INCREASING THE EFFICIENCY OF INSECTICIDE TREATMENTS AGAINST ROOT-MAGGOTS ON FIELD VEGETABLES

In the UK at present, limited supplies of vegetables can be produced without using synthetic insecticides, fungicides and herbicides but mass production of quality crops depends on the use of pesticides.

Public concern over contamination by pesticides and recent legislation threaten the availability of essential treatments.
This threat, the possibility of increasing resistance to pesticides by fungi and insects and the likely increasing spread of pests and diseases from, especially, oil seed rape jeopardise the future of the UK field vegetables industry.

Effective alternatives to pesticides for protecting field vegetables against root-feeding larvae without sacrificing quality are remote.
Plant breeding offers good prospects but varieties with total, durable resistance are unlikely.
Biological control, effective on some protected crops, is an attractive proposition but its acceptability to the public and to registration Departments awaits thorough appraisal.

In the short term, opportunities for decreasing pesticide usage and residues in crops must be pursued vigorously.
Some revised methods for applying insecticides to seeds, modules and soil are effective and improved timing of foliar sprays offers advantages in terms of reducing wasteful applications.
The value of partial resistance in crops as a technique to complement insecticide usage demands further development in carrots and other crops.

International Symposium on Diptera Pests in Vegetable Crops

A.R. Thompson

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1988.219.15