FROM RESEARCHER TO FARMER - THE USE OF EXTENSION PROGRAMS TO TRANSFERBIOLOGICAL-CONTROL TECHNOLOGY IN DEVELOPED-COUNTRIES

Effective use of biological control by the pest manager requires knowl edge of the biologies of the pests and natural enemies, and their inte ractions with their environment and agronomic practices. Manufacturers provide information for products such as microbial pesticides and ent omophagous arthropods used in augmentative biological control. However , information about process-oriented methods such as classical (import ation) biological control and conservation of natural enemies is not o ften available to the farmer. Governmental extension programs are one method for providing practical biological control information, but ava ilability in developed countries varies considerably. Examples of tran sfer of biological control information are provided for New Zealand, C anada, and Australia. In the United States, the Extension Service, a b ranch of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, provides partial funding and coordination for pest management educational programs conducted at the national, regional, state and local levels. In a twelve-state reg ion of the North Central United States, university extension and resea rch entomologists have developed a coordinated program to educate coun ty extension personnel, farmers, and private consultants about the use of biological controls in pest management. The derails of this model program are discussed. The paper concludes with a discussion of the ed ucational constraints that must be overcome to successfully increase t he adoption of biological control.