In the garden SHORELINES

more sustainable solution. Just make sure to use a domestic ladybug; there are plenty of exotics on the market that displace ones native to Us shores.

The major knock against ipm is that it’s time- and knowledge-intensive. essentially, it requires an FBi dossier on the enemy’s mo — a voyeuristic recounting of their reproductive habits, known vulnerabilities, preferred hosts, etc. only with this information in hand can you make an informed decision. luckily, short of an exotic introduction, this empirical legwork has already been done by scientists at land grant universities, ag experiment stations and cooperative extensions. however, it does require that the practitioner head out to the field/garden and individually scout plants (take pest counts) to see if those critical thresholds have been met.

still, one of the beauties of “spray and pray” on a calendar basis (spraying blind, without any scouting whatsoever) is that it generally works, more or less instantaneously. and it requires no information other than a known susceptibility to chemical XyZ. many individuals understandably gravitate to this reductionist mindset. yet it’s also potentially costly to the applicator and the environment atlarge. your mileage may vary.

Pest Mangement Strategies

ipm can be divided into several strategies: often viewed as incompatible with ipm principles, pesticides are not expressly forbidden, nor are they necessarily used as a last resort. most are used at exceptionally low use rates, a few fluid ounces per acre. Do bear in mind that many are restricted use, only available to those with an applicator license. oth- ers are over the counter “general use”. example: The pesticide (strategy) neem (tactic) to manage leafminers (target) in tomato (host).

• Chemical toxicants: can be organic (botanical), biological (microbial), or synthetic. insect growth regulators that interfere with molting, as well as pheromones that can be used to attract, trap and quantify pests are also considered “pesticidal” in nature.

• p hysical/Mechanical: employing a barrier or disrupting the environment with an implement. For example, laying down floating row covers (mesh) to prevent cabbage maggots from laying eggs at the base of plants. or tilling a garden to destroy any crop residues that allow a host to overwinter and reemerge the following spring.

• Cultural: a modification of the environment to make it less hospitable. intercropping and crop rotation with non-hosts are examples, as is using a trap crop to divert attention away from a main crop. consider avoidance, timing planting (earlier or later than customary) to avoid shared windows with pests/pathogens, etc. c ultural also includes sanitation, the removal (rogueing) of infected/infested plants to reduce the possibility of spread.

• Biocontrol: This employs living predators, parasitoids and pathogens. if you’re a ways off from the threshold and can tolerate a more deliberate, long-term approach, this is highly recommended. self-explanatory, predators are voracious, often polishing off many individual prey. parasitoids are small wasps that lay eggs in or on prey species. The larvae gestate and subsequently burst out, much like a chestburster from the film “alien”. pathogens are microbes formulated to infect and kill pests or antagonize and outcompete harmful microbes. interestingly, they’re typically formulated as a sprayable (bio) pesticide, so they often spill over into that category as well.

• resistance: The ground floor of any pest/pathogen management plan, gardeners should always strive to acquire varieties or cultivars that have demonstrated resistance. This makes them unpalatable to pests, and incompat- ible as hosts to pathogens. Tolerance is a poor man’s substitute. These varieties are fully susceptible to ravages, but will regenerate any tissues that are lost to herbivory or disease, if given enough time. Both of these may be considered subsets of cultural management.

General Steps:

• Proper identification of the pest: This is critical, as any measures you take will be attuned to that specific issue. improper identification will start a cascade of largely ineffective actions!

• Quantify: scout, either manually by eye or use traps. is the pest at or near threshold levels? Use past history as a guide.

• Consider your management options: refer to your earlier measurement. What strategies and tactics are situationally appropriate? it may be prudent to do nothing for the time being.

• Select and implement options: may be singular, may be multifactorial. consider compatibility. a pesticide application plus biocontrol agent would probably be detrimental to the biocontrol agent!

• Measure and evaluate results of the intervention(s): This provides useful feedback. leverage that knowledge base for inevitable future skirmishes. you’re likely going to have the same perpetrators every year.

The brainchild of what was once a fringe eco-consciousness, ipm is now the de facto system of choice. a mid a backdrop of relentless saboteurs, it injects a commonsense dose of sanity, tailored to your ethical sensibilities. it truly is the noblest of endeavors in the spirit of Jefferson’s original quote.

MONETA