The Pepper Weevil Interior Quarantine and Plowdown Rule is a permanent regulation regarding chile residue destruction.
Pepper weevil is an insect pest which is extremely damaging to the chile crop.
It causes premature fruit drops and damage to the pepper fruits. The plowdown requires all chile crop remnants to be destroyed by shredding existing stalks, leaves, fruit, or pods and turning under remains by plowing, disking, or chiseling. Debris in turnrows, ditch banks, and other locations should be removed and burned or scattered over the fields to be plowed, disked, or chiseled. Pepper weevil was first discovered in the south central part of New Mexico back in 1992. It s possible the mild winters, since that time, may have kept the weevil established here.