How do California peach, plum and nectarine growers manage potential pests and tree diseases?
California peach, plum and nectarine growers’ utmost concern is growing a safe product. They strive to produce a plentiful and high quality crop of fresh peaches, plums and nectarines free of insects, fungus and fruit disease. Growers try, whenever possible, to use pest control methods other than chemicals, such as Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques. This kind of farming seeks to reduce the use of conventional pesticides. One IPM technique used by most growers is the application of dormant spray oil in the winter, when no fruit or leaves are on the trees. Trees are sprayed with a mineral oil solution. The oil alone smothers overwintering pests and their eggs, reducing the number of pests that hatch in the spring. In IPM practice, during the growing season, growers monitor exactly what kinds of pests they have, then first treat these pests with natural predators or employ a technique called pheromone mating disruption. In Pheromone Mating Disruption, growers hang small pheromon
Related Questions
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- How do California peach, plum and nectarine growers manage potential pests and tree diseases?
