Abstract:

Crop protection in oilseed rape, a major European crop, currently relies on pesticides and lags behind recent scientific advances. MASTER will construct and evaluate, through a trans-European collaborative experiment, economically viable and environmentally less harmful Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies for the crop, that maximise biological control of pests and minimise pesticide use, through enhancement of naturally occurring natural enemies of the pests. Indicators of crop performance, pest and damage incidence, and cost-benefits will be used in evaluation. Guidelines for end-users and a phenological model for decision support will be produced. New information on the pest/natural enemy community in the crop ecosystem and new insight into the socio-economic processes affecting new technology adoption by farmers will be acquired.

Objectives:

1. Determine identity, status and potential of bio-control for rape pests in Europe, to increase knowledge of their ecology and identify key factors affecting their efficacy.
2. Develop economically viable, environmentally acceptable IPM strategies for European rape that maximise bio-control of key pests and minimise pesticide use.
3. Determine the socio-economic feasibility, importance and economic efficiency of the Strategies in Europe, including gains in environmental quality and rural viability, and assess socio-economic factors influencing their adoption.
4. Construct a phenological model of key pests and their bio-control agents, relating occurrence on the crop to growth stage and climatic/weather conditions, for integration into existing decision support systems.
5. Produce technical guidelines for end-users on the IPM strategies.

Contacts

Coordinator

• Peter THOMAS / Rothamsted Experimental Station UNITED KINGDOM

Participant

• Tadeusz TRZISZKA / Department of Plant Protection POLAND
• Fred KLINGAUF / Institut fuer Pflanzenschutz in Ackerbau und Grunland GERMANY
• Henn ELMET / Institute of Plant Protection ESTONIA
• Tomas LUNDBORG / SLU Christer Nilsson Dept of Crop Science / SWEDEN
• University of Goettingen GERMANY
• Raija SOLLAMO / University of Helsinki Department of Applied Zoology / FINLAND