Buildings & Grounds Maintenance

• On this page
  • What Does IPM Mean for Stanford?
  • What is IPM Monitoring?
  • Where Can I Get More Information?
    
    • Pest Control Galleries
    • Horticulture Articles on Stanford's IPM Program
    • Other IPM Programs 

Since launching the IPM program in 1997, the Grounds department at Stanford has been dedicated to using an integrated pest management approach to provide suppression and long-term control of pests on campus, with the least amount of impact to the environment, non-target organisms and human health.

What Does “Integrated Pest Management” Mean for Stanford?

By taking an IPM approach, the Grounds department will attempt to use the most environmentally sound methods for controlling pests that negatively impact the health of plant life on campus.  Every attempt will be made to find the most innovative and least toxic way of controlling pests, using chemicals only as a last resort.

Goals of the IPM Program at Stanford

• Reduce pesticide use, and associated exposure risks, at Stanford.
• Reduce the cost of pest control on campus.
• Minimize harm to the environment.
• Improve long-term plant protection.
• Train and educate staff members about the Grounds IPM program.

Examples of Alternative Pest Control Methods

• Improving plant health.
• Releasing beneficial insects.
• Encouraging naturally occurring beneficials by avoiding the use of pesticides.
• Regular monitoring of pests and beneficial insects.
• Removing caterpillar cocoons from trees with high-pressure “power” washers.
• Using the smallest amount of the least toxic pesticides available, when chemical control is absolutely necessary.

What Is IPM Monitoring?

Monitoring for pest and beneficial insects on Stanford plants is one of the main approaches used by the Grounds department as part of our Integrated Pest Management program.  If you have seen one of our horticultural technicians taking plant samples or peering at leaves with a hand lens around campus, you may have caught us in the act!

Pests and Beneficials

The Grounds department’s IPM program currently monitors for the following insect pests, and the naturally occurring beneficial insects that help to control them.

• Tussock moths.
• Thrips.
• California oakworms.
• Fruit-tree leaf rollers.
• Aphids.
• Adelgids.
• Lacebugs.
• Elm leaf beetles.
• Scale.
• Red gum lerp psyllids.
• Eucalyptus longhorn borer.
• Minimize harm to the environment.

Where Can I Get More Information?

Grounds has various resources available to you if you are interested in finding out more about Stanford’s IPM program or pest control in general.  For more information, please visit the links below.

Pest Control Galleries

For more information on pest and beneficial insects, please visit one of our Galleries:

• Gallery of Pests
• Gallery of Beneficials

Horticultural Articles on Stanford’s IPM Program

The following articles include more detailed information about specific aspects and approaches of Stanford’s IPM program. 

• Evaluating the Effectiveness of Releasing Beneficial Insects to Control Tussock Moth Populations at Stanford University
• Where Have All the Larvae Gone?
• The Caterpillar Story
• Bird and Bat Nests
• Coincident Bloom:  A Tool for Pest Management at Stanford University
• Sudden Oak Death
• Psyllid Infestation on Stanford Eucalyptus

Other Integrated Pest Management Programs

For information about pest control and IPM programs at other institutions, see:

• University of California at Davis’ IPM website.
• University of California at Berkeley’s pest management program.