dormant oil (EIQ value of 37.7) and a 25 WP 

 formulation of permethrin (EIQ value of 56.4). 

 The EIQ Field Use Rating is determined by 

 multiplying the EIQ Value (from a table) times 

 the percent active ingredient (% A.I.) Of the 

 material times the rate of pesticide application 

 per acre, or: 



EIQ Field Use Rating = 



EIQ Value * % A.I. * Rate per Acre 



For Permethrin, used at 5 oz. per 100 gal. 

 and applying 300 gal. per acre (or 0.9 lbs. per 

 acre), this results in an EIQ Field Use Rating of 

 13 (56.4 X .25 X 0.9 lbs). This is obviously much 

 lower than the field use rating of 226 for oil used 

 at a rate of 2 gal. per 100 gal. and applying 300 

 gal. per acre (37.7 x 1 x 6 gal), because oil is 

 100% active ingredient, and is used at a much 

 higher per-acre rate. In spite of the flavors in the 

 EIQ, no other more appropriate model is in 

 widespread use, to the best of our knowledge, 

 although several were reviewed in 1994 by Lois 

 Levitan and colleagues at Cornell in a report to 

 the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Re- 

 search and Extension (SARE) program. Hence, 

 with all the provisions noted above, the EIQ for 

 each of the blocks in our demonstration is 

 presented in Table 4. 



If nothing else, the EIQ numbers point out 

 that IPM is not a "one size fits all" strategy, and 



that differences in pest pressure, environmen- 

 tal conditions, and grower management style 

 often govern both the choice of pesticides and 

 their application frequency. For example, 

 while fungicides contributed the largest portion 

 of the EIQ number in five out of six IPM blocks, 

 one site in New Hampshire, which used a new 

 insecticide (imadacloprid) which is very safe to 

 predator mites but highly toxic to bees, had a 

 much higher insecticide/acaricide EIQ than 

 any of the other blocks. This probably does not 

 actually represent greater environmental 

 damage, however, because imidacloprid is 

 applied after petals have fallen, and bees are no 

 longer foraging in fruit trees. Nonetheless, use 

 of the material results in a substantially higher 

 EIQ rating. 



Total EIQ numbers ranged from as low at 

 50% of the comparison traditional block to as 

 high as 87% of that block, once again pointing 

 out the normal differences among blocks for 

 reasons described above. Ideally, had it been 

 possible to set up a comparison block in each 

 state which would have been subjected to the 

 same weather and pest pressure, such 

 comparisons would have had a much stronger 

 biological basis, and their validity would have 

 been strengthened. 



Field days. Field days were held 

 successfully in four participating states in 

 1995. Maine held their event on May 24, 1996 



14 



Fruit Notes, volume 62 (Number 2), Spring, 1997 



