This presentation will help consultants, growers, and other pest management practitioners in the upper Midwest potato growing region(s) to better understand the need for effective rotation of insecticide chemistries to gain adequate and longer-term control of problematic insect pests such as the Colorado potato beetle. This insect pest has a long history of rapidly generating resistance to most pesticides in the eastern and midwestern United States. Over the past 15 years, management of the Colorado potato beetle has centered on the use of the neonicotinoid class of insecticides (IRAC 2013, Mode of Action Class 4A). This reliance has led to the development of localized resistance, and novel reduced-risk insecticides are now required to offset these losses in control. An improved understanding of how effective insecticide rotations, using different MoA classes, is a key component of effective insecticide resistance management planning.
