Integrated Pest Management By: Melody Carter-McCabe

What is IPM? It stands for Integrated Pest Management

"IPM is a sustainable approach to managing pests by combining biological, cultural, physical and chemical tools in a way that minimizes economic, health, and environmental risks."

How do pests affect our crops? Before crops are harvested Decrease plant productivity Photosynthesis is affected by pests eating leaves Certain pests can wipe out entire fields and orchards Quality Control People want pretty fruits & vegetables People don’t pay money for bugs!

Wheat field IPM Why is IPM used? Less pesticide use Used to produce high quality, abundant crops Longer and more productive use of fields Increase net profits Maintain or improve environmental quality Reduce production risks

How is IPM different than other pest control options?

 Pest Prevention- acting before there’s a problem  Suppression- acting once there is a problem in order to eradicate it  Eradication – get rid of all aspects of problem from the beginning stages

Steps to Implementing IPM Practices: 1.Establish a “tolerance level for pests” for different crops 2.For each pest, establish monitoring guidelines 3.Establish injury levels and action thresholds for each pest species before any treatment 

Steps continued…. 4. Institute a maintenance program designed to produce a healthy plant/crop 5.If pest populations appear to exceed tolerance levels, implement cultural and biological controls 6.If cultural and biological controls are not sufficient, use least-toxic chemical controls

What types of control does IPM implement?

Cultural- planting, watering, and pruning Mechanical- trapping devices & barriers Biological- natural predators & diseases, hormones/pheromones Chemical- pesticides and other non-harmful chemicals

Do most growers use IPM? Many, if not most, agricultural growers identify their pests before spraying. A smaller subset of growers use less risky pesticides such as pheromones. All of these growers are on the IPM continuum. The goal is to move growers further along the continuum to using all appropriate IPM techniques.

What IPM is NOT 1) IPM is not a rigid program of management techniques. 2) IPM is not organic farming. 3) IPM is not low input, low yield farming. IPM strategies can be developed for any level of production or any commodity.

Continued.. 4) IPM is not being tied to any certain company's products or services but rather seeks current, unbiased, science-based information to solve problems. 5) IPM is not static, but rather advances the understanding of agricultural systems and incorporates the intelligent use of existing and new technologies through research and demonstrations in practical situations. IPM seeks to put the best science and the best management practices available to work. 6) IPM is not risky, and scientific studies and research evaluations indicate that IPM reduces economic, human health and economic risks. 7) IPM is not scouting one field on a farm and then using the information to treat all fields on a farm alike. 8) IPM is not doing something just because a neighbor has invoked a certain practice, nor is it taking the advice offered by someone at the local coffee shop.

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