Integrated Pest Management Notes:
- A holistic approach to pest management involving biological control, cultivation techniques, and minimal use of synthetic pesticides to reduce pest populations to an economically tolerable level.
- Pest and crop are considered as part of an ecological system.
- The goal is to reduce the pest population to an economically acceptable level, not completely eradicate the pest population.
- Crop rotation to disrupt pest populations
- Creation of habitat for predators of pest population
- Using pest resistant crop varieties
- Inter cropping makes the spread of pests more difficult
- Altering planting times to disrupt pest life cycles
- Using physical pest control methods such as using vaccuums to remove pests, or spraying plants with hot water to destroy larvae.
- Narrow - spectrum pesticides are used only when the potential crop loss is greater than the cost of spraying the pesticides.
- Reduction of environmental and health problems associated with synthetic pesticides use.
- Requires a great deal of education for farmers and landowners.
- Can be costly and not as immediately effective as synthetic pesticides.
- Pest population is usually not completely irradiated.
- Successful IPM requires farmers to be well educated on local pests and the ecological systems on their farms.
- IPM solutions vary from farm to farm.
- Initial cost of IPM programs may be higher than conventional pesticides spraying.
Biological Pest Control Notes:
- The intentional introduction of a predator species to control a pest species.
- Microorganisms, plants, and animals have all been used in certain circumstances to help control pest populations.
- Can also refer to the use of chemicals that are directly derived from living organisms.
- Control of pest population without negative environmental impacts associated with pesticides use.
- Potential for use with organic agriculture.
- Potential for non-target species to be impacted by the introduced control species.
- Disruption of native food chains by the introduced species.
- Unwanted proliferation of introduced species.
- Complete eradication of pest population is usually not possible.
- Can be costly to implement and control.
- Can Toads in Australia
- Lady bugs have been used to successfully control aphids in some parts of the US while negatively impacting native species in others.
- Several instances worldwide of the introduction of cats to control rodent population have often led to an overpopulation of cats which have destroyed native bird populations.
- Use of parasitic nematodes to control many lawn and garden pests.
- Use of flea beetles to control leafy spurge in North Dakota.
- Using bats to control mosquito's.
- Use of insect pheromones to attract pests to a trap.
- Sterilization and release of male members of pest species.