Horticultural Inspection Society
Central Chapter
THE H.I.S. MANUAL
The idea of producing an H.I.S. inspector's manual was conceived at the founder's meeting. It was discussed subsequently in annual meetings and mentioned in the newsletter several times.
In 1976 the first segments of the precursor to the present manual were produced, and met the need of providing a condensed source of information about specific pests. These early segments were edited by one of the early H.I.S. newsletter editors, Lloyd Kennedy.
It was at the 1984 annual meeting that the idea finally really got off the ground. It was decided that an inspector's manual would be produced, and the cost of production would be shared 50/50 by H.I.S. and The Central Plant Board. Each manual pest write-up would be accompanied by color photographs of the pest. Enough manuals were to be produced so each inspector within the Central Region would have a copy. The first installment of 165 manuals was produced in 1985 and covered 10 pests.
Under the able direction of Bill Hilbert, chairman of the manual committee, it continued to grow each year until 1991 it was completed. The manual now contains 49 nursery insect and mite pests, 33 nursery disease and nematode pests, and 3 environmental write-ups. Each write-up has accompanying color photographs. This manual has become so popular that in addition to the 165 Central Region copies many others have been sold to interested persons ouside of H.I.S.
The manual includes a table of recommended regulatory actions to be taken for each pest. These suggested actions are meant to act as a guide for all inspectors to follow in the hope that they will help produce a more uniform enforcement of plant regulatory laws.