Category: Working Group

• The first meeting of the group was held in Bologna in May 2003. Local organizer was Dr Giovanni Burgio. Over 60 participants from Europe attended, as well as a guest from New Zealand.
• The second meeting took place in Zürich-Reckenholz in May 2006. Local organizers were Drs. Lisa Eggenschwiler and Katja Jacott. At the meeting, which was attended by some 65 researchers, recent research results were presented both on agro-ecological and landscape ecological topics, and on institutional aspects which are major determinants for success of Functional Biodiversity schemes.
• The third meeting was held in May 2008 at ENITAB in Bordeaux. Local organizers were Drs Maarten van Helden, Guillaume Pain and Joséphine Pithon. The meeting attracted 65 participants and had a dual focus exploring basic interactions between landscape structure and functional biodiversity including methodological aspects as well as implementation of agri-environment schemes.
• The fourth meeting was held in May 2010 in Cambridge, UK and the local organizers were Dr John Holland and the Association of Applied Biologists. The 52 participants presented papers on natural pest and weed control from field to landscape scales, manipulation of uncropped land for functional biodiversity and how models can be used to interpret some of these processes. There was also a special session with outcomes from the Endure project followed by a lively discussion.
• The fifth meeting was held in Lleida, Spain from 7-10th May 2012 organized by Jesus Avilla and Oscar Alomar with the teams at the University. It was attended by 73 researchers from 17 countries. Sessions were held on Companion planting, Landscape studies, Biodivine: Setting up biodiversity conservation actions in viticulture and Natural enemy ecology.
• The 2014 meeting took place in Poznan, Poland from 21 – 23rd May 2014. We had 54 attendees from 12 countries and besides a diverse array of oral and poster presentations had an interactive session on landscape scale management tools for more effective biocontrol to sustain IPM. A group of Polish ecologists from Warsaw organised the meeting.
• After an exceptional break of three years the 2017 meeting was held in conjunction with the British Ecological Society Agricultural Ecology Special Interest Group, in Dundee, Scotland, UK, 29th to 31st March 2017.
• The 2019 meeting took place in Wageningen. 40 participants from 11 countries (including overseas) attended. A special session was dedicated to The Netherlands Delta-Plan for Biodiversity. Seven sessions like e.g., Pollination or Feeding and Foraging built an attractive programme. Organised by Felix Bianchi and his team at Wageningen University an excursion on bikes (the original Dutch style) was a special experience to all participants.
• The 2022 meeting took place in Milan from 7 to 10 June in Italy after having been postponed various time for Covid Pandemy. It was held in a hybrid form to allow a wider participation and 38 researchers registered (of which 6 connected online). The program included five section (pest management, biodiversity, projects, habitat management and short presentations by Joung scientists) and two field visits in two urban parks.  

Biennial WG meetings:

1. 2009: Engelberg, Switzerland
2. 2011: Hluboká, Czech Republic
3. 2015: Bornholm, Denmark
4. 2018: Ponta Delgada, Azores, Portugal
5. 2023: Aveiro, Portugal

The emphasis within the group is to develop methods that help to reduce the amounts of pesticides, as well as other chemicals that may harm beneficial organisms, which are used for mite control in protected crops. This will include determining how to manipulate crop systems, use physical barriers and microbial control, augment predators and promote resistant crop varieties, all of which should be integrated into future systems of pest control. In efforts to improve mite control we shall promote cooperative projects, training courses and publications.

In 2001 the first conference of the Working Group was held from 26 to 28 April in Wageningen, The Netherlands.

The group deals with beneficial organisms (acclimatisation, mass rearing, introduction, maintenance, selectivity) and other non-chemical control methods. It is engaged in common, basic research programmes, applied research for control strategies, technology transfer and training.

Members of the group target their activities towards the development, evaluation and implementation of all aspects of integrated and biological control methods for olive pests, diseases and weeds. The WG meets to discuss new findings on the following main research activities:

• Sampling methods, monitoring, epidemiology
• Damage assessment, establishing of economic thresholds
• Bio-ecology of pests
• Invasive diseases and pests
• Development of population models
• Side effects of pesticides
• Natural enemies, biological control
• Biotechnical control methods
• Conservation biological control

The WG “Integrated Protection of Stored Products” organizes bi-annual meetings and activities related with co-ordination, co-operations and networking (COST Actions, EUREKA, ERA NET, International Working Conference of Stored Product Protection, International Congress of Entomology, European Congress of Entomology, International Plant Protection Conference, etc.)

The WG meets to discuss new findings regarding the following topics:

• Biology of stored product pests
• Methods of pest prevention during storage, transportation and handling
• Semiochemicals, traps and other methods to detect stored product pests
• All aspects of biological control
• Prevention of microflora infection and development of mycotoxins
• Physical, chemical and other techniques for stored product pest control
• Wood-boring, urban, quarantine and museum pests
• Futurology: overviews and future trends on all aspects of storage pest control

Organisation of annual workshops for scientists and extension people as well as (potential) producers and users of biocontrol products. These workshops focus on specific aspects of biocontrol of plant pathogens and also of particular groups of pathogens e.g. soilborne pathogens, above-ground pathogens (biotrophic/necrotrophic) or sclerotial pathogens, each of them differing ecologically and demanding specific control strategies. Workshops have also been oriented on specific cultivation conditions such as soilless cultures or the use of specific molecular techniques for better understanding mechanisms of interaction and establishment of the biocontrol agent.

The Mediterranean area holds the highest acreage of protected crops in the world. In close cooperation with the group “Integrated Control in Protected Crops, Temperate Climate” the group stimulates IPM programmes for vegetable and ornamental protected crops. The group meets regularly to discuss scientific results and recent advances in the design and implementation of IPM techniques, particularly those based on non-chemical methods. Cooperative projects, training courses, and publications are some of the group’s efforts to improve the integrated control of pests and diseases in protected crops of the Mediterranean area.

The group designs commercially applicable IPM programmes based on biological control of pests and diseases in combination with host-plant resistance and other non-chemical control methods. It initiates, coordinates, and evaluates fundamental and applied research for the development of biological and integrated control programmes. It develops scientific criteria for the selection of natural enemies, assists in the development of mass production methods for natural enemies, and devises quality control methods for natural enemies.

The emphasis within the group is to develop methods that help to reduce the amounts of insecticide applied to control pest insects in field vegetable crops. The group recognises the importance of retaining considerable expertise on insecticides, as insecticidal control is the standard against which all alternative methods have to be judged. Group members are working currently to determine how manipulation of cropping systems, physical barriers, microbial control, the augmentation of predators/parasitoids and resistant crop varieties can be integrated into future systems of pest control. The three major themes being studied are 1) accurate systems for monitoring and modelling the population dynamics of insect pests, 2) understanding the behaviour of pest insects to develop alternative methods of control, and 3) the impact of intercropping or undersowing crops on pests and diseases. A subgroup has produced “Guidelines” on how crops should be produced for minimum environmental disturbance.