WEDNESDAY, JULY 2, 2008 News WWW.KANSAN.COM THE UNIVERSITY DAHY KANSAN
11
LAWRENCE
City uses ladybugs as pesticide alternative
BY KRISTIN HOPPA
khoppa@kansan.com
It's a battle of the bugs in downtown Lawrence.
The Lawrence Parks and Recreation department released
18,000 ladybugs at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in an effort to eliminate the threat of aphids and mites damaging city flowers.
The department decided to use the ladybugs as a natural pest control solution instead of pesti-
into plants, flowers and shrubs in search of the pests. A ladybug can eat up to 50 pests a day, plus insect eggs, according to a release.
"We are hoping they get in there and eat the harmful pests."
"We are hoping they get in there and eat the harmful pests," said Crystal Miles, Lawrence horticul-
cides after city commissioners campaigned for pesticide-free parks this year.
Once released, the ladybugs crawl
CRYSTAL MILES Lawrence horticulture manager
ture manager.
"Or they could fly away."
Lawrence Parks and Recreation employees released the beneficial bugs in 14 locations around town, including Buford Watson Jr. Park, the Union Pacific
Kristin Hoppa/KANSAN
Depot and flowers beds along Massachusetts Street.
lation in aphids this year.
Miles said aphids thrived in cool, cloudy weather, causing high popu-
"We usually plant flowers that are insect resistant," Miles said. "We have just had really unusual weather."
The city has used a chemical soap-based pesticide in the past. Miles purchased the ladybugs online from a natural garden company in Bozeman, Mont.
"This is the first time we have done this," Miles said. "We are hoping they stay and lay eggs and have two generations here."
Field supervisor John McDonald said the ladybugs are much more beneficial for the environment, but was not sure how much more effective the ladybugs were than pesticides in removing pests.
"I don't know," McDonald said. "We'll give it a try and find out."
Ladybugs nest on Cuphea Roses covered with aphids Thursday evening in Watson park. Lawrence Parks and Recreation employees released the bugs in hopes the bugs will eat the aphids and prevent damage to park flowers.
The city bought the bugs for $43. Miles said people could try ladybugs at local greenhouses and use them in
their own homes.
As for whether the ladybugs will continue to call Lawrence home, Miles said she expected to see results
in the next few days.
Edited by Rustin Dodd
CAMPAIGN ACTIVISM
Political science students get involved with local elections
BY RAMSEY COX rcox@kansan.com
Most campaign work involves door-to-door canvassing, registering voters and talking with voters about their concerns.
"I wanted to get involved because
The 2008 election campaigns have already started gearing up for November and a few political science students found ways to get involved over the summer.
David Greenwald, Overland Park senior, works as a field director for U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), who is running for reelection as one of Kansas' senators.
I love politics and I want to have a career in it," Greenwald said. "I feel a civic duty; everyone should be doing their part to get things done."
Burdett Loomis, professor of political science, helped Rachelle Netzer. Lawrence senior, get her summer job.
"Campaigns offer a great way to get involved in politics," Loomis said. "They're sort of like accordions they keep expanding during the election season, and then fold up once the election is over."
David Jones, Kansas City, Kan. senior, works in community outreach
Netzer works as a campaign fundraising assistant for 54th District State Representative candidate, Bruce Cooper. She interviewed with the
Kansas Democratic Party, which asked her if she wanted to work on Cooper's campaign. Netzer wanted to work on a local level after having worked on the national level during a Washington, D.C., internship with U.S. Sen. Joseph Biden (D-Del.) on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
"Politics seemed intangible to me at first, but it's really pretty easy to get involved, especially as a volunteer," Netzer said. "It's hard for Representatives to know what issues matter to students if they're not involved."
for the Kansas Democratic Party in Wyandotte, Shawnee and Douglas counties.
"I think this is a historic election," Jones said. "A lot is going on in the world right now and if you don't think it's affecting you now, it will later. Not everyone writes letters to their congressperson, but everyone should at least vote."
A Harvard University Institute of Politics survey done in April revealed that caucus turnout among 18 to 29-year-olds tripled in Midwest states like Iowa, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.
The survey also found that with 18- to 24-year-olds, U.S. Sen. Barack
Obama (D-Ill.) supporters show more interest in volunteering than U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) supporters. Sixty-three percent of Obama supporters said they would volunteer for his campaign compared to 54 percent of McCain supporters.
"All in all, we're better off if large numbers of students and young people get involved in campaigns." Loomis said. "They're messy and often frustrating, but they offer a great chance to test drive a career, gain real-world skills and reach a more sophisticated understanding of the world of politics."
Edited by Matt Hirschfeld