DECISION-SUPPORT SYSTEMS IN CROP PROTECTION

All farmers and growers have at some time faced the decision of whethe r to control a pest in their crop, In order to make the correct decisi on the farmer needs access to, and an understanding of, sufficient inf ormation relevant to such pest problems, Decision support systems are able to help farmers make these difficult decisions by providing infor mation in an easily understandable and quickly accessed form, The incr easing use of computers by farmers for record-keeping and business man agement is putting the hardware necessary for the implementation of th ese systems onto more and more farms, The scarcity of expert advice, i ncreasingly complex decisions and reduced economic margins all increas e the importance of making the right pest management decision at the r ight time, It is against this background that decision support systems have an important role to play in the fight against losses caused by pests and diseases.