Biological Control of Leafy Spurge: Utilization and Implementation
Abstract
Leafy spurge is an exotic, noxious, perennial weed which is widely established in the north central United States and is anespecially serious problem in the northern Great Plains. In 1997, the Agricultural Research Service and Animal and Plant HealthInspection Service, US Department of Agriculture, initiated a major Integrated Pest Management (IPM) research anddemonstration project, The Ecological Area-wide Management (TEAM) Leafy Spurge (TLS), to develop and demonstrateecologically based IPM strategies that can produce effective, affordable leafy spurge control. A key component of the TLSproject was expanding the use of biological control agents. To assess the level of insect utilization and implementation and thelevel of current and perceived future control of leafy spurge as a result of biological control agents, a mail survey of 468individuals that obtained biological control agents (insects) at TLS-sponsored events and of all the county weed boards in NorthDakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming was conducted. Forty-six percent of the landowner/land managers and 70% ofthe county weed boards responded to the questionnaire. Respondents reported basic information about the number andcharacteristics of release sites, and characteristics of the leafy spurge stands, as well as the level of control to date and perceivedlevel of eventual control