Effects of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Practice on Insects Population and Yield of Cabbage in Cameron Highlands

Abstract

Plutella xylostella is the main pest of cruciferous plants which are widely planted in Cameron Highlands. This pest attack causes losses of up to 90% to farmers. To overcome this problem, most farmers use synthetic chemical pesticides intensively and exceed the prescribed dose. This situation causes pollution to the environment and endangers the health of consumers due to the effects of toxic residues on harvested vegetables. In addition, excessive use of insecticide will increase the insect's immunity to the insecticide, and this will reduce the effectiveness of the insecticide in the future. If this happens, farmers will incur losses because they have to use insecticides at a higher rate or use insecticides that are much more expensive. This study evaluates the effect of using integrated pest management (IPM) methods in MARDI Cameron Highlands cabbage fields in terms of insect population distribution whether pests or natural enemies and cabbage yield for each season. In this study, there were two treatments which were IPM and conventional grown cabbage. Each treatment has 5 replications and was repeated for three seasons. For IPM treatment, pesticide spraying was determined through evaluation of natural pests and enemies found in cabbage on a weekly basis. IPM treatment also uses yellow and blue sticky traps as well as biological control agents to control pests. Monitoring of pest and beneficial insect populations was carried out once every 2 weeks using the direct count and sweeping net method. The name and number of acquired species of insects were recorded in the scoresheet. The harvested cabbage is weighed, and the yield was recorded.  The results of the study show that the use of IPM methods in cabbage fields has a positive effect on the interaction between pest populations and natural enemies, and the quality of the harvest also does not show qualitative and quantitative differences compared to conventional cultivation.