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Special Issue "Frontiers in Sustainable Agroecosystems Design and Management"

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2021.

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Darija Lemić
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Guest Editor

Department for Agricultural Zoology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zagreb, Svetosimunska 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Interests: agriculture; IPM; entomology; sustainable pest control; biodiversity
Special Issues and Collections in MDPI journals

Dr. Ivana Pajač Živković
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SciProfiles

Guest Editor

Department of Agricultural Zoology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zagreb, Svetosimunska 25, 10000 zagreb, Croatia
Interests: sustainable plant protection; integrated production of perennial crops; agricultural entomology; invasive arthropods; insect diversity

Dr. Katarina M. Mikac
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Guest Editor

School of Earth, Atmospheric and Life Sciences; Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health; University of Wollongong, Australia.
Interests: conservation ecology; wildlife management
Special Issues and Collections in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Nowadays, a major challenge is ensuring food security, especially because of the impacts of climate change, an increasing human population, environmental protection, and economic and energy crises. Agricultural production has evolved from a purely technical focus to a more complex system characterized by social, cultural, political, and economic dimensions and changes.

These agricultural production challenges can be addressed by ensuring the sustainability of such systems by adopting innovative approaches (knowledge and methodology) in developing agriculture that are environmentally friendly yet highly productive, socially equitable, and economically viable. Modern agriculture should also enhance beneficial biological interactions and synergisms among agrobiodiversity components, thus resulting in the promotion of key ecosystem processes and services.

In this Special Issue, we focus on the reduction or elimination of agrochemical inputs through novel techniques and innovative changes in management in order to assure adequate plant nutrition and plant protection and integrated pest management. New social and ecological dimensions of agricultural management must be also explored in agricultural landscapes.

Dr. Darija Lemic
Dr. Ivana Pajač Živković
Dr. Katarina M. Mikac
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

novel techniques
biodiversity
IPM
agriculture
sustainability
modern food production

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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Open AccessArticle

Sustainable Pest Management Using Biodegradable Apitoxin-Loaded Calcium-Alginate Microspheres

Kristina Vlahoviček-Kahlina

and

Marko Vinceković

Sustainability 2021, 13(11), 6167; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13116167 - 30 May 2021

Viewed by 735

Abstract

Alternatives and replacements for synthetic chemical-based plant protectants are required. In this study biopolymeric microspheres containing arthropod-derived apitoxin are explored as a possible novel environmentally friendly formulation for plant protection. Here we document the optimization process for microencapsulation of apitoxin into a stable formulation, for ready use in agricultural applications. Efficacy trials were carried out on three different beetle species at various developmental stages (Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say, 1824.), Tenebrio molitor (Linnaeus, 1758.), Sitophilus granarius (Linnaeus, 1758.)). The encapsulated apitoxin has a steady initial and long residual effect, due to the slow release of apitoxin which is one of its main advantages over other conventional control methods. Microspheres loaded with apitoxin have a detrimental effect on insects, of which it is significantly better gastric compared to contact action (due to pH). The results showed that the highest and fastest mortality was obtained when the highest concentrations (0.6%) were applied, chosen to be economically acceptable. These important findings contribute to knowledge on the application and development of encapsulated apitoxin formulations, and their effectiveness, as an alternative eco-friendly control method in agricultural production. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Frontiers in Sustainable Agroecosystems Design and Management)

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Review

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Open AccessReview

Future of Insecticide Seed Treatment

Milorad Vojvodić

and

Renata Bažok

Sustainability 2021, 13(16), 8792; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13168792 - 06 Aug 2021

Viewed by 230

Abstract

Seed treatment as a method of local application of pesticides in precise agriculture reduces the amount of pesticides used per unit area and is considered to be the safest, cheapest and most ecologically acceptable method of protecting seeds and young plants from pests in the early stages of their development. With the introduction of insecticides from the neonicotinoid group in the mid-1990s, the frequency of seed treatment increased. Due to suspected negative effects on pollinators, most of these insecticides are banned in the European Union. The ban has therefore led to a reduction in the number of active substances approved for seed treatment and to an increased re-use of active substances from the group of pyrethroids as well as other organophosphorus insecticides, which pose potentially very serious risks, perhaps even greater than those of the banned neonicotinoids. The objective of this review is to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of seed treatment and the potential role of insecticide seed treatment in reducing the negative impact of pesticides on the environment. The main disadvantage of this method is that it has been widely accepted and has become a prophylactic protective measure applied to almost all fields. This is contrary to the principles of integrated pest management and leads to an increased input of insecticides into the environment, by treating a larger number of hectares with a lower amount of active ingredient, and a negative impact on beneficial entomofauna. In addition, studies show that due to the prophylactic approach, the economic and technical justification of this method is often questionable. Extremely important for a quality implementation are the correct processing and implementation of the treatment procedure as well as the selection of appropriate insecticides, which have proven to be problematic in the case of neonicotinoids. The ban on neonicotinoids and the withdrawal of seed treatments in oilseed rape and sugar beet has led to increased problems with a range of pests affecting these crops at an early stage of growth. The results of the present studies indicate good efficacy of active ingredients belonging to the group of anthranilic diamides, cyantraniliprole and chlorantraniliprole in the treatment of maize, soybean, sugar beet and rice seeds on pests of the above-ground part of the plant, but not on wireworms. Good efficacy in controlling wireworms in maize is shown by an insecticide in the naturalites group, spinosad, but it is currently used to treat seeds of vegetable crops, mainly onions, to control onion flies and flies on other vegetable crops. Seed treatment as a method only fits in with the principles of integrated pest management when treated seeds are sown on land where there is a positive prognosis for pest infestation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Frontiers in Sustainable Agroecosystems Design and Management)

Planned Papers

The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.

Title: Sustainable pest management using biodegradable apitoxin-loaded calcium-alginate microspheres
Authors: Darija Lemic; Matej Orešković; Katarina M Mikac; Marijan Marijan; Slaven Jurić; Kristina Vlahoviček-Kahlina; Marko Vinceković
Affiliation: University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Department for Agricultural Zoology, Svetošimunska 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract: Alternatives and replacements for synthetic chemical-based plant protectants are required. In this study biopolymeric microspheres containing arthropod-derived apitoxin are explored as a possible novel environmentally friendly formulation for plant protection. Here we document the optimization process for microencapsulation of apitoxin into a stable formulation, for ready use in agricultural applications. Efficacy trials were carried out on three different beetle species at various developmental stages (Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say, 1824.), Tenebrio molitor (Linnaeus, 1758.), Sitophilus granarius (Linnaeus, 1758.)). The encapsulated apitoxin has a steady initial and long residual effect, due to the slow release of apitoxin which is one of its main advantages over other conventional control methods. Microspheres loaded with apitoxin have a detrimental effect on insects, of which it is significantly better gastric compared to contact action (due to pH). Results showed that the highest and fastest mortality was achieved when the highest concentrations (0.6%) were applied which have been selected to be also economically acceptable. These important findings contribute to knowledge on the application and development of encapsulated apitoxin formulations, and their effectiveness, as an alternative eco-friendly control method in agricultural production.