Gc. Luther et al., DEVELOPMENT OF PRELIMINARY ECONOMIC THRESHOLDS FOR AN INTEGRATED PEST-MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR SOYBEANS IN JAVA, International journal of pest management, 41(3), 1995, pp. 166-175
Two field trials were conducted for the purposes of comparing various
soybean pest management schemes and setting preliminary economic thres
holds that could be used by farmers as part of an integrated pest mana
gement (IPM) programme. Both trials tested the same four treatments: (
1) a pest management scheme that followed the type of plan that many f
armers in Java use, (2) and (3) two schemes utilizing different econom
ic thresholds set by researchers, and (4) an untreated control. The pe
st management schemes are compared regarding various aspects, includin
g yield and profitability. In both trials the plans did not differ sig
nificantly in profitability; however, in each trial the same threshold
scheme had the highest mean values for both yield and profitability.
Therefore, a pest control system based on this threshold scheme is rec
ommended, with some refinements in certain threshold levels for specif
ic pest guilds where the trials show refinements to be appropriate. It
is advised that farmers use the threshold levels recommended here as
starting points, and then make adjustments according to the soybean va
riety used, abundance of natural enemies present, economic factors, et
c.