Abstract
This paper provides the first detailed presentation of research and professional activities in the field of biological control in Slovenia during the period of 1990–2020. It presents information on the important pioneering role of Prof. Dr. Lea Milevoj in biological control research in Slovenia, especially in regard to the inventorying and laboratory rearing of indigenous beneficial organisms, evaluation of the influence of food type on the feeding behaviour of beneficial organisms, participation in the first introduction of a natural enemy within the context of classical biological control in Slovenia, preparation of rules on the biological control of plant pests and publication of the first Slovenian monograph on biological control. The paper also describes the activities of Slovenian researchers in regard to entomopathogenic nematodes, especially related to the assessment of their presence and efficiency in suppressing harmful insects and the identification of indigenous parasitic nematodes associated with economically harmful slugs. The paper also notes some applicative and basic research projects pertaining to parasitoids, especially in terms of their function as natural enemies of aphids, and in regard to predators of harmful insects and mites, especially predatory mites. The main goal of these activities is to implement the use of as many natural enemies as possible in food and ornamental plant production systems to replace the use of plant protection products.
Highlights
Biological control, i.e., a method of plant protection that involves the use of living beneficial organisms to suppress or control populations of organisms harmful to plants to reduce the damage they would cause, is relatively well-known globally, yet its use is not widespread, as the chemical suppression of harmful organisms still prevails in most countries [1]
Dr Lea Milevoj, the pioneer of biological control in Slovenia, became aware of the importance of this environmentally acceptable manner of the suppression of harmful organisms in agriculture very early in its development, and she undertook intensive research and professional work in the 1990s to set the foundations for this field in Slovenia
Due to her exceptional general knowledge of plant protection and agriculture, she was an outstanding member of the expert group involved in the preparation of the rules on the biological control of plant pests, which became a model for some other European countries
Summary
Biological control, i.e., a method of plant protection that involves the use of living beneficial organisms (predators, parasitoids, entomopathogenic nematodes, entomopathogenic fungi and bacteria, protozoa and viruses) to suppress or control populations of organisms harmful to plants to reduce the damage they would cause, is relatively well-known globally, yet its use is not widespread, as the chemical suppression of harmful organisms still prevails in most countries [1]. Sci. 2020, 10, 7468 year, namely, the cottony cushion scale parasite, Cryptochaetum iceryae (Williston), and the ladybird beetle Rodolia cardinalis (Mulsant) The latter became a synonym for the efficiency of biological control [4]. Dr Lea Milevoj, today a retired professor in the field of phytomedicine, who began intensive work in this field at the beginning of the 1990s at the Biotechnical Faculty of the University of Ljubljana Her prolific professional work can be divided into several segments, the most important of which is the inventorying and laboratory rearing of indigenous beneficial organisms.
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