1 Integrated Disease Management in Vegetable Crops Ranbir Singh, Sachin Gupta and S. K. Singh Division of Plant Pathology, Faculty of Agriculture SKUAST-Jammu Introduction
component. The basic objectives of any IDM
Integrated disease management can be
program should be to achieve at least the
defined as a decision-based process involving
following:
co-ordinated use of multiple tactics for
1. Reduce the possibility of introducing
optimizing the control of pathogen in an
2. Avoid creating conditions suitable for
ecologically and economically manner. In most cases IDM consists of scouting with timely application of a combination of strategies and tactics. These may include site selection and preparation,
utilizing
resistant
cultivars,
altering planting practices, modifying the environment by drainage, irrigation, pruning, thinning, shading and applying pesticides, if necessary. But in addition to these traditional measures, monitoring environmental factors (temperature, moisture, soil pH, nutrients, etc.), disease forecasting, and establishing economic thresholds are important to the management scheme (Khoury and Makkouk, 2010). These measures should be applied in a coordinated
integrated
diseases into the crop
and
harmonized
manner to maximize the benefits of each
disease establishment and spread 3. Simultaneous management of multiple pathogens 4. Regular monitoring of pathogen effects, and their natural enemies and antagonists as well 5. Use of economic or treatment thresholds when applying chemicals 6. Integrated use of multiple, suppressive tactics. Principles of Plant Disease Control 1. Avoidance—prevents disease by selecting a time of the year or a site where there is no inoculum or where the environment is not favorable for infection. 2. Exclusion—prevents the introduction of inoculum.
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