Abstract
The diamondback moth (DBM), Plutella xylostella, is a global economic pest of brassicas whose pest status has been exacerbated by climate change and variability. Southern African small-scale farmers are battling to cope with increasing pressure from the pest due to limited exposure to sustainable control options. The current paper critically analysed literature with a climate change and sustainability lens. The results show that research in Southern Africa (SA) remains largely constrained despite the region’s long acquaintance with the insect pest. Dependency on broad-spectrum insecticides, the absence of insecticide resistance management strategies, climate change, little research attention, poor regional research collaboration and coordination, and lack of clear policy support frameworks, are the core limitations to effective DBM management. Advances in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) technologies and climate-smart agriculture (CSA) techniques for sustainable pest management have not benefitted small-scale horticultural farmers despite the farmers’ high vulnerability to crop losses due to pest attack. IPM adoption was mainly limited by lack of locally-developed packages, lack of stakeholders’ concept appreciation, limited alternatives to chemical control, knowledge paucity on biocontrol, climate mismatch between biocontrol agents’ origin and release sites, and poor research expertise and funding. We discuss these challenges in light of climate change and variability impacts on small-scale farmers in SA and recommend climate-smart, holistic, and sustainable homegrown IPM options propelled through IPM-Farmer Field School approaches for widespread and sustainable adoption.
Highlights
Brassica vegetables, like cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata) and cauliflower (B. oleracea var. botrytis), and open leaf kales, like rape (Brassica napus) and covo (Brassica carinata), are the popular staple relish and most widely grown leafy vegetables in the tropical and subtropical regions of Southern Africa (SA), cutting across a wide range of cultures and agro-ecologies [1,2,3,4,5]
Extreme temperatures, and flooding challenges faced in field crop production due to climate change [8,9], irrigable small vegetable plots remain comparatively reliable as an attractive source of food and income for rural households, who make up over 80% of the farming community in SA [6,10] and whose farming systems are more vulnerable to effects of climate change [9,11]
SA is facing a serious diamondback moth (DBM) challenge and efforts towards its management are characterised by a variety of constraints
Summary
Like cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata) and cauliflower (B. oleracea var. botrytis), and open leaf kales, like rape (Brassica napus) and covo (Brassica carinata), are the popular staple relish and most widely grown leafy vegetables in the tropical and subtropical regions of Southern Africa (SA), cutting across a wide range of cultures and agro-ecologies [1,2,3,4,5]. Botrytis), and open leaf kales, like rape (Brassica napus) and covo (Brassica carinata), are the popular staple relish and most widely grown leafy vegetables in the tropical and subtropical regions of Southern Africa (SA), cutting across a wide range of cultures and agro-ecologies [1,2,3,4,5] These vegetables are grown throughout the year [6] and form the fastest growing agricultural subsector that contributes significantly to national and regional incomes [6,7]. We propose research on sustainable climate-smart agriculture and the selection of compatible integrated pest management (IPM) components that provide effective management of the DBM under small-scale farmers in SA, in the context of current and projected climate change scenarios
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