Phenological activity tables for oilseed rape pests
Oilseed rape is an important crop in the European Union covering between 3.0-3.5 million hectares, although this is expected to increase. At present, crop protection in oilseed rape relies upon multiple applications of pesticides, which can harm non-target species, reduce biodiversity and degrade the environment. The MASTER project has developed economically viable and environmentally less harmful integrated pest management (IPM) strategies for the oilseed rape crop. This was achieved by maximising the biological control of pests and minimising pesticide use. The MASTER project has developed phenological activity tables for six key pests of winter oilseed rape. The tables, which have been made available on a free-to-use-basis, describe the influence of climate data on the activity of the pests. The tables were used to incorporate phenological models for the pests into the decision support system (DSS) proPlant. They are also capable of incorporation into other DSSs. Through the analysis of daily weather conditions, the systems can predict when the pests will become active and for how long. By combining this information with existing models, farmers can be informed of the best time for applying pesticides, possibly at the beginning of pest migration. Research suggests very long periods of pest activity with several peaks of migration. If pesticides were to be applied only at the beginning of migration, they would fail to target those pests which migrate later, because of the decreasing effectiveness of the applied treatment.
