An Australian approach to IPM in cotton: integrating new technologies to minimise insecticide dependence

Insect pests represent a severe limitation for cotton production in many regions of the world. Key pests include several Heliothine moths, which are well adapted to exploit cropping systems associated with cotton and often evolve resistance to pesticides. While many components of IPM have been implemented, the main intervention for the management of key pests continues to be insecticides. This reliance on pesticides brings significant environmental liabilities of off-target drift, chemical residues and resistance. IPM must be founded on a thorough understanding of the ecology of pest and beneficial species and their interaction with the crop. The emerging era of insect resistant transgenic cottons offers real prospects to provide a foundation for more sustainable, economically acceptable IPM with the integration of a range of non-chemical tactics and much less reliance on pesticides.