| |
|
|
| |
Pests are those
animals (insects,
mites,
birds,
rodents etc.) which damage cultivated plants. |
|
| |
|
|
The term "pest" is broad and is now used more
generally encompassing a overwhelming spectrum of
organism
which have characteristics which people regard as unwanted,
injurious, detrimental, destructive or capable of causing
material damage to
cultivation,
crops, lawns,
health
of
living creatures or to the
environment.
Pests comprise any
living
stage
(including active and dormant forms) of
insects,
mites,
nematodes,
termites, slugs,
snails,
protozoa, or other terrestrial or aquatic animals,
bacteria,
fungi,
mildew,
weeds, other
parasitic plants
or reproductive parts thereof;
viruses;
other plants and animals that can damage aquatic and terrestrial
ecosystems;
or any
infectious agents or
substances
which can directly or indirectly
injure or cause
disease or
damage in or to humans, plants or animals or any processed,
manufactured, or other products of plants or animals.
It is possible for an animal to be a pest in one setting but
beneficial or domesticated in another (for example, European
rabbits
introduced to Australia caused ecological damage beyond the
scale they inflicted in their natural
habitat)
Every pest --from deer to nematodes-- causes its own set of
problems and has its own set of potential
controls. To get rid of pests - before deciding on
poisons, though, for control
- consider how much damage the pest is really doing. A small
amount of nibbling is generally acceptable and won't really
affect overall harvest or plant
health.
Many pests have developed
resistance
to the common pesticides. |
|
| |
|
|
|
