Organics really includes more IPM methods

After attending several seminars on organic production last year at grower conferences in Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio, it is apparent that, at least as far as pest management is concerned, “organic” simply encompasses the concept of integrated pest management. During these presentations, the speakers continually emphasized the importance of scouting, sanitation and cultural control. These pest-management strategies have been promoted in association with IPM programs for more than 40 years.

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Overall, organic is not a new concept. However, it is important that greenhouse producers understand that organic production is defined by USDA and refers to growing plants without the use of conventional pesticides, artificial fertilizers, sewage sludge or ionizing radiation. In the broad sense, organic designates what cannot be done or used during production. The list of pest controls is substantially limited for organic production.

Regulating organic products, procedures

Two acronyms growers may encounter when dealing with organic production are OMRI and NOP, which refer to the Organic Materials Review Institute and National Organic Program, respectively. OMRI is associated with a service provided by this nonprofit organization that reviews products intended for use in certified organic production. USDA established NOP and dictates what products may be used to satisfy its requirements.

Certain restrictions are designated by NOP, such as the requirement that preventive, physical and cultural methods and the introduction of beneficial arthropods (insects and mites) must be the first choice for managing insect and mite pests. If these materials or strategies are not effective, then botanical, biological or synthetic substances on the natural list may be used.

The implementation of any pest-management strategy must be thoroughly documented. It is important to use biological and cultural practices, especially in sanitation.

These primary organic production strategies are very similar to IPM. The overall concept of organic is just a different wrapper covering IPM. What is very important from the standpoint of pest management in organic production is the lack of knowledge associated with the types of pest-control materials that may be used.

Organic pest-control materials

Pest-control materials are available for greenhouse producers who convert to organic production. Materials recommended for use, based on the OMRI listing, include: Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. kurstaki (Dipel), Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis (Gnatrol), Beauveria bassiana (Mycotrol and Naturalis), potassium salts of fatty acids (Insecticidal Soap and M-Pede), azadirachtin (Azatrol and Neemix), neem oil (Triact and Trilogy), pyrethrum (PyGanic), spinosad (Entrust), and horticultural oils (petroleum oils -- PureSpray Green; plant oils -- GC Mite and Golden Pest Spray Oil; and fish-based oils -- Organocide).

Common characteristics of most of these materials are:

1. Short residual activity.

2. Sensitive to ultraviolet light and rainfall.

3. Primarily active on young stages of insect and mite pests.

4. Less harmful (indirectly) to beneficial insects or mites (natural enemies).

5. Low mammalian toxicity.

Additionally, certain materials are considered minimum-risk pesticides. Under the 25b Minimum Risk Pesticide listing, products containing certain active ingredients are exempt from requirements of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act. Most of these active ingredients are plant-derived essential oils including cinnamon oil, clove oil, cottonseed oil, eugenol, garlic oil, geranium oil, lauryl sulfate, mint oil, peppermint oil, rosemary oil, sesame oil, soybean oil and thyme oil.

Opportunities to use biocontrols

Issues associated with the active ingredients of some of these control products include the lack of efficacy data and potential for plant injury (phytotoxicity). At Kansas State University, researchers have initiated a large-scale program to evaluate both the efficacy and phytotoxicity of commercially available plant-derived essential oils to provide information to greenhouse producers.

When transitioning from conventional to organic production, it is important to understand that the arthropod pests (insects and mites) don’t change, only the types of pest-control materials do. This may limit the options associated with pest controls. This provides an opportunity to use biological controls or natural enemies such as parasitoids, predators and entomopathogenic nematodes and pathogens.

Using natural enemies is very different from applying pest controls since a certain level of commitment is required for a biological control program to succeed. For more information on implementing biological control programs, ask an extension entomologist or biological control supplier.

Those interested in conforming to the guidelines presented by NOP can obtain the publication 2005 Resource Guide for Organic Insect and Disease Management, available from New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, Cornell University in Geneva, N.Y., www.nysaes.cornell.edu.

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- Raymond Cloyd