University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension is the outreach arm of the University of Wisconsin System. UW-Extension provides statewide access to university resources and research so the people of Wisconsin can learn, grow and succeed at all stages of life. UW-Extension carries out the tradition of The Wisconsin Idea – extending the boundaries of the university to the boundaries of the state – through its four divisions of continuing education, the cooperative extension service, entrepreneurship and economic development, and broadcast and media innovations.

The Extension County Offices are a unique partnership of counties, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the University of Wisconsin working together to help people put knowledge to work. This partnership brings education to people where they live, through Extension offices, in each of Wisconsin’s 72 counties. It supports educational programs for farmers, businesses, communities, families and young people.

UW-Extension uses education to help people understand and solve problems. Educational programs developed and conducted by county-based educators reflect local concerns. They apply knowledge from the University of Wisconsin, other universities and the United States Department of Agriculture.

Extension specialist faculty

Extension specialists on campuses of the University of Wisconsin System teach, conduct original applied research and interpret research of other scholars in response to local and state needs. These specialists provide statewide educational leadership in their disciplines and serve as a resource people to extension offices, state agencies, the legislature, professional associations, business and industry and other state and national groups. The department has 2 extension specialist faculty specializing in vegetable crop entomology and fruit crop entomology, and one extension entomologist insect diagnostic lab director with urban and structural pest control expertise.

Extension services in the Department

Insect Diagnostic Lab
What’s bugging you? Household, garden, forest, ornamental, structural, or livestock insect questions? Just curious about the fascinating world of insects?

Online Insect ID Tool
Use photographs and information on this website to help you identify hundreds of species from a wide range of settings, indoors and out!

Fruit Crop Entomology
The Guedot Lab focuses on the development of effective, economical and environmentally sound insect pest management strategies and the development of strategies to conserve and enhance pollination services for fruit crops in Wisconsin.

Vegetable Crop Entomology
The Groves Lab focuses on the development, implementation, and delivery of a research-based, extension program to support integrated pest management of insect and mite pests affecting fresh-market and processing vegetable production in Wisconsin.

Farm and Industry Short Course
Learn more about this unique program offering agricultural education and professional certification.  A ‘Farm Insects’ course is offered each year taught by PJ Liesch of the Insect Diagnostic Lab.

Emerald Ash Borer in Wisconsin
Learn more about Emerald Ash Borer and Wisconsin’s response to this invasive landscape pest.

Spongy moth
This UW-Extension website on spongy moth (Lymantria dispar) provides information on the biology and management of this invasive forest and landscape pest.

Spotted Wing Drosophila in Wisconsin
This site provides an overview of Spotted Wing Drosophila (SWD) biology, impacts, and management in the state. Additional content and Extension materials are added as they become available.

Other extension services

Extension County Offices
Have a question you’d like answered? Use this site to find a county agent near you.

The Learning Store
Search our online bookstore for insect pest management publications and more.

Wisconsin Crop Manager Newsletter
Learn about agricultural insect issues around the state from our Extension Entomologists.

The Wisconsin Master Gardener Program
Master gardeners are trained volunteers who work with Extension staff to help people in the community better understand horticulture and their environment.

Extension Horticulture Website
The goal of the UW-Extension Horticulture website is to bring university research to your Wisconsin garden.  This site is home to hundreds of horticulture factsheets, videos, podcasts, and more.

Accomplishments

The following exemplify significant programs, outcomes and impacts of work by Extension specialist faculty at the UW-Madison Entomology Department.

Reduced-Risk Healthy Grown™ Potato Program
This integrated research and extension program involving multi-disciplinary participants from the UW-Extension Agriculture & Natural Resources Vegetable Team incorporates research-based information to develop, implement, and update long-term, economical, and sustainable pest management systems for the Wisconsin Healthy Grown™ Potato Program. Methods for indexing and evaluating pesticide mammalian toxicity, as well as ecological and wildlife impact, were developed. New research from entomology, plant pathology, and zoology were combined, and full-scale agricultural tests implemented. Today, the first product of that effort is in stores throughout the nation – Wisconsin’s Healthy Grown potatoes. Protected Harvest, an independent oversight organization, has been established to certify farmers’ strict adherence to reduced-pesticide, sustainable agriculture standards.

Economic Threshold and Integrated Pest Management Program for Soybean Aphid
UW-Madison Entomology research and extension conducted jointly with the University of Minnesota and other states funded by the North Central Soybean Research Program resulted in an economic threshold for soybean aphid insecticide application timing and soybean yield protection. Economists estimate a $1.3 billion net benefit to U.S. consumers and soybean growers over 15 years (2003-2017) from this multi-state research/extension project. Subsequent work in the department has focused on host plant resistance to soybean aphid, soybean seed treatments, and biological control.

Comprehensive Insecticide Resistance Management Programs for Vegetable Insect Pests 
Prescriptive programs have been developed to provide practical guidance in implementing appropriate insecticide resistance management programs for vegetable insects, focusing on Colorado potato beetle.  These programs have allowed pest management practitioners to 1) reduce the total number of insecticide applications, 2) limit the onset or development of insecticide resistance, and 3) embrace novel or refined management tactics.

Documentation and IPM Strategy for the Rotation Resistant Variant of Western Corn Rootworm
An on-farm monitoring network was established with county agents and farmers across 11 southeastern Wisconsin counties on over 30 farms. IPM strategies to cope with the resistant variant have been demonstrated for implementation by UW Extension county agents and farmers in Wisconsin. This program will be of continuing importance if the variant increases its range within the state, and as a model for entomology researchers to incorporate farmer perceptions, awareness and knowledge into IPM strategies for newly emerging pest issues.

Development of a Research-Based Extension Program for IPM in Organic Field and Forage Crops 
This integrated research and extension program established an organic pest management long-term experiment on 30 acres  located at the University of Wisconsin Arlington Agricultural Research Station. Entomologists and soil scientists are studying interactions between organic farmer soil fertility practices, crop plant nutrition, and insect pest and beneficial insect response in corn, soybean and alfalfa. This project is unique in that, different from the organic-conventional binary, it compares two organic fertility systems widely adopted by U.S. organic farmers in a grain and forage crop rotation. Experienced organic farmers are consulted in shaping the research direction so they can use results in whole farm planning.