Assistance and Education with Pest Management

Published: 2022
By Amanda Williams

Fallon and Carter Counties are in Pesticide Private Applicator Region 4, where the recertification cycle ended in 2021, and a new cycle started in 2022. There was a large effort to provide programs for continuing education private applicator credits last year for producers to maintain their licenses, but some producers let their license lapse. When this happens there are options for people to get another private applicator license. One option is to participate in an eight-hour, in-person training with topics on pesticide safety, reading and understanding the label, calibration, and pesticide laws. After the presentations, participants are tested to ensure they learned the important information. Fallon-Carter MSU Extension hosted a day-long training in May, with 15 individuals in attendance to obtain a license or receive renewal points. Fallon and Carter Counties MSU Extension, in conjunction with the Fallon and Carter County Weed Coordinators, hosted Spray Days in February. This informative program focused on herbicides and how they work, range and pasture control of weeds, weed management after drought, and prairie dog management. The 23 attendees in Ekalaka and 38 attendees in Baker received license renewal credits. In July, Fallon, Prairie, and Wibaux counties hosted the Tri-County Weed Tour and Ekalaka Range Tour. Speakers focused on rangeland and wildfire, range recovery following drought, and rangeland invasive weed management. The Ekalaka Range Tour, with the Carter County NRCS and Conservation District, invited Jerry Doan to speak about his personal experience with a multigenerational operation and regenerative agriculture. The Ekalaka Range Tour was along Sheep Mountain Road at three producers’ places. Participants came and went during the day, with 37 total participants. The Tri-County Weed Tour had 27 participants who visited a producer’s property that burned last year.