2002 Teacher Timeline Checklist

**  NOTE: Timing may be different from what you see here because the environment in which you place your plant may differ significantly from others.  Use this as a flexible guideline.  **

Week of: 3/4/02  Get the plant back to your growing location.  Remember to water briefly over the soil this first time only.  Subsequent waterings go in the trough.  Note that you don't want the plant near any air circulation sources.  Air flow can dry eggs and kill them.  Set up the lights as soon as possible and remember to keep the lamps 12 inches away from the sleeve cage.  Feel free to experiment with the humidity in the classroom (e.g. using a humidifier in the room, building enclosure with clear plastic, etc.)

Week of:  3/11/02 Spend this week watching for buds to grow up out of the soil.   If there is no growth by the end of this week, you need a new root crown!!

Week of: 3/18/02 Measure stems (from the soil line) every day this week until most reach 10-12 inches.  Pinch one inch off ALL the tips, then contact the Niles USDA Lab to let them know that the tips are pinched and you want to order beetles.  Unless you arrange otherwise, Niles will ship beetles so that you receive them one week from the day you contact them.  Remember, the address they ship to must have someone available to handle beetles shortly after receipt.  If stems aren't tall enough by Friday check the plant health and take action. 

Week of: 3/25/02 Most Michigan PLP cooperators will receive beetles this week.  Immediately upon receipt, get beetles onto the plant by dumping them in from the top.  Do not wait too long to put them on plants and do not leave them in a location where extremes of temperature occur.  After retying the cage top, observe the beetles.  They should move around on the plant. In the days following, you should begin to see "shot-holes" in the leaves indicating adult feeding.  This feeding literally looks like the plant was peppered by shotgun pellets.

** SPRING BREAK!! Make sure there is a system in place to check on the plant every other day and that both watering and beetle health are observed.  If humidity is low, daily checks/misting is necessary.  If beetles disappear by the end of this week, take action.  **

Week of: 4/8/02  Peer through the cage this week and look for egg masses on the stems and leaves.  Eggs should be present by the end of the week.

Week of: 4/15/02  Evidence of damage to shoot tips should become evident by the end of this week.  If eggs aren't visible by now, look for absence of adults.  If no adults, contact me.

Week of: 4/22/02  Larvae should be visible on/under leaves this week.

Week of: 4/29/02  Larvae are visible feeding on leaves and the plant should exhibit defoliation and browning.  Larvae should begin to disappear at end of week.

Week of: 5/6/02  From this point on, watch for new adults (light brown color) moving to the top of the cage.  When adults begin to gather at the top, the plant needs to go to the release site asap.  If new adults aren't present by 5/15, turn over the soil with a pencil point and look for orange pupae in the soil.  If none are visible after 3-4 locations turned, contact me.

Release Site Considerations

Review the Handbook Section Two, especially page 18.  

Do Not Forget!

Wash boots and equipment at the release site afterwards.

Return to collect the pot at least10-14 days after release.  Place the rootcrown in a black plastic bag and leave it in direct sunlight for one week, then dispose of it in a dumpster.

**Please send Chris Sebolt your Spring Sampling Data by June 30th

**Please send Chris your Fall Sampling Data by September 30th

For Beetles Contact:
Marge Guilford
USDA-APHIS National Biological Control Lab
2534 South 11th Street
Niles, MI  49120
Phone: 616.683.3563
Fax: 616.683.9608

For Rearing-Release Info:
Chris Sebolt
204 Center for Integrated Plant Systems
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI  48824
sebolt@msu.edu
Lab: 517.432.1335
Fax: 517.353.5598