CALDWELL, Idaho — For farmers, timing is everything —from when to plant to when to protect crops from pests.

But instead of just guessing, the University of Idaho has introduced a new science-based tool. It's called the Growing Degree Day Calculator, an online resource helps farmers better predict pest cycles and save money.

Developed by University of Idaho Canyon County Extension Educator Jemila Chellappa, an online calculator was launched that tracks how warm each day has been and uses that data to predict when crops and pests reach key growth stages.

"Agriculture is something you cannot predict every year the same so that temperature, rainfall, water and everything is going to be different from the last year to this year," Chellappa said. "This is just a very basic method to teach pe

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