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University of Wisconsin trial might lead to a slug treatment option

A University of Wisconsin entomologist says a research project is studying whether an existing spray product can help rescue soybeans and other crops from slugs.

Emily Bick tells Brownfield the test might lead to adding uses to the existing product label. “We’re not sure if it’s going to work. I don’t want to hype it up, just because we haven’t tried it. This is kind of a stakeholder-led request and something they said worked pretty well.”

Bick says the test plots are not limited to Wisconsin. “We’re trialing it here. We’re trialing it, actually, in partnership with an extension group in Delaware, and then we’re going to pursue IR-4 if we can see that it has some sort of efficacy.”

IR-4 is the federally funded program that acts as a bridge between specialty crop growers and the EPA to expand pesticide labels, so if the testing is successful, product labels for the chemical might allow use on soybeans and other U.S. crops.

AUDIO: University of Wisconsin entomologist Emily Bick joins Brownfield’s Larry Lee to discuss a field test that, if successful, could lead to a spray treatment for slugs.