Insecticide Resistant Red Legged Earth Mite

Healthy Living Soils will build immunity and help fight destructive pests such as the Red Legged Earth Mite.

Balance your soils to help build immunity

Red Legged Earth Mite (RLEM) is once again causing a lot of damage in some areas to broad acre crops. Sometimes Lucerne Flea join it as conditions for them to multiply are similar. Traditionally the only control method is an Insecticide application. As with continuous use of any chemical this is proving unsustainable as the increasing rates of resistance builds. This is not the only problem with insecticides as the systemic action of the chemical destroys for a period the microbial population in the rhizosphere.

In turn, the mineralisation of nutrients by the Biota is no longer happening depriving the plants of essential nutrients until the biota population and activity builds again. The use of such chemicals is part of the problem of subtle soil degradation I have written of in past articles. By using chemicals, you will deaden the soil. Not to mention the long-term affect to our health.

Soil Management Systems products like Guano will asset in the long term health, life and sustainability of your soils.

 

Regenerative strategies for effective soil management

There is much evidence to show there are answers to these problems that are perhaps not being considered by many of our researches in the field. Healthy living soils in a diversity of agricultural production builds immunity to insect attacks due to the balance of mineral nutrition of plants. Another term increasingly used today is ‘Regenerative Agriculture’. Just like ourselves, if we are generally healthy and eat well the common cold we get is short lived and much less in its effect.

Plants, the healthier they are with mineral balance,  the more tolerant and less attractive they are to insect damage. Instead of insecticides the predator insects are given the chance to do their job.

At SMS we have experience many times over the years clients who have followed a program of comprehensive soil analysis along with leaf analysis in the growing season and fine tuning the plants nutritional balance, insecticides and fungicides are no longer needed. Generally, after around three years, these chemicals are no longer used once the farmer has confidence in what they are seeing. Positive effects on soil health then continues to multiply. These approaches are all based on sound scientific research; information that is mostly not being disclosed as a more viable option in farming and grazing systems.

To learn more about Regenerative Agriculture, visit Regenerative Ag Alliance.

If you would like to discuss specific soils needs, please call our office on 08 8659 0000.