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Integrated pest management is a strategy for pest control. Its goal is not to eradicate but to manage pests such that its population is maintained below that which can cause economic loss to production.

In this strategy, the most important considerations that is given its priority is the safety to humans and animals and the environment.

By nature, Integrated Pest Management depends on a broad and interdisciplinary approach to pest control, incorporating various aspects of the basic control methods such as cultural, biological, legislative, and chemical.

7 Steps in the general decision-making of IPM

1. Identify some destructive and beneficial pests in the area of interest.

Integrated Pest Management uses natural enemies to control pests infestation. Your knowledge in identifying these two groups of organisms, you can make some appropriate method that will selectively kill the pest while protecting the beneficial insect pests.

2. Know the biology of the organisms involved and how the environment influence.

Some pests and diseases  develops or appears when the environment is favorable for their development or appearance.

You should study in your area what insects pests or diseases are mostly apparent in winter, spring, fall or summer.

This way, you can decide what flowers are best suited in its particular conditions.

3. Select an appropriate cultural practice that will be detrimental to pests while favoring the beneficial organisms.

Cultural practices includes the selection of varieties that resists to pests in the field, proper field cultivation, right timing of planting, adequate plant nutrition and water requirements.

4. Develop a pest-monitoring schedule in your garden.

You should make records as to the kinds and populations of pests presence in the flower garden area.

Recording the populations and kinds of pests will give you the possible action to undertake in controlling them

5. Determine the tolerable threshold level of pests population.

IPM per se is aimed at economic pest control. You should know what level of pest population constitutes an economic threat.

When this threshold is reached, an appropriate control strategy should be implemented.

The strategy should take into account the pest species, the stage of plant development, the economic product, and the general environment.

When the threshold level occurs at the early plant growth, it may pose economic threat to your flowers.

However, if it is apparent during maturity, the economic threat may not be a problem. The flowers can still be marketable.

6. Decide  course of action immediately, if the danger is eminent to cause economic threat.

Sometimes the decision is to wait a while. If intervention is delayed, you must increase monitoring of the population dynamics of the pest to avoid any surprise disaster.

7. You should evaluate and follow-up your IPM program.

Strict follow-up and evaluation of IPM program would provide you an appropriate adjustments to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of control measures.

Common control strategies applied for an effective IPM Program

Biological control.

Biological control involves the exploitation of natural defense mechanisms and managing and controlling them to increase their effectiveness.

10 Strategies applied in biological control

1. Structural.

There are some plant species that possesses their natural defense mechanisms against pests attack. Certain species, for example, have hairs (pubescence) on their leaf surfaces and other parts that interfere with oviposition in insects.

Other plants have genetically conditioned structural features such as thick cuticle that sucking and chewing insects have difficulty penetrating.

2. Chemicals.

Certain chemicals extracted from plants have insecticidal action. The most common is the known pytrethrum extracted from the chrysanthemum family called, rotenone and nicotine.

Other species also include neem tree, mamey, and basil, which contains chemicals that repels insect pests or hinders their growth and development into adults.

3. Phytoallexins.

Certain plants exude toxins from the roots into the soil. These toxins prevent the growth of other species in the immediate vicinity.

The species hence maintains a kind of territorial boundary similar to that which occurs in the animal kingdom.

4. Parasitism.

Other insect pests survived with other insects. For example, the Japanese beetle is attacked by the larvae of a beetle, while the adult alfalfa weevil is a host for the eggs of the stingless wasp which hatches inside the weevil, eventually destroying it.

Cyst nematodes are parasitized by certain fungi (e.g. Catenaria auxilianis), and the root-knot nemtatode (Meloidogyne spp.) is parasitized by the fungus Dactylella oviparasitica.

Similarly, bacteriophages are virus that destroy bacteria. These viral parasites occur in the environment.

5. Prey-Predator Relationships.

Birds may prey on insects and rodents. Snakes also prey on rodents that destroy horticultural crops.

Carabid beetles (ground beetles) prey on aphids, caterpillars, slugs. Lacewings (Chrysopa) prey on aphids, spiders prey on flying insects, social wasps prey on caterpillars, and praying mantis prey on different kinds of insects.

6. Antagonism.

Nature has a built-in mechanisms for maintaining balance so that no single organism dominates.

If an organism is introduced into a new environment where its antagonizing organism is not present, the organism can multiply rapidly and pose a great economic threat to vulnerable cultivated plants in the area.

Antagonistic plants that exude toxins against nematodes are known to occur in nature.

7. Repellents.

There are some plant species that exude strong scents that are repulsive to certain insects.

Onion, garlic, and leek have been known to repel aphids, and mint repels cabbage butterflies and flea beetles. Horseradish repels potato bugs, and sage repels cabbage pests and carrot flies.

Marigold repel root nematodes.

By planting these appropriate plant combinations in a particular field, you can gain some degree of plant protection from specific insect pest.

8. Alternative Host (Trap Plants).

Pests have preference for the plant species they attack. If two hosts are available, one may be attacked.

Slugs prefer lettuce over chrysanthemums, and, as such, a good crop of the latter can be produced in the filed by planting lettuce among them as “decoy” plants or trap plants.

Similarly, nematodes may be controlled by planting certain species that prevent the development of the larva into adults.

This practice has the effect of decreasing the population of nematodes in the soil. Clotalaria plants are used to trap the larvae of root-knot nematodes.

9. Biocontrol.

This is used to control fruits such as peach and plum. This control is effected by treating fruits with a suspension of the bacterium Bacillus subtilis, which is found to delay brown rot cuased by the fungus Monilinia fruticola.

Biocontrol measures involving other bacteria and fungus exist.

10. Microbial spray (Biopesticides).

Scientists have identified and cultured natural enemies of certain horticultural plants. An infected field is sprayed with large populations of laboratory-cultured microbes.

An aerial application of spores of fungus (Collectotrichum gloesporiodes) has been successfully used to control the northern jointvetch in rice fields.

Another such discoveries were found to be effective to control soil borne diseases such as wilt of potato and verticilium wilt of eggplant.

Another commercially available microbial spray is the Bacillus thuringiensis spray, which is effective against caterpillars or cutworms, corn borers, cabbage worms, and other insect pests.

Cultural Control

Cultural control employs a variety of strategies to eradicate or minimize the proliferation of pests and diseases in flower garden.

5 Strategies applied in cultural control

1. Crop Sanitation.

It is discouraged to apply the monoculture and repeated methods of planting in the garden since this will encourage the buildup of the pests and diseases.

To do away with the buildup of these destructive organisms, you should used the crop rotation methods.

In crop rotation, it reduces the populations of certain soil borne diseases. In vegetable production for example, bacterial wilt of solanaceous plants which is a soil borne disease is reduced at a minimum or even completely eradicated.

Crop rotation is effective in controlling pests and diseases whose causal organisms don’t travel long distance such as, nematodes, weevils, certain wilts, and phytopthora.

2. Field Sanitation.

You should practice cleanliness in the garden to avoid the presence of pests and diseases. Plant debris must be removed and buried in the soil.

While applying sanitation in the garden, you’re also improving the soil fertility since the debris will decompose in the soil.

Infected plant remains must be burned or incinerated to kill the pathogens. Though burning is discourage, but when the diseases is apparent, you can do so in a case to case basis.

3. Use of resistant varieties

Through the intervention of science, plant breeders have made breakthroughs in improving the resistance of plants to pests and diseases.

By collecting wild plants, they crossed with some cultivated varieties that are susceptible to a particular organisms. Wild plants with genes that are resistant is transferred  to the gene of the susceptible cultivated variety to resist diseases and pests.

Resistant varieties exist for most of the major pests of horticultural crops.

4. Eradication of host plants

When the pests and diseases are discernible in the garden and uncontrollable, the best way you can do is to completely eradicate the susceptible host plants.

This method is applied to forestall an eminent pests and diseases epidemic.

On a small scale, eradication of host plants is conducted in the nurseries and greenhouses by removing infected plants.

Certain pathogens require two alternative hosts to complete their life cycle. In such case, the less economically important host should be eliminated to interrupt the cycle of development of the pathogen.

5. Mulching

Applying mulch in your garden gives you peace of mind, since mulch aids in the control of weeds, which may harbor some destructive pests and adds your production cost in weeding.

If you’ll use plastic mulch, it has the capacity to trap heat, which causes the temperature of the soil to increase thereby destroying some soil borne pathogens, including Verticilium.

Legislative control

Government regulatory commissions in every country of the world restricts the transfer of plants without passing through plant quarantine regulations.

This is strictly implemented to control the importation and spread of pests and diseases into areas where they don’t already occur.

Enforcement is especially strict with regards to plants that are of high economic importance.

Mechanical and Physical control

Pests can be controlled by a variety of mechanical or physical methods through human interventions.

8 Strategies applied in mechanical and physical control

Trapping.

A number of mechanical control measures may be applied to pests in the garden or the greenhouse and nursery.

A fly catcher is a strip of paper or polyethylene (yellow in color) coated on both surfaces with a sticky substance. Insects that land onto it get stuck to it and eventually dies.

Some larger mechanical traps are used to catch rodents. Certain lights are designed to attract insects, which then become trapped by other devices installed for the purpose.

2. Handpicking.

If your garden is manageable, handpicking caterpillars, bugs and other insects is good. After picking them, you can pinch them to death or you can carry with you a powder detergent solution placed in container. Once you catch them, put the insects on the solution to death.

3. Putting barriers.

Rodents can be kept out of the garden by fencing galvanized iron around it. A band of sticky paper (similar to fly catcher) wrapped around the base of a tree prevents crawling insects on the ground from climbing up the tree.

4. Proper tillage.

Proper land cultivation should be applied to remove weeds from growing in the area and exposing some soil borne organisms to the sun so they’ll be eradicated.

5. Mulching.

Putting a plastic mulch in your plots gives you lots of benefits, though the cost of plastic mulch is quiet high, but the return on investment is offset in the long run. The benefit in the use of plastic mulch have been discussed in the previous chapter of this book.

6. Heat treatment.

In the greenhouse and nursery, the soil and other growing media are routinely sterilized before use to kill nematodes and water molds.

To kill nematodes and water molds, the temperature should be around 50°C or 122°F.

To kill bacteria, fungi, and worms, the temperature requirement should be about 72°C or 162°F. For weed seeds, viruses, and some bacteria, the required temperature to kill them should be about 82°C or 180°F

7. Cold treatment.

Most post harvest protection of fresh products is achieved through cold treatment to maintain product quality. Cold storage does not kill pathogens but slows their activity.

8. Radiation.

Gamma radiation  in an appropriate dosage to harvested products prolong their shelf. In greenhouses, a glazed UV-absorbing material is installed so that radiation with a wavelength below 390 nanometers is not received in the greenhouse.

Chemical control

In integrated Pest Management, chemical control is considered the last method applied when the presence of pests and diseases are at their uncontrollable proportion. (Refer to the previous chapter on the discussion of this topic  under insecticides).

_____________________

Cris Ramasasa, Freelance writer, writes about home gardening and Internet marketing tips. You can get a copy of his latest ebook “How to get started in Flower Gardening”  and “Vegetable Gardening Made Easy”, and get lots of tips, Free articles, and bonuses at: www.crisramasasa.com

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1.    If you’re bound for a fishing trip to the North Country, expect to spend much on transportation, your outfit, licenses and permits. For a lot of people, the trip’s highlight will be fishing. For this reason, you should get yourself a new line on your reel.

2.    Protect your eyes while fishing and you should only invest in a good quality pair of polarized sunglasses, as it will not only aid in protecting the eyes, but will also provide superior visual penetration into the water.

3.    Keep mosquito repellent as well as plastic worms in a separate compartment, making sure it is out of the tackle box as both items do contain lacquer solvent that can soften the paint of any metal, plastic, or wood lure and the soft paint may never harden.

4.    Always keep a small file or a small stone handy to be used to keep the hooks needle sharp.

5.    Learn how to tie good knots. Practice carefully until such time that you are already certain that they will hold.

General fishing guidelines:

1.    Don’t fish with any bait in just one spot for more than 10 casts. If, by those casts, nothing changes, it’s time you change location.

2.    Properly position the canoe, not too close or too far from the fish. If you are too close, you will frighten the fish. If you are too far, you can not accurately place the lure in position.

3.    When doing top water fishing, do not set the hook until you can really feel that the fish is on the lure, being very careful not to surprise the fish. Just keep on working the lure cautiously towards you.

4.    Be very patient. Just be certain that you know you are in a suitable fish-producing area.

5.    Always be quiet, as sound can travel through the water better than through the air.

6.    Release carefully, instantly and safely any fish that you do not plan to eat. Preservation of Ontario’s fishing resources is essential and needed for fishing to continue thriving.

7.    While waiting for your catch, or when you do catch anything or none at all, look at the scene behind you, take a deep breath and enjoy the only lakeland wilderness in the entire world!

Fishing Regulations

Carry your license with you

Residents of Canada should have a fishing-version Outdoors Card and must have a fishing license tag that is attached to it so that it can be considered as valid.

Non Canadian residents should have their basic license form signed and have the correct license tag fastened in order that it can be considered valid.

Keep in mind always that a Outdoors Card or non-resident license card is non-transferable; it grants privileges to you alone. It should be carried with you each time you go fishing.

Note too, that whenever a Conservation Officer requests to see and examine your license, the law requires you to show it.

State and District Regulations

State and District rules control angling in Ontario. The key and major State law with regards to fishing is the Ontario’s “Fisheries Act”; this defends guards and takes care of and save fish and its habitat. Likewise, it controls the fishing seasons, limits to catch, possession, and size, and the gears allowed as well as fish sanctuaries. On the other hand, the “Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act” is the major provincial law that regulates fishing. It is stated in this decree, that fishing licenses are issued.

Wildlife Protection and Preservation Officers

Wildlife Protection Officers have the authority to inspect, search, arrest, and seize under the different act they carry out, together with Ontario’s “Fish and Wildlife Preservation decree” as well as the “Fisheries Regulation and Act”. During the Conservation Officers duty, they may do the following:

1.    Ask important questions that are in relation to the inspection they are conducting;

2.    Review and examine buildings;

3.    Stop and examine a boat, vehicle, or aircraft;

4.    Confiscate certain items which are related to the offence that an individual may have done;

5.    Search and investigate having a warrant to legalize such search;

6.    Search and investigate having no warrant to support the search in situations that require immediate attention and action;

7.    Arrest anybody that the Wildlife Preservation Officer supposes and believe has committed, or is on the act of performing, or is about to perform a violation or offence.

Open Seasons

The opening and closing dates of fishing season changes and is determined by the species on the area. It is illegal to try catching a fish for which the season has already been closed, even if one is going to release it after. Do understand that closed seasons protect the fish at time of the year when they are most susceptible especially during spawning.

Unless specially stated, species that are not on the list have a year-round open season.

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