An overview of the insect community found in fiber and grain industrial hemp grown on the Eastern Shore of Maryland

Presenting Author(s)

Emily Zobel

Cambridge, MD, USA

Co-Author(s)

NF

Nicole Fiorellino

Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist
Department of Plant Science & Landscape Architecture University of Maryland
College Park, Maryland, United States
AR

Andrew Ristvey

Senior Extension Specialist
University of Maryland Extension
College Park, Maryland, United States

Industrial hemp (Cannabis sativa ssp. Sativa) is a novel crop being cultivated in the United States in recent years. Fiber and grain hemp has potential as a phytoremediator due to its short time to maturity and rapid biomass production, which could make it highly beneficial to farmers on the Eastern Shore of Maryland as a way to remove extra phosphorus from the soil. As with all new crops, pest and disease management recommendations must be developed for industrial hemp to assist growers. A grain/fiber industrial hemp variety trial was conducted at Wye Research and Education Center (Queenstown, MD) to determine the preferred varieties to grow in the area. Preliminary data was collected on the insect community found on grain/fiber industrial hemp. Bi-weekly scouting was done from Mid-July through October. Results of one-minute visual counts are presented here. Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica) and blister beetles (Meloidae spp.) were found during July and August when plants were flowering. A variety of Hemiptera species were found in the field throughout the sampling period. While corn earworms (Helicoverpa zea) were found in the grain/fiber hemp, it’s population was significantly lower than that found in the CBD hemp (F(1, 52) = 22.66, p < .001). Further research is needed to determine: what the pest community for grain/fiber hemp would be like in larger commercial fields, how this would differ from CBD hemp fields, and to develop integrated pest management strategies for these pests.