An IPM system is designed around six basic components:

• Acceptable pest levels: The emphasis is on control, not eradication. IPM holds that wiping out an entire pest population is often impossible, and the attempt can be more costly, environmentally unsafe, and all-round counterproductive than it is worth. Better to decide on what constitutes acceptable pest levels, and apply controls if those levels are exceeded.

• Preventive cultural practices: Selecting plant varieties best for local growing conditions, and maintaining healthy crops, is the first line of defense.

• Monitoring: Regular observation is the cornerstone of IPM. Visual inspection, insect traps, and other measurement methods are used to monitor pest levels. Record-keeping is essential, as is a thorough knowledge of the behavior and reproductive cycles of target pests.

• Mechanical controls: Should a pest reach an unacceptable level, mechanical methods are the first options to consider. They include simple hand-picking, erecting insect barriers, using traps, vacuuming, and tillage to disrupt breeding.

• Biological controls: Natural biological processes and materials can provide control, with minimal environmental impact, and often at low cost. The main focus here is on promoting beneficial insects that eat target pests; an effective way to recruit beneficial insects is to create insectary hedgerows or plant host plants that provide good habitat for the desired beneficial insects.

• Chemical controls: Considered as an IPM last resort, synthetic pesticides may be used when other controls fail or are deemed unlikely to prove effective. Biological insecticides, derived from plants or naturally occurring microorganisms (eg: Bt), also fit in this category.

IPM is suitable for home pest management and can reduce human and environmental exposure to hazardous chemicals.

IPM Resources

• UC Davis IPM online http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/crops-agriculture.html

• The Safer Pest Control Project http://www.spcpweb.org/resources/