Citation: Pulliam K.F., Brockman R., Avery C., Gauger, A., Williams, M., Bessin, R., and Gonthier, D.  Balancing row cover pest and pollination management in organic cucurbit production. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems. 2026;41:e1. doi:10.1017/S1742170525100203

Abstract
Balancing pest control and pollination is a dual challenge for pollinator-dependent crops and the producers that grow them. For organic cucurbit production, organic compliant insecticides underperform at suppressing pests and can have nontarget impacts on pollinators. One promising alternative is pest-protective row covers, which successfully exclude insect pests from damaging cucurbit crops. However, they also exclude pollinators. In this study across two years, four row cover pollination management strategies were compared for their efficacy for acorn squash (Cucurbita pepo L.). Row covers were installed at crop transplant and four treatments were initiated: on–off (row cover removed at flowering), on–off–on (row cover removed at flowering and reinstalled post-flowering), open ends (row cover tunnel ends opened at flowering and reclosed post-flowering), and full season (row cover installed through whole season, commercial bumble bee colonies installed at flowering). During the pre-flowering net stage (when row covers were installed), all treatments had low pest abundance and were not statistically different. In the post-flowering net stage, the full season and open ends treatments had statistically lower cucumber beetle pest abundance relative to the on–off–on treatment. The number of seeds per squash fruit weight, an indicator of pollination success, was statistically lower in the full season treatment relative to the on–off–on treatment in 2021, which may be explained by the statistically lower bee activity in the full season treatment relative to the on–off and on–off–on treatments. Squash seeds were not counted in 2020. The open ends treatment had statistically higher marketable yield than the full season and on–off–on treatments in 2020; in 2021, there was no difference in marketable yield across treatments. For the open ends treatment, increased distance from the opened tunnel ends significantly decreased the pest abundance, while it significantly increased marketable yield. However, there was no relationship between pollinator activity and distance to the tunnel opening. This two-year study suggests the open ends strategy had the most consistently high yields, while it reduced pollination management effort and eliminated the costs of commercial bee colonies compared to other treatments. Only minor pressure from insect-vectored diseases was observed during the study, thus, the advantages of each pollination strategy should be considered in relation to varying pest, pollinator, and disease conditions.

Citation: Wehner, J., Tong, J., Zhang, W., Li, T., Pulliam, K., Gonthier, D., Sciligo, A., and Miller, E. 2025. Kentucky Consumer Perceptions and Key Attributes in the Willingness-to-Pay Study for Cucumbers. Kentucky Consumer Perceptions and Key Attributes in the Willingness-to-Pay Study for Cucumbers, Cornell SC Johnson College of Business Research Paper, Available at SSRN: http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.5767702 

Abstract
In July 2025, we conducted a study with 935 participants on consumer willingness to pay for cucumbers in Lexington, Kentucky.

We find that the more expensive a cucumber, the less consumers are willing to buy a cucumber. At USD 2 to 2.5 per slicing cucumber, buyers and non-buyers are nearly evenly split (53 percent vs. 47 percent). Price and minimal pesticide use are key attributes for consumers across age groups. Nearly half of consumers (45 percent) say price is a key factor, while 36 percent care a lot about fewer pesticides and 34 percent prioritize cucumbers with no pesticides at all. Most respondents are highly concerned about pesticides during production (36 percent) and residues on food (50 percent), while concern and knowledge about plastics, especially in production are much lower (14 percent).

Highlighting the reduction in pesticide use from protective netting and clarifying that extra plastic is only used in production can help researchers and producers anticipate consumer preferences and tailor communication strategies accordingly.

Citation: Cheng, N., Zhang, W., Gleason, M. 2023. "Controlling Pests and Diseases Using Mesotunnels: Understanding Organic Cucurbit Crop Growers' Preferences and Choices." Cornell University Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management Extension Bulletin EB 05-2023. 

Link: https://dyson.cornell.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/06/EB_05_2023-VD.pdf

Executive Summary
Consumer demand for fresh, locally grown organic produce, including cucurbits, is rising. However, organic cucurbit growers in the United States struggle to capitalize on this opportunity because of severe damage caused by pests and diseases, which collectively cost growers more than $100 million per year. Thus, a new technology, mesotunnels,1 was introduced. Mesotunnels are medium-size tunnels–taller than low tunnels and shorter than high tunnels— made by conduits and a breathable nylon-mesh fabric to create a protective barrier between crops and the environment to guard against weather extremes (e.g., heavy rain, hail, high wind) and pest complexes (pest insects and pathogens they transmit), while increasing profitability.2 Thus, mesotunnels provide a potential solution for managing major pests and pathogens of cucurbits and are highly amenable to integrating biologicals for further pathogen control.

A key step in evaluating the commercial viability of mesotunnels is to learn about growers’ experiences and viewpoints on using row cover strategies, their willingness to adopt new approaches, and their primary ways of obtaining information about these technologies. Thus, we designed a survey targeting growers of organic cucurbit crops.

We received 337 completed surveys out of 1,057 eligible samples (a response rate of 33.7%) from January 27, 2022, to March 30, 2022 from Iowa, Kentucky, New York and the surrounding states of Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Tennessee and Michigan. Of respondents, 90% either farmed in the past five years or will farm in the next five years. Respondents averaged 18 years of farming experience with only one respondent reporting no farming experience. Focusing on cucurbit crops, the average farmer had 13 years’ experience. The average respondent farmed 100 acres for all crops; however, with small variations, only seven acres per farm, on average, were for cucurbits. The farming acres for specific varieties ranged from 0.007 (honeydew) to 4.3 (winter squash). Over 90% of respondents were in certified organic status, except growers of gourd and pumpkin.

In 2021, growers hired more paid than non-paid farmworkers. To sell their crops, nearly half of respondents marketed their products via either local farmers’ markets, wholesaling, on-farm retail stands, direct sales to grocery stores, large retailers, supermarkets, grower cooperatives, or community supported agriculture (CSA) enterprises. In addition to cucurbit crops, respondents also sold a wide range of other crops (e.g., chives, garlic, leeks, etc.).

As for pest and disease management in cucurbit crop production, most respondents selected insect pressure, crop disease, weed pressure, heavy rain events, and input costs as the most concerning general threats to cucurbit crop production. Over 50% of respondents selected bacterial wilt, cucumber beetles, downy mildew, powdery mildew, and squash bugs as specific threats. To achieve their goals, producers choose different production management strategies. Sixty percent of growers considered improving yields, profitability, produce quality, soil quality, and whether pest controls are effective as top concerns. For spraying strategies, most growers (59%) used a hand-pump backpack sprayer. Half of respondents sprayed pesticides no more than three times per growing season. When asked about row covers, more than 62% of respondents said they chose to use permeable row covers for any of their cucurbit crops and 50% applied row covers to less than half of their cucurbit acres. The top two reasons for applying row covers were to control insects and pests and protect against cold temperatures. Most respondents felt that row covers can improve yields (76%) and product quality (73%) and reduce insecticide spray frequency (66%) and vulnerability to weather (78%). The majority showed interest in continuing use of row covers.

Furthermore, while over 50% of respondents used low tunnels and high tunnels, only 14% previously used mesotunnels. More than 30% perceived mesotunnels as easy to learn, adapt and apply in their current production systems. When referring to their likelihood to adopt mesotunnels in the next five years, 40% reported they were either highly or somewhat likely to adopt while another 40% are not that likely to adopt. For those who are willing to adopt mesotunnels, 70% want to use it within next three years. Cucumber, summer squash, and watermelon are the top three varieties for which respondents are willing to use mesotunnels. Lastly, the majority of respondents perceived mesotunnels as effective on all the outcomes including maximizing marketable yield, reducing pesticide use, and controlling insect pests.