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Richmond County
UGA Extension Office

Pesticide Applicators License

Pesticide-applicator

Which license do I need: Private, Commercial, or Structural?


A Private Pesticide Applicator license...

- Is needed if either of the following statements is true:

I want to purchase and use a Restricted-Use pesticide (RUP) on my property or the property of my employer to produce an agricultural, horticultural, or forestry commodity.

-OR-

I want to supervise the use of a Restricted-Use pesticide (RUP) on my property or the property of my employer to produce an agricultural, horticultural, or forestry commodity.


more details for Private applicators


A Commercial Pesticide Applicator license...

- Is required if you want to buy, apply, or supervise the application of a general use or restricted-use pesticide (RUP) without a fee and you do not qualify as a private applicator.

- Is required if you work for or as a licensed Pesticide Contractor applying any pesticide to the lands of another for a fee unless you work under the supervision of someone else who has a Commercial Pesticide Applicator license.

- Does not permit you to charge a fee unless you also have a Pesticide Contractor license.

- Is required for Restricted-Use pesticide purchases, and your purchases must be confined to only those categories for which you are authorized by your license.


More details for commercial applicators


A Structural Pest Control license...

- Is required to solicit work or perform work as a Structural Pest Control business in Georgia.

- Requires you to be certified or registered and work for a licensed Structural Pest Control company to solicit or perform Structural Pest Control work in Georgia.

- Is divided into three operational categories: Household Pest Control (HPC), Wood Destroying Organisms (WDO), and Structural Fumigation (FUM).

- Requires pre-licensing: training, experience, and examinations.


more details for structural pest applicators


Recertification for Commercial and Private Applicator Licenses

Certified Commercial and Private Pesticide Applicators must earn a required number of recertification credits every five years or be reexamined.
 
Private and Commercial Pesticide Credits are available through the Getting The Best of Pests Archives. To obtain these credits, applicators are required to watch approved webinars in the County Extension Office by appointment only. Cost is $10 per 2 hours. Please call (706) 821-2350 to schedule a session at the Richmond County Extension Office.
 
Occassionally, Richmond County Extension Office hosts scheduled education meetings approved by the Georgia Department of Agriculture's Pesticide Program. If you are not currently on our Pesticide mailing list and would like to be added to the list to receive invitations to scheduled pesticide events, please email our office at uge3245@uga.edu or call our office at 706-821-2350.
 
Approved online recertification classes are offered through the Georgia Department of Ag's webpage.

Other helpful links


A searchable database is available through the Georgia Department of Agriculture where you can search by applicator last name, license number, or commercial license category. Approved online classes are listed on this web page as well. In addition, there is a searchable database for recertification courses by course title, course date, or commercial category.

 

An App for Weed and Pest Identification: BASF has launched an app to help farmers with identifying weeds and pests, even when weeds are at the cotyledon stage. The app was developed by Bayer and released in 2018. The way it works is you snap a picture of the weed or disease and the app tells you with a percentage of confidence what you're looking at. You should consider anything over 90% confidence as accurate, since the identification is being done by a remote server that has more than 150,000 weed and disease images in a massive database for comparison. Your pictures get added to the database and over time the system gets even better. This is a high-tech way to speed scouting and make inexperienced scouts more effective.


Upcoming Events

  • Jul 1 Organic Growers Farmer Field Day Newton County Extension and Georgia Organics are co-hosting an Organic Growers Farmer Field Day (OGFFD) on Monday, July 1, 2024, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Oxford College Farm in Oxford, GA. The field day will include a farm tour led by Daniel Parson, followed by three educational sessions led by researchers and experts from UGA Entomology and UGA Extension geared towards transitioning and Certified Organic farmers. Educational Session 1: Effects of soil fertility on plant health and insects (UGA Entomology - Dr. William Snyder and Carly Sharp & UGA Extension - Gabrielle LaTora) Educational Session 2: Science of soil fertility and creating fertility management plans (Oxford College Farm - Daniel Parson) Educational Session 3: Organic pesticide management and application workshop (UGA Entomology – Dr. Alton Sparks)
    • Covington, GA - (112.0 Miles)
  • Jul 24 Pesticide Credit Class Hart County Extension will be offering a pesticide credit class for private and commercial pesticide license holders. The class will be held on July 24th from 12:00-1:00 at the Hart County Agriscience Center. License holders will receive one hour of credit for attending. All Commercial License Categories have been approved to receive credit. Please call our office at 706-376-3134 to let us know you are planning to attend or if you have any questions.
    • Hartwell, GA - (85.0 Miles)