Training Persons with Mental Disabilities as Greenhouse Integrated Pest Management scouts
in HortTechnologyHorticulture businesses will be encouraged to hire qualified individuals with disabilities due to the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Maintaining a safe workplace is a considerable challenge due to the use and storage of restricted-use pesticides. In a vocational training program, two persons with mental disabilities were trained to be effective Integrated Pest Management scouts using systematic teaching procedures. Trainees acquired employable skills while providing a service that enabled management to reduce use of conventional pesticides on a greenhouse poinsettia crop by up to 65%.
