Corn pest management practices of dairy and cash grain farmers in Wisconsin
2004
- Dept. of Rural Sociology, Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison
Project Media
University extension has worked to promote Integrated Pest Management (IPM) among Wisconsin farmers. Extension offers a single set of recommendations for corn IPM. Using data from a 2002 survey, this paper tests the hypothesis that corn and dairy farmers practice corn IPM similarly, and that a single set of recommendations is sufficient. The data illustrates that IPM practices differ significantly between the two groups of Wisconsin farmers. The paper attempts to explain the differences in terms of farm size and labor allocation, and suggests that extension should propagate a broader set of rules that could better accommodate the range of farmers growing corn.