The European corn borer (ECB) is a pest of grain and other plants. Originally native to Europe, it was introduced to North America in the early 1900s and has spread westward to the Rocky Mountains. ECB is present in Eastern Colorado and along the Front Range. Several states west of the Rocky Mountains have quarantines against this insect.
The Colorado Department of Agriculture's Phytosanitary program must certify all shipments of sweet corn, corn grain and other plants under quarantine for ECB.
The following plants and products are regulated for European Corn Borer:
- Corn, broomcorn, sorghums, and sudangrass plants and all parts thereof, including seed and shelled grain, and stalks, ears, sweet corn on the cob, and all other parts (except seed for planting purposes and popcorn for human consumption when free from portions of plants or fragments capable of harboring larvae of European Corn Borer)
- Beans in the pod, beets, celery, peppers (fruits), endive, Swiss chard, and rhubarb (cut or plants with roots)
- Cut flowers and entire plants of aster, chrysanthemum, calendula, cosmos, hollyhock, marigold, zinnia, Japanese hop, dahlia (except tubers without stems), and gladiolus (except corms without stems)
States that currently have European Corn Borer Quarantines:
- AZ, CA, ID, OR, NV, TX UT and WA
- Shelled grain grown in or shipped from the infested area, must have been passed through a 1/2-inch mesh screen or less, be free from stalks, cobs, stems, or portions of plants or fragments capable of harboring larvae of the European Corn Borer. Grain, beans in the pod, and sweet corn on the cob can be fumigated with a labeled fumigant (Methyl Bromide Q)
- Fumigation and screening are not appropriate certification methods for cut flowers or live plants with roots. Contact CDA if you want to ship ECB regulated live plants into the states listed above.
- European Corn Borer Quarantine Agreement 2015