This week's podcast is all folks that will be speaking or attending the Biocontrols Conference this year. There are a ton of wonderful speakers and talks. Here's the link if you want to check it out!
I caught up with Suzanne Wainwright Evans, who most listeners are familiar with, to talk a bit about the cannabis aphid, which is the topic of her talk at the conference. I also interviewed John Sanderson who is a professor of entomology at Cornell University with over 30 years of experience in pest management experience on greenhouse crops. Ronald Valentin, the director of technical business for Bioworks, and Justin Magill, head grower at Legit Farm North.
Suzanne is an Ornamental Entomologist specializing in integrated pest management. She has been involved in the Green Industry for more than 25 years with a primary focus on biological control and using pesticides properly. She is a graduate of the University of Florida with degrees in both Entomology and Environmental Horticulture. She has worked throughout the United States and internationally consulting to greenhouses, nurseries, landscapers and interiorscape companies. She is the owner of Buglady Consulting, now in business for over 16 years.
Dr. John Sanderson is a professor of greenhouse entomology at Cornell University. For more than 30 years he has conducted research and extension programs to support arthropod pest management practices on greenhouse crops, with an emphasis on cost-effective biological control. He has extensive research and extension experience with nearly every greenhouse pest, as well as their predators, parasitoids, and pathogens.
Ronald Valentin has been named Director of Technical Business at BioWorks, home to the RootShield, BotaniGard, BotryStop, CEASE, Molt -X, MilStop, NemaShield, PreFence and SuffOil-X brands of biopesticides and Verdanta and ON-Gard brands of biofertilizers. Mr. Valentin has over 20 years of sales and support experience in biological control, working closely with growers to set up sustainable and effective pest management programs.
Justin Magill is the head grower for Legit Cannabis North, a legal indoor cannabis facility here in Washington State. Justin has been growing using living soils in beds longer than anyone else I know and he has been instrumental in developing the KIS Soil and working out methodology around re-amendment.
