How to monitor for key pests and beneficials

AHDB webinar

Organisation: 
AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds
Date: 
June 2020
Copyright: 
All rights reserved.
Evidence: 
Applied research
Related theme: 
Pests & diseases
Cereals, oil seeds & pulses
People & skills
Pollinators & ecological services
Key Farming Practices: 
Trap crops
Integrated Pest Management
Related links: 
Encyclopaedia of pests and natural enemies in field crops

Watch the webinar
Resource explained: 

With the reduction in availability of key inputs, the need for integrated pest management (IPM) has become even more important. But, do you know which and how many pollinators and beneficials you are encouraging on your farm? This webinar, chaired by AHDB's Richard Meredith, and recorded as part of AHDB Strategic Farm Week 2020, looks at how to set up, monitor, analyse and use information collected from on-farm pitfall traps and sticky traps. Strategic Cereal Farmer Rob Fox (from Squab Hall Farm in Warwickshire) was joined by Crop Protection Scientist Mark Ramsden (ADAS) and AHDB's Senior Knowledge Transfer Manager Emily Pope. They talked us through measuring aphids, cabbage stem flea beetle, and slugs and their natural enemies on the farm.  

Findings & recommendations: 
  • AHDB Strategic Farm Week 2020 was dedicated to communicating the latest results and information from AHDB's Strategic Cereal Farms.
  • You can view slides from the webinar, an accompanying handout, a practical guide to insect monitoring, and details of an aphid survey you can contribute to that will help build a national picture of numbers of aphids and natural enemies via the Strategic Farm Week 2020 link.

Webinar: How to monitor for key pests and beneficials

Summary provided by: 
Janie Caldbeck

You may also be interested in

Simply Sustainable Integrated Pest Management

resource An up-to-date, easy to read guidebook and manual on why Integrated Pest Management is the key to sustainable crop health across agricultural and horticultural sectors...
Weeds, Pests & diseases, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, Roots & horticulture, Crop nutrition & fertility building, Business management, People & skills, Pollinators & ecological services

Integrated slug control

resource Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) Know your enemy - an integrated approach to slug control is more effective than using chemical slug pellets alone
Integrated farming, Compaction & cultivation, Pests & diseases, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, Roots & horticulture, Biodiversity, People & skills
Taken by Ben Pearson. All Rights Reserved

It’s not just about the bees

resource Organic vegetable farmer Andy Dibben puts forward the case of allowing complex insect ecosystems to develop or be proactively encouraged on farms, describing ways in...
Compaction & cultivation, Weeds, Pests & diseases, Roots & horticulture, Crop nutrition & fertility building, People & skills, Pollinators & ecological services, Biodiversity
Image courtesy of Tom Staton. All Rights Reserved

Farming with trees: a potential ‘win-win’ for sustainable food production and biodiversity?

resource The University of Reading Summary highlighting outcomes of Tom Staton's PhD thesis ‘Evaluating the effects of agroforestry versus arable systems on functional biodiversity and associated ecosystem services.’
Agroforestry, Weeds, Pests & diseases, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, People & skills, Pollinators & ecological services, Biodiversity

Perennial flower strips for pest control in fruit orchards

resource Organic Growers Alliance (OGA) This article, adapted from a technical guide published as part of the EcoOrchard project, looks at advantages of sown flower strips, management considerations, costs, and...
Weeds, Pests & diseases, Roots & horticulture, Pollinators & ecological services, Biodiversity

Biological control strategies for outdoor vegetable production

resource Koppert UK Presentation given by Koppert UK at an Agricology field day event on integrated pest management strategies for outdoor vegetable production.
Pests & diseases, Roots & horticulture, People & skills, Pollinators & ecological services

Climate change and UK horticulture: What is to come and how to build resilience

resource Oxford Real Farming Conference Footage recorded at ORFC 2020 of a workshop organised by the OGA and Agricology. Rosemary Collier of Warwick Crop Centre talks about some of the...
Type, texture & structure, Organic matter, Soil biology, Pests & diseases, Roots & horticulture, People & skills, Pollinators & ecological services, Biodiversity, Climate

Virtual Field Day: Crop Mixtures

resource James Hutton Institute & Organic Research Centre Recording of a virtual field day held on August 11th 2020 in collaboration between Agricology and James Hutton Institute and the SEAMS and DIVERSify projects,...
Weeds, Pests & diseases, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, Grasslands & forage crops, Business management, Markets & food systems, People & skills, Pollinators & ecological services

Encouraging natural predators (outdoors)

resource ORC / GWCT / LEAF / OF&G / Soil Association / SRUC / Agricology - as part of Defra Project OF03111 Organic Management Techniques This abstract describes information on encouraging natural predators to help control crop pests that reduce yield and quality.
Pests & diseases, People & skills, Biodiversity

Prospects for improved off-crop habitat management for pollen beetle control in oilseed rape

resource Rothamsted Research Paper looking at factors that influence the abundance of pollen beetle and damage to oilseed rape and how habitat management may improve pollen beetle control.
Pests & diseases, Cereals, oil seeds & pulses, People & skills, Biodiversity