Blue Diamond Almond Facts March-April 2021

ADVERTORIAL Until recently, Navel Orangeworm IPM lacked a mating disruption option that could be applied reactively based on in-season conditions. CheckMate® NOW-F, the first sprayable pheromone specific to Navel Orangeworm offers exactly that. Instead of requiring investments well before the season’s pest pressure is known, sprayable pheromone provides PCAs and growers the flexibility to apply precisely when and where needed. The demand for a responsive, preventative treatment was clear when growers treated over 100,000 acres with CheckMate® NOW-F in 2019, its first year of registration. The number of treated acres grew in 2020 because of clear evidence that this approach improved existing IPM programs, drove down populations, and reduced damage. PCAs and growers know that prevention is the foundation of the “IPM Pyramid” for any pest. While a reactive tactic that also functions as a preventative measure may seem counterintuitive, applying sprayable pheromone at any point during the season effectively prevents a significant portion of the next generation from ever existing. Preventatively reducing NOW population density also maximizes the impacts of other in-season inputs like insecticides simply because there are fewer larvae to kill. With an average material cost of around $30 per acre per application, CheckMate® NOW-F is a great addition to the sprayable toolkit. It is uniquely designed to be tailored to your operational and pest management needs and can be applied as a tank mix with many common agrochemicals. Performance should be evaluated relative to other sprayable materials like insecticides, with these key differences in mind: • Controlled-release microencapsulated formulation is longer acting than most insecticides. • Mechanism of action does not require thorough foliar coverage, so it can be efficiently applied at lower volumes and higher speeds than insecticides. • Highly-specific active ingredient is safe for all non-target species and the minimal REI allows for easy integration into operational schedules. • Exempt from MRLs and with zero pre-harvest interval, can provide protection for all varieties and multiple shakes up until the day of harvest and beyond. To learn more about this innovative IPM approach, visit www.Suterra.com/CheckMateNOW. THREE OUNCES OF PREVENTION Leveraging Sprayable Pheromone to Improve Quality Returns in 2021 Re-entry Interval Pre-harvest Interval Residual Activity* MRLs 4 to 12 hours 7 to 14 days Up to 4 to 21 days Varies 4 hours Common Insecticides Zero Up to 30 days Exempt *Residual activity subject to environmental conditions for conventional insecticides and NOW-F.