IPM in Latin America and the Caribbean: Crops for Broad-Based Growth and Perennial Production for Fragile Ecosystems

Farmers graft naranjilla plants in a greenhouse in Ecuador. The IPM CRSP team has found high success rates combating bacterial canker, root knot nematode, and Fusarium wilt through grafting.

PI: Jeff Alwang, Virginia Tech
E-mail: alwangj@vt.edu
Personal Web Page: http://www.aaec.vt.edu/aaec/PeopleFacultyAlwang.html

This program addresses pest management issues for selected seasonal and perennial crops. It includes heterogeneous island, coastal, and mountainous ecosystems with highly diverse human societies. In these settings, seasonal crops contribute to income and exports, help reduce poverty and food insecurity, and provide engines of growth for lagging regions.

In addition, perennials can bring economic stability to areas with fragile ecosystems, reduce soil erosion and deforestation, and contribute to biodiversity. Because perennials and seasonal crops are often produced in association, they face complex pest problems that need to be addressed in an integrated fashion.

This program focuses on solanaceous, cucurbits, diversified highland vegetables, cacao, and plantain in Central America (Guatemala and Honduras), South America (Ecuador), and the Caribbean (Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Trinidad & Tobago and smaller islands). It involves a comprehensive participatory approach that builds on past successes, is multi-disciplinary, and improves environmental quality through reduced pesticide use and biodiversity monitoring.

Technical Papers

• Barrenador del fruto de la berenjena, Neoleucinodes elegantalis (Eggplant Fruit borer)
• Avances en el estudio de la biología y hábitos de la Gallina ciega (Phyllophaga obsoleta) en Honduras (Advances in the study of the biology and habits of Phyllophaga obsoleta in Honduras)
• Prácticas culturales para prevenir la diseminación y el daño del ácaro de la fresa (Cultural practices to prevent the dissemination and damage of the strawberry mite)

In the Media

• Workshop held on tomato IPM in the San José de Ocoa region of the Dominican Republic - A workshop on identification and management of pests and diseases was held on Wednesday April 30, 2011 in the province of San José de Ocoa, Dominican Republic. Full story >
• Meeting in Dominican Republic: Seeking to reduce pesticide use in vegetable production - Agricultural researchers from Virginia Tech, the University of Arizona, Penn State, and Purdue University are working in coordination with researchers in plant protection in the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, and Honduras to offer alternatives that significantly reduce pesticide use to vegetable growers the Dominican Republic. Full story >

Other related documents

• LAC Regional Program 2012 Planning Meeting
• Fact Sheet: The Zebra chip-Paratrioza complex in Honduras (assembled by FHIA and the IPM CRSP/in Spanish)
• Trip Report: 28th International Horticulture Congress, August 22–27, 2010 (126 KB)
• Poster: Susceptibility of cowpea cultivars to root-knot nematode in Honduras (637 KB)