PestAndDiseaseScouting
Crop scouting field guide

Pollinator Protection Checklist

A practical starting point for growers, land stewards, 4-H/FFA students and crop science learners. Adapt the checklist to your enterprise, local conditions and current regulations.

What this guide helps you do

The subject of Pollinator Protection Checklist is easier to manage when observations, dates, costs and outcomes are recorded consistently. Start by stating the decision you need to make; then identify who has responsibility, what supplies or data are needed, and what success looks like. Pest pressure, crop stages, thresholds and legal pesticide uses vary by location and season.

Six-step planning checklist

  1. Project scope: Identify the crop, pest or symptom concern, sample route and measurable scouting question for Pollinator Protection Checklist.
  2. Field scouting baseline: Record field location, crop and growth stage, sampling route, pest counts, symptom photos, weather and prior field history.
  3. Sampling and field safety: Document scouting safety, equipment sanitation, pesticide label restrictions and local Extension sampling guidance.
  4. Costs and tradeoffs: Compare scouting time, economic injury thresholds, management costs, potential crop damage and impacts on beneficial insects.
  5. Daily tracking: Log sampling locations, crop stage, pest counts, symptoms, photographs, weather, costs and next scouting date.
  6. Professional review: Confirm pest identity, action thresholds and treatment decisions with current land-grant Extension guidance and a licensed local adviser.

Field record you can copy

Crop field and scouting sample ID: ____________

Start date and location: ____________

Responsible adult or business: ____________

Crop growth stage and pest-count baseline: ____________

Materials, inputs and costs: ____________

Safety checks and required permissions: ____________

Results, follow-up and next review date: ____________

Before using this form

This worksheet is not a plant disease diagnosis or pesticide prescription. Follow current pesticide labels, local Extension recommendations, and applicable laws.

Authoritative references