An official website of the State of Maryland.

Maryland.gov Translate

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Maryland Department of Agriculture

Pest Management Plan for Box Tree Moth

Refer to your signed compliance agreement (CA) for specific guidelines for each step in the pest management plan (PMP). This is an example of what should be covered in your plan. All associated documentation and records should be kept organized and made available to MDA upon request. If BTM is not known to be present within or near the establishment, the first detection of BTM signs or life stages must be reported to the State Plant Regulatory Official (SPRO) office within 2 business days. 

Training

  • Designate an employee for BTM who is responsible for performing the duties outlined. 
  • Use resources available at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/plant-pests-diseases/box-tree-moth . 
  • List employee(s) responsible for BTM duties including training other employees on BTM identification, signs of BTM, trapping and scouting for BTM, and understanding the importance of the compliance agreement for business operation allowing shipment of boxwood to leave a quarantined area.  

Trapping

  • Number of traps are put out according to nursery size and boxwood plants’ locations (refer to chart in compliance agreement for required number of traps based on size/acreage). 
  • Trap locations are listed / mapped. 
  • Record of trap checks, lure changes, any positive finds.

Incoming Plant Material  

  • Boxwood plants are isolated prior to a thorough inspection by the production manager, or other employees trained in BTM (scouting personnel).
  • Treatment applied at least once as part of production, and once for pre-shipment. 
  • Plants from different suppliers are separated/grouped together by supplier. 
  • Suspected positives reported to the Maryland SPRO at 410-841-5920 or [email protected].   

Scouting/Monitoring

  • Use Safaris BTM adult phenology model to determine flight periods. 
  • Record dates of inspections, who performed the inspection, along with any positive finds, treatment applied, rechecks, etc.
  • Positives flagged/tagged/other method recognizable to the nursery crew and placed on hold until treated, reported, and checked by state authority-Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA).  

Sanitation & Disposal 

  • Debris is cleaned up from around the nursery/crop area and from within each plant, double bagged and disposed of along with any boxwood plant in a declining state from known BTM. 

Treatments 

(refer to Appendix 1 Table 1 of the signed agreement for possible treatments) 

  • Applied to prevent active infestation and damage to plants and preventatively on incoming stock. 
  • Use SAFARIS BTM adult phenology model to determine flight periods and active trap checks to confirm BTM adult presence.
  • Accurate treatment records are kept for a minimum of 12 months. 
  • Applicable laws are followed for the application of approved insecticides. 
  • Treatment applied within 7 days of initial adult BTM trap captures for each generation keeping in mind that treatments are most effective targeting young caterpillars when most eggs have been laid on the plants. 
  • Approved insecticide applied to host plants leaving the establishment within seven days of shipment. Retreat if plants are not shipped within the seven-day period. 

Record Keeping 

  • Accurate records are maintained and kept for a minimum of 12 months and available for review at any time the establishment is asked to produce a record.
  • Records include personnel training and methods used, sourcing/propagation records, scouting to include dates and observations, treatments applied to include dates/rates/locations, trapping information, plant movement throughout crop cycle, per-shipment inspection information, shipping/sales made documentation.

Shipping 

Pre-shipment Inspections

  • Performed after treatment is applied and no more than 24 hours before shipments leave to visually inspect for BTM eggs and other life stages, webbing, frass, or feeding damage.
  • Positive signs of BTM are reported to the SPRO office and those plants may not leave until the State Certifying Authority determines the plants are no longer infested.
  • Shipments inspected by the facility and found free of BTM are eligible for a certificate and may be shipped. 

Certification

  • Is provided by MDA after it is determined the establishment can meet the requirements of the compliance agreement for each shipment leaving the establishment. 
  • Accompanies all shipments and is clearly marked and available to the receiver of the shipment of boxwood plants. 

Notification 

  • Notification protocol is established by the receiving state and the shipper with a copy to MDA. 
  • Appropriate receiving state authority is contacted regarding each shipment after verifying information here at www.nationalplantboard.org. 
  • At a minimum, shipping documents include dates shipped, destination contact information, and amount of host material sent. 
  • Notifications of shipments sent to the receiving state authority are also copied to MDA.