Application of plant life-history theory to strategies for breeding crop plants for sustainable agriculture remains relatively unexplored. We determined the relative tolerance of wild and domesticated tomatoes to simulated herbivory and evaluated plant characteristics that may contribute to tolerance. Wild and domesticated tomatoes were subjected to different levels of defoliation ranging from 0 to 70%. Single defoliation events at lower levels (15-30%) did not significantly affect total fruit mass produced in either wild or domesticated tomatoes. Increased defoliation resulted in significant reductions in total fruit mass per plant and mean mass per fruit. Reduction in fruit output by the cultivar was °3 times greater than the wild tomato for the first 8 wk of fruit production, whereas the loss in seasonal fruit production by the cultivar was 1.7 times greater than the wild tomato. We concluded that domestication of tomatoes may have decreased their relative tolerance to herbivory. Possible mechanisms for decreased tolerance include differences in leaf area index, light capture curves, and the relative allocation pattern to vegetative growth vs. reproductive structures. Optimization of potential life-history trade-offs between tolerance to herbivory and maximum fruiting abilities are proposed for cultivars of sustainable agriculture.
Advances in scientific disciplines that support classical biological control have provided “new tools” that could have important applications for biocontrol programs for some long-established invasive arthropod pests. We suggest that these previously unavailable tools should be used in biological control programs targeting “legacy pests”, even if they have been targets of previously unsuccessful biocontrol projects. Examples of “new tools” include molecular analyses to verify species identities and likely geographic area of origin, climate matching and ecological niche modeling, preservation of natural enemy genetic diversity in quarantine, the use of theory from invasion biology to maximize establishment likelihoods for natural enemies, and improved understanding of the interactions between natural enemy and target pest microbiomes. This review suggests that opportunities exist for revisiting old pest problems and funding research programs using “new tools” for developing biological control programs for “legacy pests” could provide permanent suppression of some seemingly intractable pest problems. As a case study, we use citricola scale, Coccus pseudomagnoliarum, an invasive legacy pest of California citrus, to demonstrate the potential of new tools to support a new classical biological control program targeting this insect.
BACKGROUND
Pesticide drift is a serious environmental and safety concern that affects all of US agriculture. A number of mitigation techniques to reduce pesticide drift have been recommended by industry, academic and government agencies. These techniques are very costly or reduce the efficacy of the pest control product and have not been implemented by US agriculture.
RESULTS
When using a novel spray technique (Air‐in), pesticide drift was significantly reduced by between 53% and 99% at 7.6 m from the orchard drip line when compared to the grower standard. This technique not only reduced pesticide drift, but also maintained or improved the amount of pesticide residue deposited (by 0.7–2.6‐fold) and the percentage pesticide coverage (by 1.0–1.4‐fold) with different air‐blast speed sprayers on almond, walnut and pistachio.
CONCLUSION
The Air‐in technique shows great promise in reducing pesticide drift while maintaining or improving pesticide coverage with minimal cost to the grower.
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