THE ROLE OF DECISION-SUPPORT SYSTEMS IN INTEGRATED CROP PROTECTION

The use of decision support systems in integrated crop protection syst ems is discussed. Through the use of appropriate examples, present and future trends in the development of decision support systems are addr essed. Some of the possible reasons for the relatively limited number of such applications being used in the field are presented in terms of the problems that face the development of these systems. An attempt i s made to estimate the benefits that such systems can make toward impr oving crop protection in terms of financial return and reduced environ mental impact. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.