Why not turn the leaf blower into an insect collector?
The result, put in motion the following Monday at the ARS Areawide Pest Management Research Unit at College Station, was the keep-it-simple sampler (KISS). ARS agricultural engineer Kenneth R. Beerwinkle, also at College Station, designed and assembled the portable insect sampler from an engine-driven leaf blower. The KISS simplifies a long, tedious job. Farmers and crop consultants spend hours counting insects in cotton, soybeans, corn, and other row crops. Usually they sample manually with nets or by looking at individual plants. Their goal: getting a handle on the numbers of pest and beneficial insects present in their fields. The KISS generates 150-mph winds that blows insects off crops into a net attached to the nozzle. ARS field tests showed “KISSing” is 10 times more efficient than hand-collecting boll weevils in early-season cotton. Boll weevils cause $300 million in cotton losses each year. The researchers collected a wide variety of insects from different crops and wild host
