On May 17^th, 2024, the Floyd County extension office held a private pesticide applicator training to educate participates on proper application, disposal, restrictions, mixtures, and labels on restricted chemicals that may be used with this license and how it affects the environment. We had 10 people attend this 3-hour session and all were awarded their 3-year license at the end of the class. 

The improvement in understanding from the start to the end of the session is summarized below.  

Understanding Before Training:

• Comfort with calibrating a sprayer: 70% disagreed, 30% strongly disagreed
• Understanding of how to read a pesticide label: 80% disagreed, 20% strongly disagreed
• Understanding the importance of wearing protective equipment: 100% agreed
• Understanding the effects of improper pesticide application: 60% agreed, 40% disagreed
• Understanding worker protection standards and re-entry times: 100% strongly disagreed

Understanding After Training:

• Comfort with calibrating a sprayer: 70% strongly agreed, 30% agreed
• Understanding of how to read a pesticide label: 80% strongly agreed, 20% agreed
• Understanding the importance of wearing protective equipment: 100% strongly agreed
• Understanding the effects of improper pesticide application: 90% strongly agreed, 10% agreed
• Understanding worker protection standards and re-entry times: 100% strongly agreed

       This shows the effectiveness of the training in enhancing the participants’ knowledge and skills in pesticide application, which will ultimately contribute to environmental protection.  These classes will be held yearly to continue educating individuals on these important topics.