Pest Management 1/6/12
What is a pest? Any species that interferes with human welfare by competing with us for food, invading gardens, destroying building materials, spreading disease, invading ecosystems or being a nuisance.
What are some ways to control pests? Chemical controls= relies on synthetic chemical sprays – Pesticides: insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, rodenticides
What is an acquired resistance? Pests can build up an immunity to pesticides or evolve an ability to survive despite chemical application of pesticides.
What are some ways to control pests? Biological control= relies on predation, parasites or herbivory – i.e. Lady bugs and Lacewing (eat aphids), Bacillus thuringiensis (disease in caterpillers), parasitic wasps, chrysanthemum oil – Attraction methods: insect prefumes/pheromones, hormones
What are some ways to control pests? Physical controls = manually remove pests * Weeding a garden by hand Other – Genetically modified organisms (GMO’s)
What is integrated pest management? Combination of chemical and biological controls to manage pests.