How to Use  Indicator Plants to Predict Vulnerability

Aaron Schulz, Oak Bros Tree Care & Removal LLC

When treating trees and shrubs for insects, mites, or diseases, applicators must be precise in their timing so that control can be established. We commonly use growing degree days to predict vulnerable stages of plants, insects, mites, and diseases, but with our climate shifting, growing degree days alone may not always be a reliable source. What if a more predictable way to time treatments, such as plant growth stages, existed? Plant phenology uses cyclical biological events based on climatic conditions (bud swell, leaf development, flowering, etc) to coincide with plant, insect, mite, and disease vulnerability.

This session will explore the impacts of incorrect treatment timing, the pros and cons of common treatment timing methods, how to develop indicator plants, and the benefits of adding plant phenology to time your plant health care treatments so that you can reduce pesticide exposure, reduce pest resurgence, annually provide predictable outcomes for your clients, and be more profitable.

Biography

Schulz, Aaron – Oak Bros Tree Care and Removal, LLC
Aaron is the plant health care director and consultant for Oak Bros Tree Care and Removal LLC, a TCIA-Accredited business, in Bloomington, Illinois. Aaron oversees and develops plant health care treatment programs and consults with public and private clients. He holds a B.S. in Agricultural Science with a minor in Arboriculture & Urban Forestry from Western Illinois University. He is an ISA Board Certified Master Arborist and educates Illinois Arborist Association (IAA) members as an Advanced Training instructor (Pest Diagnosis & Management) and ISA certification instructor. He has sat on the IAA Board of Directors since 2017 and is a past president of the organization. He chairs several IAA committees including Advanced Training, Plant Appraisal, and Legislative. He educates private and public sectors throughout Illinois on a variety of tree health topics and has a passion for arboricultural education, soil health, and tree preservation.