Integrated Pest Management -- A Look to the Future cW^ -^ <^ 



by 



J. M. Good, Director 



Pest Management Programs 



Before 1945, pest losses on livestock, crops, and home gardens were 

 enormous. Pests limited agricultural production and degraded the 

 esthetic values of our environment. Farmers went to work by sunrise 

 and did not leave the fields until dusk— as agriculturalists have done 

 for centuries. Farmers and home gardeners were restricted to a few 

 pesticides such as arsenic and paris green. They relied heavily on 

 hand plucking of insects and other century old labor-intensive methods 

 of pest control. Shrubs and home lawns consisted mainly of a 

 few cultivars and native species that survived pest attack. Except 

 for those of the very wealthy, home lawns and shrubs were unthrifty 

 and unattractive. Swept yards (dirt) were commonplace in much of 

 rural America. 



All this changed in the I940's and I950's with the advent of modern 

 pesticides and with vast improvements in crop varieties, introduction 

 of exotic species of plants, a rising economy, increased mechanization, 

 higher fertility practices, improved irrigation systems, and above all, 

 unprecedented good weather for agriculture. 



Extension educational programs on pest control contributed greatly 

 to this beauty and agricultural abundance. Midway in this period that 

 came to be known as the "pesticide treadmill," Extension agents and 

 specialists were among the first to observe and sound the alarm that 

 there were problems with pesticides. They pointed out to researchers 

 and others that insects and diseases were becoming resistant to modern 

 pesticides. Application dosages had to be increased and the interval 

 between applications shortened. Many nontarget organisms were being 

 affected by pesticides. 



Agricultural scientists began to define the problem and develop solutions. 

 By 1971, Extension was prepared to initiate pest management demon- 

 strations with farmers in several states. 



Objectives of IPM 



The objectives of the Extension Integrated Pest Management Program 

 (1PM) are to: 



