Plant & Pest Diagnostics

Important notice to all our clients

MSU Plant & Pest Diagnostics is no longer accepting walk-in consultations.  We are now open for business for all samples that are dropped-off and mailed to the lab.  We strongly encourage clients to email digital images prior to bringing or sending physical samples. Images can be sent to pestid@msu.edu. 

If you plan to submit samples, please email us at pestid@msu.edu.  Please do not ship samples on Fridays.

Due to the current circumstances, please allow additional processing time.  Thank you for your understanding.

For more information on the impact of COVID-19 on university operations, please visit MSU’s 2019 Novel Coronavirus website. 

We assist a wide variety of people experiencing problems with plants and pests. Samples may be submitted to the lab by mail or dropped off at our facility. We will analyze the sample for a nominal fee and provide a diagnosis or identification of the problem as well as recommendations for control.

Services offered

Here are some of the samples we accept for diagnosis:

• Plants or plant parts for pathogen, nematode and insect analysis.
• Soil and tissue samples for nematode analysis.
• Insects, mites, ticks, spiders and other arthropods for identification.
• Plants and weeds for identification.
• Weeds for herbicide resistance screening.

Note: If a pest or pathogen of regulatory concern is detected in a sample, we are obligated to notify the proper regulatory officials (ex. MDARD, USDA).

Services not offered

WE CANNOT ACCEPT MEDICAL MARIJUANA samples due to MSU compliance with federal policy.
For more information, please see FAQS on MSU and Marijuana.

Other services we do not offer:

• Soil and plant nutrient analysis. MSU’s Soil and Plant Nutrient lab is a separate facility and can help you.
• Mushroom identification.
• Identification of household mold.
• Pesticide residue / Mycotoxin testing.
• Examination of bites or skin irritations on humans and animals.

Directions