Alternative Strategies for Controlling Wireworms in Field Crops: A Review

Sylvain Poggi, Ronan Le Cointe, Jörn Lehmhus, Manuel Plantegenest and Lorenzo Furlan
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Sylvain Poggi: INRAE, Institute for Genetics, Environment and Plant Protection (IGEPP), Agrocampus Ouest, Université de Rennes, 35650 Le Rheu, France
Ronan Le Cointe: INRAE, Institute for Genetics, Environment and Plant Protection (IGEPP), Agrocampus Ouest, Université de Rennes, 35650 Le Rheu, France
Jörn Lehmhus: Institute for Plant Protection in Field Crops and Grassland, Julius Kühn-Institute, 38104 Braunschweig, Germany
Manuel Plantegenest: INRAE, Institute for Genetics, Environment and Plant Protection (IGEPP), Agrocampus Ouest, Université de Rennes, 35650 Le Rheu, France
Lorenzo Furlan: Veneto Agricoltura, 35020 Legnaro, Italy

Agriculture, 2021, vol. 11, issue 5, 1-30

Abstract: Wireworms, the soil-dwelling larvae of click beetles (Coleoptera: Elateridae), comprise major pests of several crops worldwide, including maize and potatoes. The current trend towards the reduction in pesticides use has resulted in strong demand for alternative methods to control wireworm populations. This review provides a state-of-the-art of current theory and practice in order to develop new agroecological strategies. The first step should be to conduct a risk assessment based on the production context (e.g., crop, climate, soil characteristics, and landscape) and on adult and/or larval population monitoring. When damage risk appears significant, prophylactic practices can be applied to reduce wireworm abundance (e.g., low risk rotations, tilling, and irrigation). Additionally, curative methods based on natural enemies and on naturally derived insecticides are, respectively, under development or in practice in some countries. Alternatively, practices may target a reduction in crop damage instead of pest abundance through the adoption of selected cultural practices (e.g., resistant varieties, planting and harvesting time) or through the manipulation of wireworm behavior (e.g., companion plants). Practices can be combined in a global Integrated Pest Management (IPM) framework to provide the desired level of crop protection.

Keywords: click beetle; crop damage; integrated pest management; risk assessment; pest monitoring; biocontrol; landscape feature; habitat manipulation; companion plant; mutual fund (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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