Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Organophosphates were not as critical to pest management as commonly
believed: this may be because the economic damage threshold was higher
than thought or because biological control agents could provide some
control when given the opportunity.
The removal of organophosphates results in one or more secondary
pests becoming problematic for several years, but natural enemies or cul-
tural techniques begin to provide some control after several seasons of
transition.
A few partnerships report that some participating growers recognized
the superiority of the alternative practices demonstrated in their test
blocks and abandoned their “industry standard” replication before the
partnership had run its course. This was not uncommon in commodities
in which partnerships made substantial success in organophosphate
reduction (almonds, pears). Collectively these scenarios demonstrate
how little is known about the overall behavior of the insect complex
in many crops, and justify the claim that pesticides are frequently over-
prescribed.
Partnerships Develop Agroecological Soil, Fertility, and Irrigation
Techniques
Twenty-two of the partnerships have promoted alternative soil, nutrient,
and water practices. Nutrient pollution in California has not yet caught
the attention of regulatory agencies or the public as it has in other
regions, although nitrogen and persistent (pre-emergent) herbicides
do contaminate groundwater in California. Most of the partnerships
addressing soil, nutrient, and water management do so to improve
resource-use efficiency, but also to take advantage of synergistic effects
between farming system components. For example, scientists and
growers found that dense cover crops hosted sufficient decomposing
organisms to destroy almond mummies, and eliminate the need for and
expense of flail mowing. Synergistic benefits from integrated farming
systems are a further justification for the claim that agroecological part-
nerships are more than IPM efforts.
Cover crops are the most common tool partnerships use for helping
growers improve their management of soil, nutrients, and water (table
5.4). Partnerships have promoted cover crops as the fundamental strat-
egy for garnering a wide array of benefits for soil, nutrient, and water
