Over 35 years, integrated pest management has reduced pest risks and pesticide use

Abstract

Pests and their interactions with crops, ecological landscapes and animals are in continuous flux - they are never static. Pest severity increases or decreases depending on environmental conditions and changes in production or pest control practices. Pest management is made even more challenging by exotic and newly invasive pests. Over its 35-year history, the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources Statewide IPM Program has supported research and extension that has decreased risks of crop losses, improved treatment programs for invasive and endemic pests, and reduced the use of pesticides and their impact on the environment and human health. Its publications are widely used among growers, pest control advisers, research institutions, state agencies, agricultural organizations and gardeners; and integrated pest management has been adopted statewide in agriculture, as well as in managed landscapes and urban areas.