local agricultural producers, and helps protect the environment. The county runs the trapping program in collaboration with the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
Anyone interested in hosting insect traps is urged to contact the County Agricultural Commissioner's office at 805.781.5910 or submit their information online by filling out the "Permission to Trap in My Yard" form.
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