Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Way Forward

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Agro-ecological Approaches to Pest Management for Sustainable Agriculture

  • 1352 Accesses

Abstract

A biological, then ecological, orientation has underlain the development of crop protection over the last five decades. Several technical innovations have been proposed based on the spectacular success of the recent advances in biotechnology and by genuinely taking into consideration the need to preserve the biodiversity. This has led to reexamination of farming systems as traditionally practiced, through an innovative agro-ecological approach. Agro-ecological pest management is based on ecological processes occurring between the crops and its pests, and also the natural enemies of these pests, in a quest for increased beneficial interactions that keep pest populations in check. This crop protection strategy helps to maintain bio-ecological balance between pests and crops within agro-ecosystems, while also preserving and improving the soil health and plant biodiversity. This chapter explains how agro-ecological concepts and principles are applied for the sustainable management of crop pests. Future lines of work on research and development, transfer of technology and policy support are outlined.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 99.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 129.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Alexandratos N (1999) World food and agriculture: outlook for the medium and longer term. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 96:5908–5914

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • All JN, Musick GJ (1986) Management of vertebrate and invertebrate pests. In: Sprague MA, Triplett GB (eds) No-tillage and surface-tillage agriculture: the tillage revolution. Wiley, New York, pp 347–387

    Google Scholar 

  • Altieri MA (1994) Biodiversity and pest management in agroecosystems. Food Products Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Benbrook CM (1996) Pest management at the crossroads. Consumer’s Union, Yonkers

    Google Scholar 

  • Blumberg AY, Crossley DA (1983) Comparison of soil surface arthropod populations in conventional tillage, no-tillage and old field systems. Agro-Ecosyst 8:247–253

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bugg RL, Wäckers FL, Brunson KE, Dutcher JD, Phatak SC (1991) Cool-season cover crops relay intercropped with cantaloupe: influence on a generalist predator, Geocoris punctipes (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae). J Econ Entomol 84:408–416

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carpenter SR, Caraco NF, Correll DL, Howarth RW, Sharpley AN, Smith VH (1998) Nonpoint pollution of surface waters with phosphorus and nitrogen. Ecol Appl 8:559–568

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cassman KG (1999) Ecological intensification of cereal production systems: yield potential, soil quality, and precision agriculture. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 96:5952–5959

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen JE, Federoff NV (1999) Colloquium on plants and population: is there time? National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Daily GC, Söderqvist T, Aniyar S, Arrow K, Dasgupta P, Ehrlich PR, Folke C, Jansson AM, Jansson BO, Kautsky N, Levin S, Lubchenco J, Mäler KG, Simpson D, Starrett D, Tilman D, Walker B (2000) The value of nature and the nature of value. Science 289:395–396

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • DeVries J, Toenniessen G (2001) Securing the harvest: biotechnology, breeding, and seed Systems for African Crops. CAB International, Wallingford

    Google Scholar 

  • Dicke M, Sabelis MW, Takabayashi J, Bruin J, Posthumus A (1990) Plant strategies of manipulating predator prey interactions through allelochemicals: prospects for application in pest control. J Chem Ecol 16:3091–3118

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • FAO (1966) Proceedings of the FAO symposium on integrated pest control, Rome, 1965. FAO, Rome

    Google Scholar 

  • FAO (2001) FAO statistical databases. In: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. http://apps.fao.org/

    Google Scholar 

  • FAOStat (2014) FAO, Rome, Italy. Available online: faostat.fao.org. Accessed 1 Dec 2014

    Google Scholar 

  • Fleischer SJ, Gaylor MJ (1987) Seasonal abundance of Lygus lineolaris (Heteroptera: Miridae) and selected predators in early season uncultivated hosts: implications for managing movement into cotton. Environ Entomol 16:379–389

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gorback SL (2001) Antimicrobial use in animal feed-time to stop. New Engl J Med 345:1202–1203

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McPherson RM, Smith JC, Allen WA (1982) Incidence of arthropod predators in different soybean cropping systems. Environ Entomol 11:685–689

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olkowski W, Daar S, Olkowski H (1991) Common sense pest control. Taunton, Newton

    Google Scholar 

  • Ortiz R (1998) Critical role of plant biotechnology for the genetic improvement of food crops: perspectives for the next millennium. J Biotechnol 1:1–8

    Google Scholar 

  • Palumbi SR (2001) Humans as the world’s greatest evolutionary force. Science 293:1786–1790

    Google Scholar 

  • Phatak SC (1993) Cover crops: cotton relay cropping. In: 2nd organic growers conference, California Institute for Rural Studies, Davis, CA, pp 269–274

    Google Scholar 

  • Postel S (1999) Pillar of sand: can the irrigation miracle last? Norton, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Röse USR, Manukian A, Heath RR, Tumlinson JH (1996) Volatile semiochemicals released from undamaged cotton leaves (a systemic response of living plants to caterpillar damage). Plant Physiol 111:487–495

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Ruberson JR, Herzog GA, Lambert WR, Lewis WJ (1994) Management of the beet armyworm (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in cotton: role of natural enemies. Florida Entomol 77:440–453

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ruttan VW (1999) The transition to agricultural sustainability. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 96:5960–5967

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Ryan CA, Farmer EE (1991) Oligosaccharide signals in plants: a current assessment. Annu Rev Plant Physiol Plant Mol Biol 42:651–743

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Smith RF, Doutt RL (1971) The pesticide syndrome – diagnosis and suggested prophylaxis. In: Huffaker CB (ed) Biological control. AAAS Symposium Proceedings on Biological Control, Boston, December 1969, Plenum Press, New York, pp 331–345

    Google Scholar 

  • Stapel JO, Cortesero AM, Demoraes CM, Tumlinson JH, Lewis WJ (1997) Extrafloral nectar, honeydew, and sucrose effects on searching behavior and efficiency of Microplitis croceipes (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) in cotton. Environ Entomol 26:617–623

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tilman D, Fargione J, Wolff B, D’Antonio C, Dobson A, Howarth R, Schindler D, Schlesinger WH, Simberloff D, Swackhamer D (2001) Forecasting agriculturally driven global environmental change. Science 292:281–284

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Turlings TCJ, Tumlinson JH, Lewis WJ (1990) Exploitation of herbivore-induced plant odors by host-seeking parasitic wasps. Science 250:1251–1253

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Waggoner PE (1995) How much land can ten billion people spare for nature? Does technology make a difference? Technol Soc 17:17–34

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wijnands FG, Kroonen-Backbier BMA (1993) Management of farming systems to reduce pesticide inputs: the integrated approach. In: Zadoks JC (ed) Modern crop protection: developments and perspectives. Wageningen Pers, Wageningen, pp 227–234

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhu Y, Chen H, Fan J, Wang Y, Li Y, Chen J, Fan J, Yang S, Hu L, Leung H, Mew TW, Teng PS, Wang Z, Mund C (2000) Genetic diversity and disease control in rice. Nature 406:718–722

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

    P. Parvatha Reddy (Former Director)

Authors
  1. P. Parvatha Reddy
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2017 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ptd.

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Reddy, P.P. (2017). The Way Forward. In: Agro-ecological Approaches to Pest Management for Sustainable Agriculture. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4325-3_20

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation