A chief problem of gardeners and farmers everywhere is attrition from pests. Most commonly, growers use pesticides to wage war on their insect enemies, often negatively affecting the surrounding environment in the process. For those interested in maintaining a balanced garden without using poisons, a major methodology is Integrated Pest Management.
Integrated Pest Management, or IPM, began in the 1970s as ecologists’ response to the growing environmental damage caused by widespread use of pesticides in the U.S. Both the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration established national educational and regulatory programs in universities and other institutions to teach farmers and gardeners alternative methods to protect their plants by using non-toxic remedies before resorting to poisons.
By implementing the basic principles of IPM as a first-resort measure against destructive pests, gardeners can drastically reduce or eliminate a need for noxious agents in their yards, creating a healthier environment for both themselves and their beneficial fauna.
This article will introduce you to IPM and give you some information so you can implement it in your gardens or fields.
IPM Methodology: Three Step Evaluation
Identify. Know your enemy.
This should go without saying, but a common reaction of new gardeners is to worry about every insect that makes its home in the garden.
In reality, it’s a small but very vocal minority of insects that cause problems. An estimated 97 percent of typically seen insects in the home and garden are beneficial or non-threatening to humans and the environment.
Butterfly at Fox Run. Read our article The Loss of Insects and How It Affects Your Garden
Become familiar with the most common insect species in your geographic region. Your most reliable resource for information gathering is the Cooperative Extension System, a network of educational institutions at state universities that is overseen by USDA.
Extension services maintain sites with wide-ranging information for gardeners and farmers free of charge, and they can also connect you with academic experts to answer more difficult questions. In addition, these offices often keep track of the spread of invasive plants and insects across the nation, which is also important to note.
The nice thing about pests is that they’re lousy strategists. Once you figure out what your adversary is, you can reliably predict their behavior and an effective response to it.
Determine Damage Threshold.
Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good enough. The struggle between gardeners and pests is continual, and no battle is won without some casualties. If your primary concerns are aesthetic, consider relaxing them slightly. This is most reasonable to hobbyists. However, if you’re growing food in your garden, or selling at farmers markets, you will need to be more aggressive to ensure a decent harvest.
Decide Intervention.
This is the point at which you decide which method to use, always with an emphasis on doing the least harm possible.
Five Techniques Used in IPM
Exclusion -
Physical barriers.
In neighborhoods with large numbers of rabbits and deer, it’s not uncommon to see “plant jails,” wire cages placed around individual units to keep them safe from errant munchers. While this method works well against marauding mammals, it’s aesthetically unpleasant and is best reserved for food-source plants rather than showcase blooms.
Cloches work well protecting plants from deer and rabbits
Cultural Control
Keeping plants and soil healthy. Cultural control in IPM is the plant equivalent of preventive medicine. The healthier a plant is, the better chance it has to survive a pest attack. Cultural control methods include practicing good sanitation (regular removal of insect or disease-infected plant matter), strategic timing (planting around recommended seasons for optimal strength), and soil enrichment (mulching, proper watering and fertilizing). Again, extension centers provide a wealth of information about the care and keeping of different species of plants and the best soil conditions for them. Often, they provide soil-testing services to growers for a nominal fee.
Using garden fabric to keep out pests and keep in warmth at Fox Run.
Biological Control
If you can’t beat ‘em, eat ‘em! Enlisting allies in the war is one of the best ways to naturally balance the garden in your favor. Certain types of insects, parasites, and pathogens are known for targeting destructive bugs while leaving your crops alone. If your yard doesn’t have a good balance of these beneficial insects, you can buy and release them to do your dirty work for you. The Association of Natural Biocontrol Producers comprises university and federal-level scientists and companies that specialize in the sale of these insects, including ladybugs, praying mantises, damselflies, and more.
Ladybugs are garden friendly and eat tons of aphids
Mechanical Control
Sometimes, a good application of elbow grease is best. Mechanical controls involve mowing, hoeing weeds, hand plucking, and trap setting. These methods can be tedious, but if done regularly, they’re quite effective in both treating and preventing future problems.
Pesticide Control
Last Measure. Actual pesticide application is a last resort in IPM, with an emphasis on using the least-toxic chemicals available. Some OMRI organic pesticides include botanical insecticides (biodegradable compounds made from toxins produced by plants), boric acid (disrupts pests’ digestion and causes starvation), and insecticidal soaps (which have the added bonus of being difficult for pests to adapt to).
Turning Over New Leaves
As the demand for organically grown plants increases in the U.S., more and more growers are seeking alternative solutions to the conventional pest-control methods in the hopes of protecting beneficial species. By using the framework of IPM as a starting point when planning a landscaping project, gardeners can have a basis of reference to develop properly tailored solutions that maximize their crop yields while allowing for a healthy balance of animals both friendly and foul.
Guest Post By Author Carly Tucker
Carly Tucker is a freelance writer from North Texas. She specializes in writing on environmental issues and has been known to hug trees. For more information, visit her site, Winsome Woods Writing.
