[Edited_by_A._Ciancio,_C.N.R.,_Bari,_Italy_and_K.(Bookos.org)

CITRUS PEST MANAGEMENT IN THE MEDITERRANEAN BASIN 5
IPM/IP guidelines are defined at regional level in Greece, Portugal and Turkey,
and at both regional and national level in Israel, Italy and Spain. IPM/IP certification
companies are reported in Italy, Spain and Portugal (Franco et al., 2006).
Guidelines for Integrated Production of Citrus have been produced by the
IOBC/WPRS Commission “IP-Guidelines and Endorsement” (IOBC/WPRS, 2004),
and they mainly concern standards for the IP organizations in order to develop
national or local guidelines. According to these standards and in relation to
integrated plant protection, all available preventive (indirect) plant protection
measures must be applied before direct control techniques are used. Priority should
be given to natural, cultural, biological, genetic (GMOs are generally excluded and
permission may be given on a case-by-case study) and biotechnical methods of pest
control and the use of agrochemicals should be minimized.
The decision for the application of direct control methods must be based on
economic thresholds, wherever possible, risk assessments and forecasts, including
those provided by official forecasting services. A restricted list of the key pests,
diseases and weeds that require regular attention must be established by the IP
organizations and their populations should be regularly monitored and recorded. In
addition at least three key natural enemies in each crop must be identified in
national/regional guidelines. Furthermore, the use of plant protection products toxic
to these beneficial arthropods should be reduced to a minimum and always in
periods of low activity of the natural enemies, or of low risk for them. Populations
of key natural enemies must be preserved and incremented.
With regard to pesticides, all those locally or nationally available must be
classified by the IP organizations in two lists: the “green list” including the
permitted products and the “yellow list” including those pesticides permitted with
restrictions. The pesticides categorization is based on several criteria (i.e. toxicity to
man, toxicity to key natural enemies, toxicity to other natural organisms, pollution
of ground and surface water, ability to stimulate pests, selectivity, persistence,
incomplete information, necessity of use), and it is already established for certain
pesticides and pesticide groups as follows:
- Not permitted: pyrethroid insecticides and acaricides, non-naturally
occurring plant growth regulators (their use can only be allowed when
absolutely necessary), organochlorine insecticides and acaricides, water
polluting products and very persistent herbicides;
- Permitted with restrictions: dithiocarbamate fungicides (normally
maximum of three applications per season and not in succession, so that
predatory phytoseiid mites are not affected), fosetil-Al and phosphonate
potassium (maximum of two applications per year), metalaxyl (maximum
of 2 g/m 2 ), residual (soil) herbicides (except toxic, polluting or very
persistent products) in the first 3 years after planting (maximum of one
dose-equivalent per annum).
Officially recognized dose adjustment protocols must be used where available, in
order to adapt dose rates to the size and density of the target trees being sprayed.
The maximum volume of application per hectare must be defined according to the