Investigating Producers’ Preferences for Crapemyrtle and Their Perceptions Regarding Crapemyrtle Bark Scale
Crapemyrtle (<i>Lagerstroemia</i> spp.) is the most popular summer flowering tree in the U.S. Its total value sold has almost doubled since 1998. Consumers prize crapemyrtles for their beauty and being relatively pest free. However, current crapemyrtle production and use might be affecte...
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2021-06-01
|
| Series: | Horticulturae |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/7/6/146 |
| _version_ | 1797530568395587584 |
|---|---|
| author | Pulkit Marwah Yu Yvette Zhang Mengmeng Gu |
| author_facet | Pulkit Marwah Yu Yvette Zhang Mengmeng Gu |
| author_sort | Pulkit Marwah |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Crapemyrtle (<i>Lagerstroemia</i> spp.) is the most popular summer flowering tree in the U.S. Its total value sold has almost doubled since 1998. Consumers prize crapemyrtles for their beauty and being relatively pest free. However, current crapemyrtle production and use might be affected by crapemyrtle bark scale (CMBS; <i>Acanthococcus lagerstroemiae</i>), which has been confirmed in at least 14 U.S. states after its first sighting in Texas in 2004. In this study, we conducted interviews of business representatives. Our survey results indicate that producers anticipate a significant decrease in the value of crapemyrtle if infested with CMBS, and suggest industry demand for CMBS control. An important finding of our research is that a majority of businesses support science-based CMBS control research. Another important finding from our study is that most producers believed that benefits of CMBS control outweigh the costs. We used a relative importance index to illustrate the ranking of different attributes of crapemyrtles that producers consider while making decisions about growing/purchasing the plants. Flower color was found to be the most important attribute, followed by disease resistance. The most popular landscape plants that can potentially serve as alternatives to crapemyrtle, in the opinion of producers we surveyed, are <i>Vitex agnus-castus</i> (Texas lilac), <i>Magnolia</i> spp., and <i>Hibiscus</i> spp. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T10:31:51Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-070a7a8497624b3382f8637fce020af0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2311-7524 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T10:31:51Z |
| publishDate | 2021-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Horticulturae |
| spelling | doaj.art-070a7a8497624b3382f8637fce020af02023-11-21T23:34:18ZengMDPI AGHorticulturae2311-75242021-06-017614610.3390/horticulturae7060146Investigating Producers’ Preferences for Crapemyrtle and Their Perceptions Regarding Crapemyrtle Bark ScalePulkit Marwah0Yu Yvette Zhang1Mengmeng Gu2Department of Agricultural Economics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USADepartment of Agricultural Economics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USADepartment of Horticultural Sciences, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, College Station, TX 77843, USACrapemyrtle (<i>Lagerstroemia</i> spp.) is the most popular summer flowering tree in the U.S. Its total value sold has almost doubled since 1998. Consumers prize crapemyrtles for their beauty and being relatively pest free. However, current crapemyrtle production and use might be affected by crapemyrtle bark scale (CMBS; <i>Acanthococcus lagerstroemiae</i>), which has been confirmed in at least 14 U.S. states after its first sighting in Texas in 2004. In this study, we conducted interviews of business representatives. Our survey results indicate that producers anticipate a significant decrease in the value of crapemyrtle if infested with CMBS, and suggest industry demand for CMBS control. An important finding of our research is that a majority of businesses support science-based CMBS control research. Another important finding from our study is that most producers believed that benefits of CMBS control outweigh the costs. We used a relative importance index to illustrate the ranking of different attributes of crapemyrtles that producers consider while making decisions about growing/purchasing the plants. Flower color was found to be the most important attribute, followed by disease resistance. The most popular landscape plants that can potentially serve as alternatives to crapemyrtle, in the opinion of producers we surveyed, are <i>Vitex agnus-castus</i> (Texas lilac), <i>Magnolia</i> spp., and <i>Hibiscus</i> spp.https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/7/6/146crapemyrtle<i>Lagerstroemia</i>crapemyrtle bark scale<i>Acanthococcus lagerstroemiae</i>flowering treepest management |
| spellingShingle | Pulkit Marwah Yu Yvette Zhang Mengmeng Gu Investigating Producers’ Preferences for Crapemyrtle and Their Perceptions Regarding Crapemyrtle Bark Scale Horticulturae crapemyrtle <i>Lagerstroemia</i> crapemyrtle bark scale <i>Acanthococcus lagerstroemiae</i> flowering tree pest management |
| title | Investigating Producers’ Preferences for Crapemyrtle and Their Perceptions Regarding Crapemyrtle Bark Scale |
| title_full | Investigating Producers’ Preferences for Crapemyrtle and Their Perceptions Regarding Crapemyrtle Bark Scale |
| title_fullStr | Investigating Producers’ Preferences for Crapemyrtle and Their Perceptions Regarding Crapemyrtle Bark Scale |
| title_full_unstemmed | Investigating Producers’ Preferences for Crapemyrtle and Their Perceptions Regarding Crapemyrtle Bark Scale |
| title_short | Investigating Producers’ Preferences for Crapemyrtle and Their Perceptions Regarding Crapemyrtle Bark Scale |
| title_sort | investigating producers preferences for crapemyrtle and their perceptions regarding crapemyrtle bark scale |
| topic | crapemyrtle <i>Lagerstroemia</i> crapemyrtle bark scale <i>Acanthococcus lagerstroemiae</i> flowering tree pest management |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/7/6/146 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT pulkitmarwah investigatingproducerspreferencesforcrapemyrtleandtheirperceptionsregardingcrapemyrtlebarkscale AT yuyvettezhang investigatingproducerspreferencesforcrapemyrtleandtheirperceptionsregardingcrapemyrtlebarkscale AT mengmenggu investigatingproducerspreferencesforcrapemyrtleandtheirperceptionsregardingcrapemyrtlebarkscale |