Integrated Pest Management Strategies for Crops: From Lab Discoveries to On-Farm Implementation

Dear Colleagues,

Agricultural yields are increasingly constrained by abiotic and biotic stressors, among which insect pests remain paramount. Harnessing natural enemies—arthropod biocontrol agents or entomopathogenic microbes—constitute a cornerstone of integrated pest management (IPM) for curbing yield losses. Yet, most advances emerge from simplified laboratory arenas, and their on-farm translation remains disappointingly scarce. Therefore, it is the time to consider our interests in on-farm implementation.

This Special Issue welcomes research articles and reviews that discuss field and semi-field studies that interrogate how biocontrol interventions or multitrophic interactions modulate pest pressure and, ultimately, crop yield. In addition, submissions addressing laboratory investigations of multi-trophic interactions involving three or more trophic levels, multi-generational studies, or research focused on the Multidimensional Management of Multiple Pests (3MP) are also encouraged. Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Pest management and biological control;
• Utilization of natural enemies;
• Bottom-up effects;
• Sustainable pest management in the semi-field and field conditions;
• Other related applications (such as abiotic stressors).

Dr. Chen Luo
Dr. Zuqing Hu
Guest Editors

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