Subtropical Agriculture & Environments Society
Special Recognition Award
Dr. Kenneth “Rod” Summy, 71, passed away on Saturday, June 30th, 2018. He received his BS degree in Biology from Stephen F. Austin University in 1973, his MS in 1978, and Ph.D. in 1983, both in entomology from Texas A&M University.
In 1978, he was hired by the USDA-ARS Kika de la Garza Subtropical Agricultural Research Center in Weslaco as a Research Entomologist. He initially worked on citrus blackfly which was outbreaking throughout the Rio Grande Valley. He determined that citrus blackfly parasitoids were affected by use of broadspectrum pesticides and developed an IPM program that led to reestablishment of biological control of this pest. His research shifted to cotton pests, in particular the cotton boll weevil. He and a team of researchers investigated the potential for mass rearing and periodic augmentative releases of the boll weevil parasitoid, Catolaccous grandis. During this time period in the mid-90s, the Boll Weevil Eradication Program began operations in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Rod documented that widespread use of broadspectrum insecticides led to outbreaks of beet armyworms, a destructive pest of cotton and other crops. His comparison of beet armyworm populations in cotton on the Mexican and US sides of the Rio Grande showed that widespread, systematic insecticide use led to outbreaks. This finding led to changes in the Eradication Program, in particular, reduction in mid-season insecticide applications that had the most effect on beneficial insects that kept the beet armyworm and other secondary pests in check. Ultimately, this may have been the key to the eradication of boll weevil in the Rio Grande Valley.
In 2000, he was appointed as Assistant Professor in the Biology Department, the University of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg, and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2005. He taught 11 different courses including entomology and served as chairman of 11 graduated student committees during his tenure at UTRGV. His research focused, the use of remote sensing technology for identification and mapping of native vegetation, invasive weeds, and documenting the extent of wind- and water-caused erosion occurring within inland and coastal areas of the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
Rod was an active member of the Subtropical Agriculture and Environments Society, serving as its President in 2012, and as the editor of the Subtropical Plant Science Journal from 2007-14. He was recognized in 2013 for his long-term service to the Society and subtropical agriculture in the Lower Rio Grande Valley as the recipient of the Arthur T. Potts Award