Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is it integrated system of plant defense?

    The integrated system of plant defense (Integrated Pest Management) is the strategy of the application of different measures for the control of pest organisms. It is directed to the achievement of the maximal positive result in combination with the limited application of synthetic pesticides. The system of integrated defense is effective and ecological safety mechanism (in comparison with traditional technologies) for the control and the management of pest organisms in agro-ecosystems.

  • What are the main implements and the components of the integrated systems of plant defense?

    The main component of the modern integrated systems of plant defense is the rational application of various means and methods: the agrotechnical, the organizational-economic, the prophylactic, the chemical, the biological and etc. The main implement of integrated programs is the monitoring of the phytosanitary state of defended plants.

  • What is it the biological method of plant defense?

    The biological method of pest and plant disease control is based on the application of natural parasitic and predatory insects, fungal, bacterial, virus microorganisms and the products of their life activity. The mechanism of the action of the biological means for plant defense is displayed in the form of parasitism, the elimination and the affection of pest organisms by entomophages, bacteria, fungi, viruses and by the application of their antagonistic peculiarities against plant diseases.

  • What is the advantage of biological method in comparison with chemical crop protection?

    An obvious advantage of biological crop protection is environmental friendliness. It provides a higher level of safety for wildlife, consumers of goods and working staff. Pests cannot produce resistance to predators as distinct from pesticides. Therefore it is no need to perform a permanent change of chemicals. If a grower provides favourable conditions for the existence of a predatory organism its population can live in the protected crop very long time. The application of pesticides often results in the depression of protected plants and yield decrease. Biological method allows to avoid such problems in consequence of which the physiological state of plants improves and their yielding capacity increases.

  • Why does the establishment of entomophages and acariphages sometimes develop difficultly after release?

    The cause of a bad establishment of pest control bio-agents can be connected with the disturbance of crop cultivation technology and the absence of favourable conditions for the existence of predators. Therefore it is important to provide a proper microclimate in conditions under cover or make releases in field conditions under fit weather. Moreover, a bad establishment can be also connected with the aftereffect of some pesticides applied on the crop. In order to avoid such a problem it is necessary to choose thoroughly safety chemicals for entomophages long before the introduction of biological pest control.

  • How is an effective application of entomophage mixtures in comparison with solitary predatory species?

    The effectiveness of mixture application is usually higher than the application of solitary predatory species because in case of weather or microclimate changes it is possible the substitution each species other. Therefore the decrease of the effectiveness of some entomophage species in the crop is compensated by other predatory species. It is formed an artificial stable ecosystem which is similar to a natural ecosystem. Thus, the stability of any ecosystem depends directly on the level of biodiversity.

  • What is it a monitoring map and for which purpose is it used?

    The monitoring map is a schematic reflection of a phytosanitary state of a crop on cultivated areas. At the initial stages of integrity pest management introduction such a map is an inalienable part of monitoring. The situation on the cultivated area is described on the map by means of colours, figures and letter symbols. Monitoring maps allow grower to estimate situation in the crop and to assume adequate measures. It also enables to prognosticate the further development of phytophages and predators in the crop.

  • How is important the monitoring of the phytosanitary state of crops in the system of defense?

    The phytosanitary monitoring has a key importance in the integrated defense system of crops. Monitoring is used for the prognosis of emergence terms and the number of phytophages (pests), the determination of optimum periods for the application of means for plant defense (biological, chemical), biological agent colonization, the definition of phytophage species composition and the estimation of the economic effectiveness of conducted defensive measures.

  • Does the presence of dead entomophages in a consignment point to a low quality of a product?

    It is admitted some number of dead beneficial insects in a consignment. It is connected with a natural mortality of predators in the process of transportation, because the stages of different ages of entomophages and acariphages are present in the biological product. On arrival to a client some old individuals die away at that time young stages emerge from eggs. For counter-insurance the producer of beneficial insects put into package some larger number of predatory individuals than it is declared on labels. That is why at the adherence of transport and storage requirements the number of alive entomophages in the unit of a product cannot be lower than the quantity pointed on package.