EIP-AGRI Focus Group on IPM Brassica: Minipaper 5 - Ecological selectivity of pesticides and application methods

There has been a lot of emphasis over the years on the development and use of pesticides that are specific and/or physiologically selective. This is a property of the pesticide’s chemistry and mode of action and the physiological and biochemical attributes of organisms and, for example, pirimicarb is a relatively selective compound, being effective against sucking pests such as aphids but having considerably less impact on insects from other taxa. There has also been consideration of ecological selectivity, which is the judicious use of pesticides, based on critical selection, timing, dosage, placement and formulation of pesticides (which are often broad spectrum). For example, there has been quite a lot of emphasis over the years on appropriate timing of pesticide applications, as evidenced by the considerable amounts of research on monitoring and forecasting systems for pests and pathogens and their subsequent uptake by farmers and growers.