Growers can achieve effective mealy-bug control with the correct use of existing tools. By Anna Mouton. Chlorpyrifos was a mainstay for controlling mealy bugs and other sucking insects for nearly 50 years until safety concerns spelled its doom. “The first…
Effective pest control in perennial crop monocultures demands a diversified approach. By Anna Mouton. Modern agriculture has created areas of crop monocultures that are primarily managed through chemical interventions. Crop-protection specialist Dr Gideon van Zyl of ProCrop discussed the challenges…
Real-time information and forecasting of pest and disease development. By Engela Duvenage. Information gathered daily on farms can be fed into effective modelling programmes to take precision farming to a next level. Modelling can help producers time disease and pest…
Managing spray application in the presence of drape nets. By Engela Duvenage. “Drape netting reduces tree canopy penetration. It influences where and how thoroughly sprays are deposited onto leaves, and the amount of chemicals ultimately deposited on the outside and…
Expert insights into achieving good deposition. By Anna Mouton. Effective crop protection is conditional on effective spraying. Growers need to apply the appropriate products at strategic times using correct techniques. Sounds straightforward — except spray application turns out to be…
A changing strategy for a changing world. By Marinda Louw Coetzee. Crop protection is changing due to increasingly stringent market requirements for ethical fruit production, as well as due to changes in orchard structure and ecology. The Orchard of the…