Peter B. Schultz

My program focuses on the management of insect pests impacting the green industry of Virginia. The goals of this program are to improve production practices and reduce degradation of water quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Program objectives are to: 1) reduce pesticide inputs through improved pest prediction, and 2) support reduced risk and non-chemical alternatives. A multi-state research project examines development of novel strategies that minimize risk of tree losses to producers of shade and fruit trees from ambrosia beetles. Another research project is developing new strategies for managing the newly introduced crapemyrtle bark scale including its beneficial insect complex in urban landscapes

Projects:

• Novel, multidisciplinary approaches to develop sustainable pest management tactics for ambrosia beetles attacking trees in nursery production.
• Management of the Crapemyrtle Bark Scale in Virginia Nurseries and Commercial Landscapes

Primary Extension responsibilities are to develop educational programs on pest recognition and the latest IPM information for insect pests of horticultural crops:

• Proper identification of pests occurring in horticulture systems and development of programs for growers of nursery and greenhouse crops and landscape contractors. 
• Identification of the optimum timing for successful management  and development of monitoring techniques for key arthropod pests have been developed in cooperation with colleagues and industry partners.
• Development of degree day models for many pests and presentation of programs utilizing this information. 
• Collaboration with the Fire Ant Community of Practice in eXtension to provide management information for the red imported fire ant, currently in several counties and cities in the Commonwealth. 
• Demonstration projects to evaluate new pesticides, including reduced risk materials, for national registration or label expansion. Once registered, they are incorporated into educational programs and the VCE Pest Management Guides.  
• Annual revision of Pest Management Guides and providing current information for VCE agents, VDACS inspectors, nursery and greenhouse growers, and landscape managers.  

• Werle, C.T., Ranger, C.M., Schultz, P.B., Reding, M., Addesso, K.M., Oliver, J.B., Sampson, B. J. 2018. Integrating repellent and attractant semiochemicals into a push-pull strategy for ambrosia beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). Journal of Applied Entomology. 29 November 2018 https://doi.org/10.1111/jen.12594
• Ranger, C.M., Biedermann, P.H.W., Phuntumart, V., Beligala, G.U., Ghosh, S., Palmquist, D. E., Mueller, R., Barnett, J., Schultz, P.B., Reding, M.E., Benz, J.P. 2018. Symbiont selection via alcohol benefits fungus farming by ambrosia beetles. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA 115: 4447−4452.
• Miller, D.R., Crowe, C.M., Ginzel, M.D., Ranger, C.M., Schultz, P.B. 2018. Comparison of baited bottle and multiple-funnel traps for ambrosia beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) in Eastern USA. Journal of Entomological Science 53: 347−360.
  
• Camacho, E.R., Juang-Horng Chong, S. Kris Braman, Steven D. Frank, and Peter B. Schultz.  2018.  Natural Enemy Communities and Biological Control of Parthenolecanium spp. (Hemiptera: Coccidae) in the Southeastern United States.  Journal of Economic Entomology, 111(4):1558-1568. 2018, doi: 10.1093/jee/toy102.