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Stored Grain Integrated Pest Management in the North Central U.S.

A webinar on integrated pest management in stored grain will be offered Friday, September 12 by the North Central Integrated Pest Management Center. The two-hour webinar, which begins at 10:00 a.m. CT, will feature presentations from three entomologists in the region:

  • Biology and identification of key stored grain pests; basics of IPM for stored grain; proper fumigation - issues and challenges

Tom Phillips, Professor of Entomology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS

  • Prevention of grain infestation: residual insecticides available and their proper application; strategic use of aeration for grain cooling and pest suppression

Frank Arthur, Research Entomologist, USDA ARS, Manhattan, KS

  • IPM for corn and other products in the upper Midwest: issues and challenges with grain drying and cooling; pest management for animal feed, ethanol and value-processed food

Linda Mason, Professor of Entomology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
After the presentations, participants will have an opportunity for a live question and answer session. Instructional materials will be provided via internet links.

Click here to see more...

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Spring 2026 weather outlook for Wisconsin; What an early-arriving El Niño could mean

Video: Spring 2026 weather outlook for Wisconsin; What an early-arriving El Niño could mean

Northeast Wisconsin is a small corner of the world, but our weather is still affected by what happens across the globe.

That includes in the equatorial Pacific, where changes between El Niño and La Niña play a role in the weather here -- and boy, have there been some abrupt changes as of late.

El Niño and La Niña are the two phases of what is collectively known as the El Niño Southern Oscillation, or ENSO for short. These are the swings back and forth from unusually warm to unusually cold sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean along the equator.

Since this past September, we have been in a weak La Niña, which means water temperatures near the Eastern Pacific equator have been cooler than usual. That's where we're at right now.

Even last fall, the long-term outlook suggested a return to neutral conditions by spring and potentially El Niño conditions by summer.

But there are some signs this may be happening faster than usual, which could accelerate the onset of El Niño.

Over the last few weeks, unusually strong bursts of westerly winds farther west in the Pacific -- where sea surface temperatures are warmer than average -- have been observed. There is a chance that this could accelerate the warming of those eastern Pacific waters and potentially push us into El Niño sooner than usual.

If we do enter El Nino by spring -- which we'll define as the period of March, April and May -- there are some long-term correlations with our weather here in Northeast Wisconsin.

Looking at a map of anomalously warm weather, most of the upper Great Lakes doesn't show a strong correlation, but in general, the northern tiers of the United States do tend to lean to that direction.

The stronger correlation is with precipitation. El Niño conditions in spring have historically come with a higher risk of very dry weather over that time frame, so this will definitely be a transition we'll have to watch closely as we move out of winter.