Integrated Pest Management(IPM), or Manejo Integrado de Plagas (Spanish), or Protection Integrated (French), is the most sustainable approach to growing and protecting our crops. IPM is based on promoting biodiversity in agroecosystems to strengthen natural pest regulation and reduce risks of disease and other problems.
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Identifying Pests
To ensure effective and sustainable pest control, the crucial initial step is to identify the pest that needs to be managed accurately. It can be done by consulting a crop advisor, garden center staff, master gardener, pest control company, or a plant diagnostic lab. It is essential to know the pests’ life cycles and how they damage plants so you can use techniques that target them more effectively.
To promote sustainable pest control, integrated pest management aims to utilize prevention, non-hazardous chemicals, physical barriers, biological solutions, and cultural practices. Insecticides are used only when necessary, even in small amounts or ‘ spot treatments.’
IPM is a highly effective strategy for reducing pesticide costs and risks and improving landscape health and resilience. By embracing these practices, you can demonstrate responsible environmental stewardship that will be appreciated by customers and stakeholders alike. Achieving sustainable pest management takes time, but it is a robust approach that can produce lasting results.
Biological Control
Using natural enemies like predators, parasites, and disease organisms to limit pest populations is an effective strategy known as biological control. These organisms are effective because they target specific pest species and are in close balance with the people of their hosts or prey.
Using these natural enemies can reduce or eliminate the need for chemical sprays. However, they are a knowledge-intensive technique that requires monitoring both the pests and the natural enemy populations to ensure proper timing of releases.
Biological control methods are most effective early in the season to prevent damage. They are often cheaper than chemical controls and have less environmental impact. While eradicating pests with biological controls is possible, it is usually not the goal. The objective is to suppress the problems to low densities that can be maintained over long periods. It is a different approach than eradicating pests with chemical treatments, which often leave the environment open to re-invasion by other problems and their natural enemies.
Mechanical Control
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is a strategy that reduces the use of chemicals in agricultural and natural resource settings. IPM focuses on pest inspection, monitoring, identifying pests, and considering environmental factors in choosing the best management techniques to minimize damage or benefit from control.
It became clear after the development of modern pesticides that using them alone was not a good practice, as overuse caused pests to become resistant. IPM combines preventive, nonchemical methods with chemical control when necessary.
Preventive measures include changing the environment to deter pests, such as planting insect-resistant varieties or avoiding weeds that harbor them. Monitoring pest populations is also an essential part of IPM, as is determining the action threshold or point at which the pest population or environmental conditions indicate that control is needed. Monitoring may involve trapping, scouting, or degree-day models to predict pest emergence. If pest numbers reach an unacceptable level, mechanical controls can be used. These can include hand-picking, barriers, traps, tillage, and vacuuming.
Chemical Control
The abiotic realm of IPM includes:
- Crop cover.
- Cultural practices that reduce pest populations and diseases.
- The use of inherently resistant varieties.
- Avoiding or limiting artificial fertilization.
- The judicious use of chemical control agents based on population sampling and action thresholds.
Pesticides are most effective when used only when necessary, minimizing risks to humans and beneficial organisms, and are applied with good timing and in an environmentally responsible manner.
Integrated pest management is a sound, long-term strategy for managing pests and their damage in a way that supports sustainability.