Smart agriculture for innovative vegetable crop protection
SmartProtect is a project funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 programme (GA 862563). The project’s objective is to create a thematic network focusing on cross regional knowledge sharing of SMART IPM solutions for farmers and advisors. The aim is to stimulate knowledge flow in the regional Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems (AKISs) across the E.U. and connect these on the innovative potential of advanced methodologies for Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in vegetable production, integrating precision farming technologies and data analytics.
IPM’s significance
IPM means careful consideration of all available plant protection methods. It follows the subsequent integration of appropriate measures that discourage the development of populations of harmful organisms. IPM strives to keep the use of plant protection products and other forms of intervention to levels that are economically and ecologically justified while minimizing risks to human health and the environment. IPM emphasizes the growth of healthy crops with the least possible disruption to agro-ecosystems and encourages natural pest control mechanisms (definition of the European Commission). IPM stands for a holistic approach to plant health management, based on prevention, monitoring and control.
SmartProtect’s fact sheets
Aiming to facilitate knowledge transfer and to stimulate the acceptance and adoption of Smart IPM tools, SmartProtect has compiled IPM solutions, that are also available in the SmartProtect Platform (https://platform.smartprotect-h2020.eu), in fact sheets that are publicly available in https://www.smartprotect-h2020.eu/fact-sheets. The developed fact sheets include crops such as brassicas, carrot, cucumber, lettuce, onion, pepper, and tomato, while a fact sheet for smart traps is also available. The fact sheets are freely downloadable and include pest monitoring techniques, crop monitoring techniques, diagnostic and detection techniques (ELISA, RNA, DNA, and mobile disorder detection), Decision Support Systems, and application techniques.
Moreover, additional fact sheets on virus and pest control in horticultural Alliaceae are available in https://www.smartprotect-h2020.eu/alliums, fact sheets on disease and pests control in horticultural brassicas are available in https://www.smartprotect-h2020.eu/brassicas, and fact sheets on disease control in tomatoes and current status and challenges on pests of tomato crop are available in https://www.smartprotect-h2020.eu/tomatoes.
