{"id":2598,"date":"2023-02-03T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-02-03T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/farmingfuturefood.com\/feb2025\/?p=2598"},"modified":"2023-02-28T15:13:16","modified_gmt":"2023-02-28T15:13:16","slug":"considering-both-pests-and-pollinators-offers-gains-for-watermelon-farmers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/farmingfuturefood.com\/feb2025\/considering-both-pests-and-pollinators-offers-gains-for-watermelon-farmers\/","title":{"rendered":"Considering both pests and pollinators brings gains for watermelon farmers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Pests and pollinators can be managed simultaneously on watermelon farms, reducing insecticide applications<\/a> and improving yield.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In field trials, researchers led by Ashley Leach<\/a> at Ohio State University tested commonly-used insecticide products using either a weekly application or based on population thresholds of the striped cucumber beetle (Acalymma vittatum<\/em>) \u2013 a key pest of melon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The initial trial showed that a threshold-based approach delivered a statistically-similar level of pest control to the weekly programme, while requiring between 20 and 80% fewer insecticide applications and bringing in 42% more pollinators to the crop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Multiple advantages<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The integrated pest and pollinator management<\/a> (IPPM) approach was validated in a follow-up trial at commercial scale, using acetamiprid, the pesticide associated with lowest toxicity to pollinators. A threshold of two beetles per plant was set for application, with regular monitoring to determine numbers. In control fields, farmers used their regular application program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The IPPM fields saw 62% more pollinator visits, and 49% more melons at harvest. Only one of five fields using IPPM programs required a pesticide application over the growing season, while farmers\u2019 own programs ranged from two to eight applications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Broad potential<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The work has implications for other pollinator-dependent crops, Leach told Farming Future Food<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s possible to find similar trends in other crops, and there are some early indications of this in apple,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Successful application of IPPM would represent a \u2018win-win\u2019 proposition that would likely be attractive to many growers, given issues such as pest resistance to available insecticides and declining natural pollination services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think many growers are open to threshold-based programmes, but like anyone, they want to be shown the data that supports the claims,\u201d Leach continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis study is an exciting step towards supporting that goal. Not only are we seeing effective pest control but potentially increased pollination.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other threshold approaches worth considering<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A threshold-based approach<\/a> to pesticide application has also been recently suggested by researchers in Finland \u2013 although with a different focus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The University of Helsinki team modelled applications based on counting natural enemies of a pest in the field, finding that, similarly to what was seen in the present study, such a dynamic system always resulted in reduced spraying of crops.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pests and pollinators can be managed simultaneously on watermelon farms, reducing insecticide applications and improving yield.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2625,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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