Professional Credentials and Gardening Expertise: Entomologists

This is an installment of our series on professional credentials and gardening expertise. To read the introduction to this series, see Professional Credentials and Gardening Expertise.

Entomologists, Professional Credentials, and Designating Body

Entomology is the study of insects, and is a field within zoology, the study of animals. In the US, the primary professional and scientific society of entomologists is the Ecological Society of America (ESA), which formed in 1889 (ESA, 2019a). The ESA developed the Board Certified Entomologist (BCE) professional certification for professional entomologists with a bachelor’s degree or higher in entomology or a closely related discipline (ESA Certification Corporation, 2019a). The ESA later created the Associate Professional Entomologists (ACE) for those who don’t meet the education requirements of the BCE credential, but do have professional experience and training and work in the pest management industry (ESA Certification Corporation, 2019b). Both credentials are administered by the ESA Certification Corporation (ESA Certification Corporation, 2019a).

Relevance for Gardeners

An entomologist in white overalls sprays chemicals on a tree in a yard.
An entomologist sprays a tree to kill bagworms. Photo courtesy of the US Air Force.

Gardeners are likely to encounter entomologists in a few different capacities. First, professional certification of an entomologist is a sign of authority. This can be especially important when evaluating the credibility of information available online and reviewing the qualifications of authors. Gardeners should seek information from BCEs or ACEs, in addition to traditional sources of information on insect control like extension publications or peer-reviewed literature. Gardeners are also likely to encounter an ACE in the event that a professional is needed for helping with pest control – whether that be in the garden or in the home. If gardeners are seeking an insect control professional, an ACE professional credential is a good indicator of professional experience and training.

 

Type of Credential: professional certificate

The BCE and ACE credentials are professional certificates, which means that it is a voluntary program (Knapp and Knapp, 2002). Being a voluntary program, it is legal for entomologists to practice without the certificate. However, it will be up to gardeners to evaluate the experience, training, and education of the entomologist.

 

Education and Professional Experience Requirements

A bachelor’s degree or higher in entomology or closely related discipline (ecology, zoology, biology, etc.) is required for the BCE credential, while the ACE credential does require a college degree (ESA Certification Corporation, 2019c). BCEs are required to have three years of professional experience if their highest degree is a BS, two years of experience with an MS, and one year of experience with a PhD. ACEs must have 5 years of verified professional experience in pest management. In addition, ACEs must also have an active license or certificate that allows them to apply pesticides without supervision.

Qualifying exams

BCE certified entomologist must past the BCE Qualifying exam with a score of 70% or higher (ESA Certification Corporation, 2019d), while ACEs must pass the ACE exam with a 75% or higher (ESA Certification Corporation, 2019e).

Code of Ethics

BCEs and ACEs are bound by codes of ethics for the respective programs (ESA Certification Corporation, 2019f; g).

Continuing Education

BCEs are required to complete 120 hours of continuing education units via continuing education or professional participation over a three-year reporting period (ESA, 2019b). At least 72 hours of those CEUs must be from continuing education for each reporting period. ACEs are required to complete 18 CEUs over a three-year reporting cycle (ESA Certification Corporation, 2019f).

References

ESA. 2019a. About ESA. Entomological Society of America. https://www.entsoc.org/about/esa (accessed 27 August 2019).

ESA. 2019b. CEU Requirements. ESA Certification Corporation. https://www.entocert.org/ceu-requirements (accessed 27 August 2019).

ESA Certification Corporation. 2019a. About. ESA Certification Corporationf. https://www.entocert.org/about (accessed 27 August 2019).

ESA Certification Corporation. 2019b. ACE Certification. ESA Certification Corporation. https://www.entocert.org/ace-certification (accessed 27 August 2019).

ESA Certification Corporation. 2019c. BCE Requirements. ESA Certification Corporation. https://www.entocert.org/bce-requirements (accessed 27 August 2019).

ESA Certification Corporation. 2019d. BCE Examinations. ESA Certification Corporation. https://www.entocert.org/bce-examinations (accessed 27 August 2019).

ESA Certification Corporation. 2019e. Studying for the ACE Exams. ESA Certification Corporation. https://www.entocert.org/studying-ace-exams (accessed 27 August 2019).

ESA Certification Corporation. 2019f. Maintain my ACE Certification. ESA Certification Corporation. https://www.entocert.org/maintain-my-ace-certification (accessed 27 August 2019).

Knapp, L., and J. Knapp. 2002. The Business of Certification: Creating and Sustaining a Successful Program. 2nd Revised edition edition. Association Management Press,U.S., Washington, D.C.

 

Testing, testing, 1-2-3: Trialing new plants for the home garden

How do you know that plants will do well in your garden?  Do you research the types of plants for your region, study different cultivars, and select only things that have been proven to do well for your conditions?  Or do you buy what catches your eye at the garden center, plant it, and then see what happens?  I used to joke that my home garden was a horticulture experiment station, since I’d try all kinds of random plants or techniques and see what works for me.  Now, I get to do that as a fun part of my job through the All-America Selections (AAS) program. You’ve likely seen the AAS symbol on plants or seed packets at the garden center or in catalogs.  Heck, you may even have them in your garden (and not know it).  I compare it to the “Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval” that you used to see on appliances, cleaners, etc. The AAS program is a non-profit started in the 1930’s with the goal of evaluating new plants so that home gardeners can purchase high quality seeds and plants and to assist the horticulture industry in marketing innovations from their breeding programs.  You can read more about AAS and its history here.

A few weeks ago I traveled to Chicago for the All-America Selections (AAS) Annual Summit to receive their Judge Ambassador Award.  I had signed up a few years ago to be a trial site for edible crops for AAS.  The following year I talked my colleague Scott into signing up as a judge for their ornamental trials.  The fun thing about the program is that we get to grow all kinds of vegetables, fruits, and flowers that aren’t even on the market yet.  We get to see how well they grow compared to similar plants and rate them on a number of factors including growth habit, disease resistance, and performance plus flavor (for edible crops) or flower color/form (for ornamentals).  It can be hard work, but it is rewarding to help identify true plant innovations and to see your favorites be announced as winners.

How the testing works
While the AAS Trials may not have the rigor of academic crop research, I do appreciate the procedures in place that provide objective and high standard results.

Breeders, developers, and horticultural companies submit their new plants that are planned for future introduction to the board of AAS for consideration in the trialing program.  During the application process, novel traits of the plants are identified to ensure that the plant offers something new and exciting – these are the traits that judges will observe and score.  The board reviews the application to determine if it fits within the program rules.

Planting the vegetable/fruit trials.

One great thing about the program is that trial judges are professional horticulturalists from universities, seed companies, botanical gardens, etc. – they’re people who know how to grow things and know what quality plants look and act like.  There are trial sites all around the country, providing for replication and generalizeable results for most regions of the country. The conditions plants are grown in also vary by location.  My trial is at a farm where management is minimal.  When we were at the summit we visited the trial gardens at Ball Horticulture which looked much more maintained and pampered compared to mine.  This gives data on a variety of maintenance levels as you’ll find in home gardens – some gardeners are very conscientious about maintaining their plants and others have a more laissez faire approach.  In order to win as a full national AAS winner, the plants have to perform well across the country in all these different situations.  Sometimes those that perform well in a few regions but not the others will be designated as regional winners.

Second, the tests are blind.  This means that we do not know what the exact plant is, who the breeder or seed company is, or any other info other than what type of plant it is.  To the judge, each entry is just a number.  It could be from a seed company you love (or hate), your best friend, the breeder who was your advisor from grad school, etc.  This makes the results fair and reduces the chance for bias toward or against a plant based on its origins.  The ratings are just based on the plant.

Another part of the trial is comparison.  It is one thing to grow a tomato plant and say “yep, that’s a good tomato.”  Its another to grow a tomato and compare it to similar cultivars to say “yep, that’s a good tomato….but it is better than what’s already available on the market.”  The goal of the program is to show how new plants have merit over older plants.  We only need so many new tomatoes (and let’s face it, there are lots of new tomatoes – we test WAY too many in the AAS process for my liking).  The board of AAS judges reads the entry info from the new cultivar being tested and selects plants (usually two) to compare it against.  If the trial is a yellow cherry tomato, it will be grown and tested alongside other yellow cherry tomatoes.  The scoring is based on whether its performance or taste is as good as or better than the comparisons.  If most judges don’t rank it as “better” then it has no chance of winning.

Confidentiality and Proprietary Plants

The fact that the testing is blind, paired with the fact that results of “failed” tests are not released, lends itself to confidentiality.  Another important factor about the testing is the proprietary nature of the tests and test sites.  These are new plants that haven’t been introduced to the market (except for the case of perennial trials) and are usually for proprietary or patented plants.  Test sites should have some sort of control over who enters them and signs prohibiting the collection of seeds, pollen, or cuttings are placed at the site.  Believe it or not, the world of plant introductions can be dog-eat-dog and cutthroat.

So what if it doesn’t win?

One of the cool things about the test is seeing the announcements of the winners early the following year.  You see the list of plants and think back to what you grew the previous season.  If often find myself thinking “oh yeah, I remember that plant, it did really well” and sometimes even “how did that win, it did horrible for me.”  This is a good reminder that we can’t base generalized garden recommendations on anecdotal evidence.  What did well for me may not work for someone else and vice versa.  All the results from the test sites go together to provide a general view of the plant performance.  It will do well for some and not others.

So if most of the judges rank the crop as not performing, looking, or tasting as good as the comparisons the plant doesn’t win.  And that’s it.  Due to the confidential nature of the testing you won’t know that it failed the test.  Even I won’t know that it failed the test. It will likely go on to market without the AAS seal where it will face an even tougher test – the test of consumer demand.  Of course, many people may grow it and be successful, and some may grow it without success.

What are the AAS Winners and how do I find them?

There’s a list of plants announced each year through the AAS website and social media channels.  You can find a list, in reverse order of winning (meaning most recent first) on the AAS Website.  The site also has a searchable database if you’re looking for a specific plant.  Since these plants are owned by lots of different seed companies and breeders, there’s also a retailer listing on the site.  The AAS program also supports a number of Display Gardens across the country, including botanical gardens, university gardens, and others where the public can see the most recent winners growing.  Here in Omaha we maintain a display garden for the ornamental plants at our county fairgrounds.  We also have our on-campus garden which is used for our TV show Backyard Farmer (the longest running educational TV program in the country, BTW) which serves as a display garden for both ornamental and edible crops.

I recently shared the AAS Testing Program with the local news here in Omaha. Check it out:

 

Some of my favorite recent AAS Winners
Pak Choi Asian Delight AAS WinnerAsian Delight Pak Choi – this was planted in May and didn’t bolt.  We were still harvesting it in October.

 

 

 

Pepper Just Sweet - 2019 AAS Edible-Vegetable Winner

Pepper Just Sweet – these plants were big and healthy even when everything else was struggling.  The peppers were delicious.

 

 

 

Potato Clancy - 2019 AAS Edible-Vegetable Winner - The first potato grown from seed!

Potato Clancy – potatoes….from seed!  Just fun!

 

 

 

 

Pepper habanero Roulette - 2018 AAS Edible - Vegetable WinnerPepper Habanero Roulette – All of the fruity sweet, none of the heat.  A fun heatless habanero.

 

 

 

Dianthus Interspecific Supra Pink F1 - 2017 AAS National Winner - This compact, bushy plant blooms prolifically with novel mottled pink flowers sporting frilly petal edges that hold up even in summer heat and drought.Dianthus Intraspecific Supra Pink– A reblooming, prolific Dianthus with interesting ruffled flowers.

 

 

 

Eggplant Patio Baby – container sized eggplant with mini fruits perfect for cooking or roasting whole.

 

 

 

Ornamental Pepper Black Pearl 2006 - AAS Flower Winner - Black Pearl is a handsome plant with black foliage.Ornamental Pepper Black Pearl – Cute purple flowers lead to these shiny pepper pearls.  Love the black leaves, too.

Why soil tests matter: lessons from my vegetable garden

Regular blog readers will remember that we moved to my childhood home a few years ago. With an acre or so of landscape I finally have enough room to put in a vegetable garden. My husband built a wonderful raised bed system, complete with critter fencing, and we’ve been enjoying the fresh greens and the first few tomatoes of the season.

Jim puts on the finishing touches to our first raised bed garden.

We filled these raised beds with native soil. During a porch addition I asked the contractor to stockpile the topsoil near the raised beds. The house was built almost 100 years ago and at that time there were no “designed topsoils” (thank goodness) – soil was simply moved around during construction. Some of this soil had been covered by pavers and the rest had been covered with turf. [You can read more about designed topsoils in this publication under “choosing soil for raised beds.”] There had been no addition of nutrients for at least 7 years so I was confident that this was about as natural a soil as I could expect.

Our native soil, ready for adding to our raised beds.

I’ve always advised gardeners to have a soil test done whenever they embark on a new garden or landscape project, so before I added anything to my raised beds I took samples and sent them to the soil testing lab at University of Massachusetts at Amherst (my go-to lab as there are no longer any university labs in Washington State for the public to use).

What I already knew about our soil was that it’s a glacial till (in other words it’s full of rocks left behind by a receding glacier). The area is full of native Garry oak (Quercus garryana), some of which are centuries old. The soil is excessively drained, meaning it’s probably a sandy loam. And that’s about all I knew until my results came back.

Some of our massive, centuries old Garry oaks.

Because nothing has been added to this soil for several years, and because I had removed all of the turf grass before filling the beds, I assumed that the organic matter (OM) would be quite low. Most soils that support tree growth have around 3-7% OM. Hah! Ours was over 12%! All I can figure is that centuries of leaf litter has created a rich organic soil.

I never expected this level of OM.

So here’s lesson number one: Don’t add OM just because you think you need it. Too much OM creates overly rich conditions that can reduce the natural protective chemicals in vegetation. This means pests and diseases are more likely to be problems.

I think these may be the lowest P levels I’ve seen in home garden soils.

I was pleased to see our P level was low. First soil test I’ve ever seen in my area where P was below the desirable range! Does that mean I’m adding P? No – because there is no evidence of a P deficiency anywhere in the landscape. And my garden plants are growing just fine without it.

No sign of any nutrient deficiencies here (though the mesclun mix got out of control).
Or here either.

Lesson number two: Just because a nutrient is reportedly deficient, look for evidence of that deficiency before you add it. It’s a lot easier to add something than it is to remove it.

Likewise, our other nutrient values are just fine, and I was pleased to see that lead levels were low. Given that this is an older house that had lead paint at one time, and given the fact that the soil being tested was adjacent to the house, I was prepared for lead problems.

Surprisingly low lead given the original location of this soil next to an older house.

However – we do have high aluminum in the soil. Exactly why…I don’t know. Perhaps the soil is naturally high in aluminum? There’s no evidence that aluminum sulfate or another amendment was ever used. In any case, that was an unexpected result that does give us some concern for root crops. I’ll be doing some research to see what vegetables accumulate aluminum.

The aluminum levels may bear some watching if I’m growing root crops.

Finally, note our pH – 4.9! This is completely normal for our area, which is naturally acidic. In addition, the tannic acid accumulation from centuries of oak leaves has undoubtedly pushed the pH even lower. Are we going to adjust it? Again, no. There is no evidence of any plant problems, and even our lawn is green. Why would we adjust the pH if there is no visual evidence to support that?

No, this is not a typo.

Which leads to lesson number three: Don’t adjust your soil pH just because you think you should. If your plants are growing well, the pH is fine. Plants and their associated root microbes are pretty well adapted to obtaining the necessary nutrients. If you have problems, don’t assume it’s a pH issue. Correlation does not equal causation! You’ll need to eliminate all other possibilities before attempting to change your soil chemistry. And remember it is impossible to permanently change soil pH over the short term. Permanent pH changes require decades, if not centuries of annual inputs (like our oak leaves).

The cat agrees – no pH issue with this lawn.

Will I test my soil again? Probably not. I have the baseline report and since I don’t plan to add anything I don’t expect it to change much. If I had a nutrient toxicity I would retest until the level of that nutrient had decreased to normal levels. But with everything growing well, from lawn to vegetables to shrubs and trees, there really is nothing to be concerned about.

Viburnum plicatum (I think) is one of many established shrubs on the property.

Lesson number four: Unless you have something in your soil to worry about, don’t.

Professional Credentials and Gardening Expertise

This is the first post in a series in which we will explore the world of professional credentials and designations, highlight disciplines related to gardening with certification or licensing programs, and outline potential services professionals from each of those disciplines can provide to gardeners.

Professional designations are designed to help clients identify experts within specific disciplines. In upcoming posts I will highlight professional designations relevant to various aspects of gardening. Professional certifications, licensures, and credentials related to gardening include:

  • Board Certified Entomologist (BSE)
  • ISA Certified Arborist
  • Certified Crop Advisor (CCA) and Certified Professional Agronomist (CPAg)
  • Certified Horticulturalist (CH)
  • Certified Professional Forester (CPF)
  • Certified Professional Soil Scientist (CPSS)
  • Professional Landscape Architect (PLA)
  • Registered Consulting Arborist (RCA)

Before I highlight each of those professions and credentials in future posts, I want to first provide context and explain the purpose of professional certification and licensing.

A registered nurse checks a newborn’s reflexes. Photo by Jacob Sippel courtesy of the U.S. Navy.

Most of us encounter professional designations on a daily basis without noticing. For example, you’re likely familiar with credentials such as Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Registered Nurse (RN), or Doctor of Medicine (MD). Such credentials are often identified with postnominal letters in the form of an acronym listed after someone’s name in print. In some cases these postnominal letters indicate both an academic degree and a professional certification or licensure, such is the case with medical doctors (MD). In some disciplines the degree and designation can be separate. I’ll use myself as an example (not as a humble brag, but as a convenient example). My business card says “Colby Moorberg, PhD, CPSS”. The PhD refers to the highest academic degree earned (Doctor of Philosophy, PhD), while the CPSS refers to the Certified Professional Soil Scientist professional certification. There are countless professional designations in current use, each of which comes with postnominal acronyms. That alphabet soup can become confusing. Yet to further complicate the matter, details vary greatly from one professional designation to the next. Such differences include the type of professional designation, education requirements, qualifying exams, codes of ethics, continuing education requirements, professional experience, and designating bodies.

Types of Professional Designations

Professional designations can take the form of professional licenses or certifications. According to Knapp and Knapp (2002), licenses are granted by government agencies and are required for people to practice or engage in their profession. The process ensures that licensed individuals have met the minimum education and experience required to be competent in their field without risk to themselves or the public. For example, engineers and physicians are required by law to have a license issued by a state licensing board before they can practice in their respective profession. Such professional licenses are somewhat analogous to the requirement that people operating a motor vehicle have a driver’s license – it’s illegal to drive without one.

An arborist tends to trees at the US Capital. Photo courtesy of the Architect of the Capital.

Knapp and Knapp go on to contrast professional certifications from licensing by stating that certification is a voluntary process administered by an organization (not a government agency) to recognize individuals that have met predetermined qualifications or standards. Such certifications help establish the credibility of a professional within a specific discipline when a license is not required. Consider a certified public accountant (CPA). Many people might think twice about trusting an accountant with their finances or tax preparation if that accountant was not certified, even though a license is not required for someone acting as an accountant. Professional certifications are typically administered by professional societies, and are usually used in professions where the immediate health and safety of the general public is not impacted by a professional in the respective discipline.

Education Requirements

Education requirements are put in place in most certification or licensing programs to ensure that the professional has the knowledge base necessary to be successful in their field. Certification and licensing programs often require an associate’s or bachelor’s degree in a related major, but not always. For example, a Certified Professional Forester is required to have at least a bachelor’s degree in forestry or a related major (Society of American Foresters, 2019), while a ISA Certified Arborist could become certified without a college degree if such an individual meets additional professional experience requirements (International Society of Aboriculture, 2019). Licensing boards or certifying bodies typically have panels of professionals within a discipline that review college transcripts of those applying to become licensed or certified in order to ensure each person with a credential meet the program’s minimum education requirement.

Qualifying Exams

All licensing boards and most certification programs have an exam that someone must pass in order to become licensed or certified. Similar to degree requirements, such exams help ensure the professional has the minimum level or expertise necessary to be proficient in their field. In some cases, professionals must pass two exams, one when they start their professional career fresh out of college, and a second after they’ve worked professionally for 3-5 years.

A multiple choice answer card. Photo by Alberto G.

Code of Ethics

Many licensing and certification programs require licensees or certificants to abide by a professional code of ethics. This is a useful feature for clients (gardeners wishing to hire a professional) because it provides a mechanism to report a professional if they are acting unprofessional or unethically. Such codes of ethics are also useful to licensed or certified professionals because it gives them an “out”, should they be asked to do something unethical by a client or an employer.

Continuing Education

Most licensing and certification programs require a minimum number of documented hours (continuing education units, or CEUs) dedicated to staying up-to-date. These hours are documented and must be met within a 1-, 2-, or 3-year cycle. Such continuing education requirements benefit gardeners hoping to hire a professional, because it ensures that professional is staying current in their field and is learning the newest technologies and techniques. Programs that require professionals to abide by codes of ethics often require professional ethics training for each cycle as well.

Books. Photo by Abhi Sharma.

Professional Experience

Certification and licensing programs often have a minimum number or years of professional experience required in order to become certified or licensed. Usually during the period in which someone is gaining experience, they are working under the wing of someone fully licensed or certified. Such requirements help ensure that fully certified or licensed professionals have documented professional experience, and have had the opportunity to apply academic knowledge to real-world applications.

Soil scientists inspect soils in a Christmas tree farm in North Carolina. Photo by David Lindbo via SoilScience.info.

Designating Bodies

Professional certificates or licenses often vary by the group, organization, or licensing board that bestows the professional credential on an individual. In some cases there are competing organizations that offer competing certificates.

Summary

The primary way in which gardeners benefit from hiring certified or licensed experts in their fields is that professional credentials ensure a minimum knowledge and competency by the professional. In addition, these professionals are often bound by their respective professional codes of ethics. As the old adage goes, you get what you pay for. In the case of certified or licensed professionals, this often means it will cost you more for the services of a certified professional. As we explore the different professions and professional credential programs relevant to gardening in future posts, I will discuss gardening-related services that can be provided by each type of certified or licensed professional, and scenarios where spending the additional money to hire a certified professional might be worth the added cost. I hope this information enlightened you to professional designations, certifications, and licensing. Hopefully it will help start a conversation between you and gardening experts to determine how they might be of service to you.

Have you encountered certified or licensed professionals in the gardening world? Discuss your experience in the comments, or suggest certification or licensing programs I may have missed in my list above.

Disclosure: I am a Certified Professional Soil Scientist (CPSS), and I am a member of the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) Soils Certifying Board which oversees the CPSS program.

References

Knapp, L., and J. Knapp. 2002. The Business of Certification: Creating and Sustaining a Successful Program. 2nd Revised edition edition. Association Management Press,U.S., Washington, D.C.
International Society of Arboriculture. 2019. Types of Credentials. International Society of Arboriculture. https://www.isa-arbor.com/Credentials/Which-Credential-is-Right-for-You (accessed 29 July 2019).
Society of American Foresters. 2019. Requirements. Society of American Foresters. https://www.eforester.org/Main/Certification_Education/Certified_Forester/Requirements/Main/Certification/Requirements.aspx?hkey=7eae8378-e92b-438e-aba9-93e713cb38cc (accessed 29 July 2019).