What is Integrated Pest Managment(IPM)

An IPM system is designed around six basic components:

1. Acceptable pest levels: Control not eradication. IPM programs first work to establish acceptable pest levels, called action thresholds, and apply controls if those thresholds are crossed. If many of the pests are killed then any that have resistance to the chemical will rapidly reproduce forming a resistant population. By not killing all the pests there are some un-resistant pests left that will dilute any resistant genes that appear.
2. Monitoring: Regular observation is the cornerstone of IPM. Inspection and identification for accurate pest control. Record keeping is essential, as is a thorough knowledge of the behavior and reproductive cycles of target pests. Since insects are cold-blooded, their physical development is dependent on the temperature of their environment.
3. Mechanical Control: Should a pest reach unacceptable level, mechanical methods are the first options to consider. They include simple hand-picking, erecting insect barriers, using traps, vacuuming, and tillage to disrupt the breeding.
4. Biological Control: Natural biological processes and materials can provide control with minimal environmental impact, and often at low cost. The main focus here is on promoting benefecial insects that eat target pests.
5. Chemical Control: Synthetic pesticides are generally only used as required and often only at specific times in a pests life cycle. Many of the newer pesticides are derived from plants or naturally occurring substances.