Pests threaten crop fields that produce food for people and animals and fuel for cars. There are several ways to control pests. Pest Control In Bakersfield practices focus on prevention. This includes cultural methods like crop rotation and adjusting growing periods, biological controls like natural predators and parasites, and targeted and judicious use of pesticides.
Insects
Whether we like them, hate them, or just squish them, insects have an important role to play in crop production. Their work includes a wide range of ecosystem services such as pollination, natural pest control, and soil erosion reduction. Pollination alone is valued at between $235 and $577 billion a year globally and significantly affects the yield or quality of many important food crops. Natural pest control by predatory and parasitic “natural enemies” is equally important, protecting plants from harmful pathogens without the need for chemical sprays.
Insects can cause two kinds of damage to growing crops: direct injury from feeding or burrowing and indirect damage when an insect transmits a bacterium, virus, or disease to the plant. Many of these diseases, such as potato viruses, can be transmitted by aphids from one plant to another.
Some insect pests, such as western and northern corn rootworms, can be controlled by careful use of crop rotation. However, the vast majority of pests have a period in their life cycle when they are mobile and can move easily from field to field.
To control pests, it’s necessary to understand how they reproduce and disperse. Identifying the species and finding cultural methods that disrupt their reproduction or movement is essential for effective pest control.
An entomologist’s research is focused on improving ways to promote beneficial insects and prevent the introduction of damaging ones. He aims to develop strategies that can protect crops from pests while promoting the insects that are good for them.
He and his colleagues are also evaluating the effectiveness of beetle banks. These long, linear strips of native plants are integrated into farm fields and provide shelter for predatory ground beetles that prey on corn earworms and other insect pests. They are also an efficient way to support natural pest control and pollination on farms.
The best way to prevent insect problems is to keep crops free of weeds. To do so, farmers should identify their pests and decide how much damage can be tolerated before applying pesticides. Instead of spraying a whole field, they should use targeted weedkillers and insecticidal soaps or oils.
Weeds
Weeds are plants that grow where they should not, often in competition with crops for space, water, and nutrients. They have many characteristics that make them problematic to farmers, including quick germination and high productivity in less than favorable environmental conditions. Their competitive advantage is largely because weeds can capture and use resources such as soil nutrients, water, and sunlight faster than crop plants.
The factors that affect weed growth and reproduction can vary with weed density, life stage, and size. For example, fungus diseases normally kill more flowers and immature seeds in dense weed populations because dense vegetation keeps humidity higher and increases the movement of fungal spores from plants to those not yet infected. This is why weed management methods must be adjusted as the weeds move through their life stages and change in size.
Most farmers want to control weeds, especially those that are considered invasive species because they interfere with their agricultural operations. They reduce crop yields, increase cultivation costs, and often contaminate food or feed products. They may also carry disease-causing pathogens that can cause crop diseases or be transmitted to livestock.
Weed control methods are complex and depend on the type of weed, its life cycle, how it grows, and how it is affected by human activities in an area. For example, a gardener might use herbicide chemicals to kill weeds on a golf course or in a public park, but these same methods would not work well on an organic vegetable farm.
The best way to reduce the negative impact of weeds on crop production is to prevent them from growing. This can be accomplished by practices such as crop rotation, the use of smother crops, and mulching to block sunlight and moisture. Farmers can also use herbicides to kill weeds as they emerge, but this is usually only effective when done early in the weed’s development and at low weed density. Using herbicides when weeds are large can reduce crop yields and may even promote more weeds by removing the natural fertilizers they need to grow and develop.
Fungi
Fungi, which are single-celled or multicellular organisms, are found in almost every environment on the planet. Some are decomposers that recycle dead plant matter and play an important role in the cycling of soil and other nutrients. Others cause diseases in plants, such as mildew, rust, scabs, or canker. They can also cause significant monetary loss in crops. Fungi are also known to cause diseases in animals.
Some fungi, called biocontrol agents, attack and kill crop pests by infecting them with spores. For example, a fungus called Beauveria bassiana produces a white mold-like disease on infected host insects that eventually destroys them. The fungus infects the insect’s digestive system, causing it to shut down, and it releases millions of new infective spores that spread to nearby hosts. The fungus is used commercially to control pecan weevil, potato beetle, and kudzu bug.
Other fungi are symbionts that live in close association with the roots of plants, obtaining carbohydrates from them and providing the plant with a greater ability to absorb water and minerals from the soil. For example, a species of fungus that is found in most soils, Glomeromycota, lives as an obligate symbiont with a variety of plants. It is used to improve the root systems of wheat and barley. This fungus, together with nematodes that kill parasitic weeds, is part of an integrated pest management program.
However, several factors can jeopardize fungal diversity and function in soils, including land conversion to agriculture, pollution, salinization, and nutrient deficiencies. Sustainable soil management practices that promote ecosystem conservation, including the use of cover crops, help maintain fungi and their functions.
Some fungi attack and kill crop pests by infecting their eggs or larvae with spores, which are then ingested by the insect. Fungicides that act as fungicides, such as benomyl, thiophanate-methyl, and carbendazim, inhibit egg hatching and embryonic development by killing the fungus inside the insect. Other fungicides, such as paraquat and diquat, can make the soil in vineyards repellent to predacious mites, which are effective at controlling grape diseases and mite-induced damage to vines.
Diseases
Pests can cause a lot of damage to crop fields. They can eat seeds, roots, leaves, fruit, and even entire young plants – which will significantly reduce their yield. And if they carry diseases, it can result in massive losses. The fungus fusarium head blight (FHB) on wheat, for example, can account for up to 40% of total losses, while the plant disease tar spot can cause substantial yield loss on maize crops.
There are many different ways to deal with pests, depending on the type of pests and the crop being grown. In general, the best way to control pests is through preventive measures rather than by treating existing infestations. This is especially important because repeated use of chemical pesticides can lead to the development of resistant organisms.
Preventive measures can include using physical controls such as light traps, pheromone traps, and sticky strips, as well as farming practice controls such as crop rotation. Farmers can also breed pest- and disease-resistant varieties. In partnership with farmers worldwide, CIMMYT, for example, is developing wheat and maize varieties that are more resilient to diseases such as FHB, rust, wheat blast, and maize lethal necrosis.
In addition to these methods, there are biological controls that can help to manage pests and weeds. These include introducing natural predators into the farm to eat pests, such as ladybugs, lacewings, and parasitic wasps. Similarly, farmers can release beneficial mites that will attack aphids and spider mites.
Integrated pest management (IPM) is a multifaceted approach to managing pests that is the most preferred method for sustainable agricultural production. IPM integrates cultural practices, biological control, and judicious use of chemical pesticides to minimize environmental risks and promote plant health.