Integrating crop and landscape management into new crop protection strategies to enhance biological control of oilseed rape insect pests

Abstract

The development of sustainable cropping systems is a major challenge for agronomists and crop scientists in many regions of the world. The prophylactic uses of broad spectrum insecticides are actually the main solution for farmers to control insect pests. Therefore, there is a growing need to develop innovative crop protection strategies through an integrated approach which aims at favouring natural enemies and enhancing biological control in agroecosystems. The development of such strategies requires a thorough understanding of agroecosystem functioning. In this chapter, we present the effects of different elements, from the field scale to the landscape scale that are known to enhance biological control in agroecosystems and limit pest damage with particular reference to oilseed rape. Linking integrated pest management and landscape ecology brings a regional perspective to the management of pest populations. Available techniques are often added together rather than combined in an integrated way and are rarely evaluated through environmental and economical criteria. Therefore, we present a methodological framework to design and assess sustainable cropping systems, with a particular emphasis on complementariness between models, systemic trials and more analytical approaches. Implementation of sustainable cropping systems implies the development of new integrated pest management strategies and thereby an increased participation of the different stakeholders from farmers to policy makers. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.