duction. Continuing with “chemical warfare”
against the competitors is also losing face especially in view of pesticide impacts on wildlife. So, what do we do? We have to rapidly
shift our crop and animal production to integrated management systems where preventative cultivation, breeding, natural pest management, chemical pest management and
habitat conservation all play an equally important role. Underlying all of this is to study
and understand the biology and ecology of
the competitor species. It is simply futile to try
and manage a competitor if you do not understand how it operates in the crop or in the
herd. A good knowledge base brings forth
preventative and curative control measures. A
poor knowledge base brings forth someone
with an elephant rifle while a .22 would have
been suitable. Knowledge will eventually
bring it into better harmony with competitor
species and not simply relying on chemical
pest control.
It is against this background that I plead with
farmers to become agricultural scientists and
yes, it is rewarding to attend a grower symposium and hearing the wisdom of farmers
based on science. Yet, there is still a tendency
to fight a pest, disease or weed without fully
understanding its biology and why it is impacting on our crops or our animals. I think
more time needs to be spent behind a mug of
boeretroos and a scientific reference book
than in the bakkie!!
Contact the author:
[email protected] 082-446-8946
A specimen of Harmonia axyridis in South Africa, freshly out of its pupa. Its black spots
will develop as its exoskeleton hardens
By JonRichfield - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16466015