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City plans to use less pesticides
By Lu Feiran |
July 15, 2010, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
SHANGHAI will reduce the use of pesticides to kill pests in future by using their natural enemies - other insects that are harmless to plants and trees - the city's greenery authorities said yesterday.
The practice has been used successfully at the World Expo, officials said. Of late, they have released 10,000 insects and another 730,000 insect eggs in order to kill or curb the number of pests in trees and other plants.
Long-horned beetles, for instance, are fatal to willow trees. They reproduce eggs inside the bark and the larvae will eat away at the trunk until it's hollow.
To prevent this, workers put the eggs of D. longulus sharps, the beetle's natural enemy, in small boxes and hung them on willow trees. Once the eggs hatch, they eat the larvae of long-horned beetles.
Another example was the spraying of a germ preparation in a corn field at Houtan Park. The germ is deadly to pests, but does not harm the corn or humans.
"This is the first time the city has used such methods widely in gardens," said Xia Xina, an official with the greenery management department of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination.
Pesticides have not been used at the Expo site, according to organizers.
"Not all insects are harmful," Xia said. "Therefore, we should also keep an eye on protecting the variety of insects in public greenery areas."
Later this summer, the practice will be introduced in several communities on a trial basis, officials said.
The practice has been used successfully at the World Expo, officials said. Of late, they have released 10,000 insects and another 730,000 insect eggs in order to kill or curb the number of pests in trees and other plants.
Long-horned beetles, for instance, are fatal to willow trees. They reproduce eggs inside the bark and the larvae will eat away at the trunk until it's hollow.
To prevent this, workers put the eggs of D. longulus sharps, the beetle's natural enemy, in small boxes and hung them on willow trees. Once the eggs hatch, they eat the larvae of long-horned beetles.
Another example was the spraying of a germ preparation in a corn field at Houtan Park. The germ is deadly to pests, but does not harm the corn or humans.
"This is the first time the city has used such methods widely in gardens," said Xia Xina, an official with the greenery management department of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination.
Pesticides have not been used at the Expo site, according to organizers.
"Not all insects are harmful," Xia said. "Therefore, we should also keep an eye on protecting the variety of insects in public greenery areas."
Later this summer, the practice will be introduced in several communities on a trial basis, officials said.
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