Plant Disease Management in the Era of Energy Conservation

Abstract

In the 21(superscript st) century, the term of ”agricultural sustainability” has become a norm for modern agriculture as we are facing severa1 long-term crises such as energy shortage, global warming and environmental pollutions. As environmental and ecological issues continue to impact on agriculture, all technologies developed for crop production must be economically feasible, ecologically sound, environmentally safe and socia11y acceptable. Numerous non-chemical methods for control of crop diseases such as pathogen-free seeds, disease resistance', crop rotation, plant extracts, organic amendments and biological control are considered less harmful than synthetic chemical pesticides and, therefore， offer great potential for application in conventional agriculture， organic farming and/or soilless culture. No single method can provide satisfactory control of crop diseases. Integration of all effective and eco-friendly measures in accordance with the dynamics of the agroecosystem management would be the best strategy for efficient control of diseases in crops. In this era of energy conservation and environmental protection, research on energy saving and environmentally sound methods for sustainable management of crop diseases is a priority and a challenge.