Oregon Cranberry Growers Association
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Cranberry floats
Bacon and fried onion cranberry sauce
Cranberry upside-down cake
Cranberry floats
Bacon and fried onion cranberry sauce
Cranberry upside-down cake
Cranberry floats
Bacon and fried onion cranberry sauce
Cranberry upside-down cake
Cranberry floats
Bacon and fried onion cranberry sauce
Cranberry upside-down cake
No. 11: Need a delicious cookie to serve almost anyone? This is it!
No. 11: Need a delicious cookie to serve almost anyone? This is it!
Cranberry eggnog salad
Cranberry eggnog salad
Cranberry pecan dressing
Cranberry pecan dressing
Coastal Creatures public art exhibit at the Bandon Professional Center
Oregon, Washington urged to spray for gypsy moths
A science panel has recommended Oregon and Washington spray more than 18,000 acres to combat Asian gypsy moths, seen as a major threat to the timber, nursery and Christmas tree industries.
The states’ agriculture departments are reviewing the recommendations and haven’t announced their plans. In the past, both states have taken a hard-line against gypsy moths and sprayed insecticides from the air, even in the face of urban protests and court challenges.
The panel, made up mostly of U.S. Department of Agriculture officials and academic advisers, has recommended aerial spraying 8,641 acres in north Portland in response to two Asian gypsy moths trapped last summer near the port.
The area includes the St. Johns neighborhood and Forest Park, the largest city park in the U.S. and almost seven times as large as New York’s Central Park, in Portland.
“If it got established in that park it would really be a problem,” Oregon Department of Agriculture spokesman Bruce Pokarney said.
Both states have routinely battled European gypsy moths, which are established in 19 Eastern and Midwest states and annually defoliate thousands of acres, according to USDA. Media reports often focus on the insect in caterpillar form littering picnic tables and cars, and dropping on people.
The science panel was convened in response to the trapping in Oregon and Washington of Asian gypsy moths, rarer and more dangerous than their European counterparts. Asian gypsy moths feast on a wider variety of plants and are more mobile.
Until trapping 10 this summer, WSDA had not caught an Asian gypsy moth since 1999.
The two caught near the Port of Portland were the first found in Oregon since 2006.
In response to Asian gypsy moths caught in Washington, the science panel recommended spaying 6,979 acres near the Port of Tacoma, 1,280 acres in Nisqually, 807 acres near the Port of Vancouver and 640 acres in Kent.
Agencies spray for gypsy moths in the spring as eggs hatch and caterpillars emerge. An area is typically sprayed three times over about two weeks with Bacillus thirgiensis var. kurstaki, commonly referred to as Btk and sold under the name Foray.
Besides the 10 Asian gypsy moths, WSDA trapped 32 European gypsy moths, the most since 2006. Some 22 were caught in the densely populated Seattle neighborhood Capitol Hill. The science panel recommended spaying more than the 28 acres tentatively planned by WSDA.
WSDA spokesman Hector Castro said the agency has not decided whether to revise its plans.
Oregon trapped 12 European gypsy moths, mostly near Grants Pass in Southern Oregon. ODA hasn’t decided how it will respond to those gypsy moths, Pokarney said.
WSDA has asked Gov. Jay Inslee to include $5.3 million in his supplemental budget proposal to the 2016 Legislature for a two-year campaign against Asian gypsy months. The governor’s office is evaluating spending requests from all state agencies and has not made any funding decisions, an Office of Financial Management spokesman said.
WSDA hopes most of the money actually will come from the federal government. A USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service spokeswoman said the agency will work with the states on a response, but has not made a proposal.