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Pest control is the process of reducing a pest population to an acceptable level while causing as little harm as possible to people, plants, and the environment. Pest Control West Vancouver BC strategies include prevention, suppression, and eradication.
IPM is an ecological approach to pest control that utilizes several techniques to maintain pest populations below damaging levels. It is used in agriculture, gardens, parks, military bases, schools and residential areas. It takes into account the life cycles of organisms, their interactions with each other and the environment and the effects of weather on pest behavior.
IPM starts with a monitoring program that looks at both the presence and population level of the pest, as well as its natural enemies. This information is used to determine if action is required. It can include establishing action thresholds that indicate when pest numbers will reach a level that could damage or impact human health, animal life or plant production. This helps reduce the use of more harmful pest control methods, and can even prevent the need for chemical controls entirely.
A key part of IPM is encouraging natural enemies. This can be done by planting competitive plants, using physical barriers or traps, cultivating, soil solarization and heat treatments. It can also be accomplished by using pathogenic microorganisms that infect and destroy the pest. An example of this would be introducing bacteria that kill the wild rabbits that have become a nuisance in Australia, or using a parasitoid to destroy aphids.
Cultural practices are another important component of IPM. These can include good sanitation, removing infested or damaged plants, crop rotation, maintaining proper water and fertilizer application, and the use of resistant varieties of crops or plants. Physical controls can also be a great asset in IPM, and may include things like stretching netting over your fruit bushes to keep marauding birds out, or setting easy-to-use rodent traps to stop the destruction of raspberry and blackberry plants by pocket gophers.
When non-chemical control methods are not effective, IPM programs may include the use of pesticides. However, they are only applied after the monitoring and identification procedures have indicated that a pest infestation is a serious problem that warrants intervention. This is to help reduce the risk of overuse and build up of resistance in pests.
Biological Control
Biological control uses predators, parasites, pathogens or competitors to suppress pest populations. The method is particularly appropriate for insect, weed and plant disease pests. Biological controls are usually more environmentally benign than chemical pesticides, but the success of biological control depends on careful consideration and application.
Many insect pest species are naturally controlled in the field by natural enemies such as birds, mammals, frogs, butterflies and other insects that feed on or parasitize their larvae, eggs or adults. In addition, some plant pathogens such as nematodes, fungi and bacteria, also can reduce pest numbers through infection. For biological control to be effective, it is important that the natural enemy have a high reproductive rate and seek out only the target host pest. Moreover, it is critical that the natural enemy be present when the pest is at its most vulnerable stage.
In some cases, the natural enemy must be specifically chosen for its ability to control the target pest species. The selection process may involve going to the pest’s native habitat, searching for natural enemies that can be imported and released. This method, called classical biological control or importation biological control, is the basis of many current biological pest management programs. For example, the convergent lady beetle (Rodolia cardinalis) was introduced to California in 1921 to control cottony cushion scale on orange trees and the alligator weed flea beetle (Hippodamia convergens) was brought from Australia to Florida for control of alligator weed.
Another approach to biological control is called augmentative biological control. This is a practice often used in greenhouses, nurseries and some fruit and vegetable fields. Biological control agents are purchased from suppliers and mass-reared in insectaries to increase the number and effectiveness of the natural enemy. Augmentative biological control is especially useful where natural enemies are not currently present or their numbers are too low to effectively control a pest problem.
Although many natural enemies are available from commercial biological control companies, it is important that growers recognize the potential risks involved in this type of control. A few natural enemies have been found to be harmful to crops or to other non-target plants and animals, so judicious use of cultural, mechanical and selective chemical pesticides is critical in using biological control.
Pesticides
A pesticide is any substance that kills or repels a species of plant or animal life considered to be harmful. Common pesticides include herbicides (weed killers), insecticides (insect killers) and fungicides. There are also rodenticides and antimicrobial pesticides. These products are available in spray cans, crop dusters, household cleaners and hand soaps. Pesticides are often used as a last resort when other management strategies have failed. Municipalities may set bylaws regarding the use of pesticides on their lands. It is important to always read and follow pesticide labels when using them.
The primary benefits of pesticides are protecting crops from disease vectors, nuisance organisms and other pests that threaten food production and human health. Pesticides are often used in conjunction with other control methods, such as removing host plants or altering habitat to reduce populations before they reach critical levels.
While most pesticides are designed to kill or deter a specific pest, the chemicals in them often damage other parts of the ecosystem as well. This can lead to the loss of biodiversity, and even impact our own health. The risks of using pesticides can be reduced by applying them only where necessary and using less toxic products.
Most chemical pesticides have some level of toxicity and can affect the human body as well as non-target organisms such as birds, bees, other insects and bacteria. These effects can range from short-term impacts such as nausea or headaches, to long-term consequences such as cancer or reproductive harm.
The toxicity of a pesticide is determined by its chemical makeup. Some pesticides are more persistent than others, meaning they can stay in the environment for months or even years before breaking down. It is important to know if the pesticides you are working with are biodegradable or not, so you can plan accordingly when applying them.
A pesticide is composed of one or more active ingredients, and additional intentionally added compounds called inerts. The identity of inert ingredients is kept confidential by federal law and only the total percentage of inerts must be listed on a pesticide product label.
Prevention
Pest control treatments focus on preventing infestations, rather than treating them after they have already developed. Using methods like barrier treatments, baiting and trapping, professionals can prevent pests from entering buildings and damaging property. These methods can also stop them from reproducing, which will help keep their numbers down and protect the health of occupants and the integrity of the structure.
Prevention is more cost-effective than reactive treatment. By preventing severe infestations, you’ll save on repair costs and the stress of dealing with rodents and other pesky pests. It can also prevent disease-carrying pests from spreading to new areas, posing a threat to people or animals.
Preventive treatments are best when used in conjunction with a thorough sanitation program. Eliminating sources of food, water and shelter for pests will help reduce their numbers. Good sanitation practices include storing food in sealed containers and removing garbage regularly, as well as improving the design of indoor food handling areas. The use of pest-resistant varieties of crops, trees and wood is another useful way to prevent pests.
Climate also affects pest populations. For example, temperatures, day length and humidity influence how fast pests grow, develop and reproduce. Natural barriers such as mountains and large bodies of water restrict the movement of some pests. Other natural forces, such as predators and parasites, can also reduce pest populations.
Many pests are opportunistic, meaning that they take advantage of opportunities for food and water. As a result, they often move to the closest available source of those things. This means that pests in urban and rural settings will move to areas where they can find food and shelter.
Prevention is a key to reducing the need for eradication, which is rarely achieved in outdoor pest situations. Eradication is more common in indoor environments, where it can be easier to eliminate pests from areas like houses, schools, offices and food processing plants. Prevention can be a combination of preventing a pest from getting to the establishment and using suppression and other treatments when they do get there. It can also involve eliminating entry points for the pests, such as patching holes in walls and keeping doors closed as much as possible.