In an attempt to combat problems of insect resist- wasp Trichogramma prediosum, an egg parasite, to ance and the increasing cost of new insecticides, in- control the Heliothis complex-the cotton bollworm tegrated pest management (IPM) systems have been and the tobacco budworm-on cotton. The test was lodeveloped for many crops, including cotton. Cotton cated in Portland, Arkansas, where reports indicate that IPM systems include such components as scouting to Heliothis are the key insect pests (Phillips et al.; determine when control actions should be taken, plant- Teague). ing trap crops, and using short season varieties of cot- Unlike other cotton-growing areas where actions to ton. Regardless of the component(s) of IPM systems control Heliothis are taken on a field-by-field basis, for cotton, when a decision is made that a direct con- management in Portland is based on a community control action is warranted, the control action most often cept. In 1976, Dr. J. R. Phillips of the University of used is the application of insecticides. Thus, although Arkansas initiated a community-wide integrated HeIPM strategies may reduce the frequency of insecticide liothis management program. The community proapplications and consequently reduce the possible gram treats all fields as a single field for the purposes problem of insecticide resistance, the use of conven- of Heliothis control; that is, when a decision is made tional, broad-spectrum insecticides continues to be the to treat, all fields in the community are treated primary control tool when insect outbreaks occur. (Teague). An additional component of the community To reduce the reliance on broad-spectrum insecti- approach is treatment, generally in June, of the first cides, biology-based control techniques have been Heliothis generation that attacks cotton; this supproposed as substitutes for insecticide applications in presses the population and sometimes postpones furcertain cases. Biology-based controls include, for ex- ther applications until late August (Phillips et al.). The ample, releases of natural enemies (parasites or pred- early Heliothis generation is usually suppressed with ators), releases of sterile males, and the use of highly selective material. Applications later in the seapheromones.