Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

Biological protection consists of using living organisms or their products to prevent or reduce losses and damage caused by harmful organisms to productions plants.

Integrated protection, on the other hand, consists of promoting auxiliary fauna.^[1]

Integrated Biological Protection (IBP) of crops is therefore the rational use of all available control methods. IBP is characterized by the maintenance of a balance between auxiliaries and pests on the protected crop.

In line with health regulations, this strategy is particularly suitable for crops grown under greenhouse. Respectful of the environment and consumer health, IBP is part of a sustainable agriculture and development approach.

IBP allows to limit the number of treatments on the crop, which has positive consequences on:

the Economic health of the farm,
the preservation of the environment,
the safety of the producer and the amount of residues related to production.

IBP is widely used in a variety of production systems.^[1]

The principle of IBP

Integrated Biological Protection consists of introducing different auxiliaries whose modes of action vary from one species to another. These auxiliaries can be insects, mites, nematodes, fungi, or even bacteria. Complementary methods to IBP are often recommended such as physical control, prophylaxis and chemical control.

Integrated Biological Protection involves a risk and nuisance assessment, which determines the necessity or not to intervene on the infested plant. Combining all existing management techniques (biological, physical, genetic…), the objective here is to use the right technique at the right time and to favor non-chemical methods as much as possible.

Among the existing management techniques we can mention:

Prevention: planting adapted species, soil knowledge…
Respect for prophylaxis: sanitary measures aimed at preventing or limiting the development of a disease, or making it disappear (e.g., disinfecting cutting tools, avoiding reuse of old substrates, eliminating contaminated plant waste…)
Traceability and monitoring: census of auxiliary populations, tools for identifying bio-aggressors, plant health bulletin, intervention thresholds
Rational use of chemical methods as a last resort

It is important to act preventively, to anticipate the presence of pests to allow auxiliary populations to develop and then accept the presence of pests.

The approach to implement

Prophylaxis

It is essential to prepare the crop upstream to offer it the best growth conditions^[2]:

Use young plants free of diseases and pests.
Respect certain hygiene rules: disinfection of cutting tools, installations, avoid reusing old substrates or non-disinfected pots.
Eliminate refuge areas for pests.

In the case of greenhouse crops, it is recommended to:

Establish the crop in a clean greenhouse: a sanitary break is advised between each crop. The duration and conditions of this sanitary break depend on the greenhouse setup, the pest development cycle (which itself depends on the temperature prevailing in the greenhouse). If a sufficiently long sanitary break cannot be maintained, chemical disinfection is also necessary.
Control the climatic management of the greenhouse: humidity, light, water availability and substrate aeration.
Close greenhouse doors to limit pest entry from other compartments or outside.

Crop observations

Working in IBP requires regular observations and a good knowledge of the crops:

Quickly eliminate plants showing damage, likely to harbor diseases or pests
Determine the fauna present

It is necessary to be able to identify pests and auxiliaries and to know the biology of these different living organisms. Indeed, knowledge of the development cycle of a pest and the factors that can influence it guides the choice of control strategy to adopt.

Actions

Auxiliaries must be introduced very early, as soon as the first pests appear or preventively, from the establishment of the crop, if the auxiliary can find alternative food or by setting up a relay plant system.
Releases are made in small quantities but repeatedly.
The application method is adapted to the type of auxiliaries (spot applications or homogeneous dispersion on the crop).
The choice of auxiliary depends on climatic conditions and the pest population density.
Associations of auxiliaries are also possible (use of auxiliaries having complementary action: parasitism on different larval stages).
The choice of a chemical treatment is made when an auxiliary fails to sufficiently control a pest population. Preference is then given to a local treatment with a product compatible with the auxiliaries present in the greenhouse.

Compliance with regulations

Respect for lists of insecticides, fungicides and herbicides compatible with IBP
Traceability of cultural operations
Number and area of each production greenhouse.
Planting and uprooting dates.
Introduction of auxiliaries (introduced species, date, quantity).
Phytosanitary treatments (date, products used, dose applied, targeted problem, treated area).
Weeding around the greenhouse (date, product used).

Advantages of IBP

Reduction of chemical inputs
Total respect for the environment
Improvement of working conditions
Absence of risks related to the use of phytosanitary products
No pest resistance phenomena
Optimization of crop monitoring

Sources

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 Chamber of Agriculture of Pyrénées-Atlantiques, online, The use of integrated biological protection is expanding.
↑ Agriculture and Biodiversity Indian Ocean, What is the IBP approach?

Appendices

Est complémentaire des leviers

[CA_PA-1] 1.0 ^1.1 Chamber of Agriculture of Pyrénées-Atlantiques, online, The use of integrated biological protection is expanding.

[2] Agriculture and Biodiversity Indian Ocean, What is the IBP approach?

[1]

[2]