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Pesticide Development
a Brief Look at the History
Eric L. Taylor, Assistant Professor & Extension Specialist,! Texas Cooperative Extension
A. Gordon Holley, Assistant Professor of Forest Economics, Policy, and Management, Louisiana Tech University
Melanie Kirk, Extension Program Specialist, Texas Cooperative Extension
5
ecological principles and a thorough knowledge of Summary
the pest's life cycle and population dynamics.
In summary, today's pesticides are designed to
This renewed ideology paved the way for the persist for shorter periods in the environment and
development of "softer insecticides" that were less are less lethal than the early days of lead arsenate
harmful to beneficial insects and the environment. In and DDT. Furthermore, the complexity of modern
addition, much research was conducted to develop IPM programs will continue to increase as we add
pesticide materials that would be effective at low more knowledge about pests, develop new
rates (1 oz/active ingredient per acre rather than 2 management tactics, and learn how to optimize
lbs.). During this time, we saw the widespread existing control strategies. Integrated pest
banning of DDT (1970s). The herbicides glyphosate management is also a major component of
(1971- Roundup, Rodeo), triclopyr (1975- Garlon, Sustainable Agriculture whose goal is to satisfy
Grazon, Remedy), haxazinone (1975 - Pronone, and human needs for food and fiber while preserving
Velpar), imazapyr (late 1970s - Arsenal®, nonrenewable resources, protecting environmental
Chopper®, Contain®) and metsulfuron (1983- quality for future generations, and safeguarding the
Escort®, Ally®) were developed and are still profitability and long-term viability of commercial
commonly used today. agriculture.
The 1990's took the IPM concept to the next level
by focusing in on development of bio-rationals. Bio- U.S. Forest Herbicide Timeline
rationals are pesticides that are based on some type (adapted from a presentation by R.G. Wagner)
of naturally occurring, biological insect hormone or
1929 The first reference to herbicide appears in
venom, microbes, or plant material extracts. These
U.S. silviculture text (Hawley 1929)
materials are then synthetically reproduced to
produce pesticides. Many of today’s pesticides are 1937 Fourth edition of the Practice of
designed from bio-rationals. For example, 1972 saw Silviculture indicates injecting sodium
the release of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and arsenite more effective for controlling
pyrethroid insecticides. unwanted trees than felling or girdling
1950s Herbicides began to be used to control
woody plants on non-agricultural land. First
herbicide applications to wild landscapes to
improve forage for grazing animals.
1954 Five pages devoted to herbicides or
silvicides in Practice of Silviculture
textbook.
1960s Using phenoxy herbicides for preparing
sites and selectively controlling vegetation
is common practice
Consumers now have multiple choices of synthetic pesticides. 1960s Amitrole and the organic arsenicals
(MSMA, cacodylic acid) used
BioTechnology
1960s and 70s - picloram, dalapon and the triazine
This discussion would not be complete without
herbicides introduced
mentioning biotechnological advancement made in
the agricultural world. Biotechnology, or genetic Late 1970s and 80s - glyphosate (Roundup®) and
engineering, can be used to modify the genetic triclopyr (Garlon®) introduced. Phenoxy
compositions of plants, animals, and herbicides begin to be replaced due to
microorganisms. Currently, the technology is used greater efficacy and the controversy around
primarily to modify crops, although other 2,4,5-T
applications are constantly being development. Late 1980s and 90s - imazapyr (Arsenal®) and the
Some of the most important commercial applications sulfonylurea herbicides (Oust® and
of biotechnology include advancements made in Escort®) introduced
herbicide tolerant, insect tolerant, and virus tolerant
crops.
6
References and Food Chemistry, Vol. 23, No. 6, Page 1050.
www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/history/lecture18/r_18-1.html
Agrios, G. N. 1988. Plant Pathology, Third Edition. Smith, A.E. and D. M. Secoy. 1976. A Compendium of
Academic Press, Inc., San Diego, California. Inorganic Substances Used in European Pest Control
Delaplane. K. S. 2000. Pesticide Usage in the United before 1850. Agricultural and Food Chemistry, Vol.
States: History, Benefits, Risks, and Trends. 24. No. 6, Page 1180.
Cooperative Extension Service. The University of www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/history/lecture31/r_31-1.html
Georgia, College of Agricultural and Environmental Smith R.F. and R. van den Bosch. 1967. Integrated
Sciences. Bulletin 1121/Reprinted November, 2000. Control in Pest Control Biological, Physical and
http://pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/pubs/PDF/B1121.pdf Selected Chemical Methods. Kilgore, W.W. and
Gianessi, L.P. and S. Sankula. 2003. The value of R.L. Doutt (eds.) Academic Press, New York.
herbicides in U.S. crop production. National Center P295-340.
for Food and Agricultural Policy. Tvedten, S. L. 2002. The Best Control. Get Set Inc.,
www.ncfap.org 2530 Hayes St. Marne, MI 49435-9751, US.
Hawley, R. C. 1929. The practice of silviculture: with Van Driesh, R.G.V., and T.S. Bellows. 1996. Biology
particular reference to its application in the United and Arthropod Parasitoids and Predators. Pp. 309-
States of America. Second edition. John Wiley, New 335. In Biological Control. Chapman and Hall,
York, New York, USA. International Thompson Publishing, NY.
Janick, J. 2004. History of Horticulture. Department of Wagner, R. G., M. Newton, E.C. Cole, J. H. Miller,
Horticulture and Landscape Architecture. Purdue and B. D. Shiver. 2004. The role of herbicides for
University, USA. www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/history/ enhancing forest productivity and conserving land
Smith, A.E. and D. M. Secoy. 1975. Forerunners of for biodiversity in North America. Wildlife Society
Pesticides in Classical Greece and Rome. Agricultural Bulletin, 32(4):1028–1041
This publication was funded through a grant by the Renewable Resources Extension Act in
cooperation with Louisiana Tech University, School of Forestry.
The information given in this publication is for educational purposes only. Reference to commercial
products or trade names is made with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and no
endorsement implied.
This publication is also part of a regional peer reviewed Extension Service publication series. Editor, William
G. Hubbard, Southern Regional Extension Forester, 4-402 Forest Resources Building, The University of
Georgia, Athens, GA 30602. Please visit www.sref.info for more information.
Educational programs of the Southern Regional Extension Forester are open to all people without regard to race, color, sex, disability,
religion, age, or national origin.