Plant Science 160 (2001) 759– 760
www.elsevier.com/locate/plantsci
Book review
Integrated Pest and Disease Management in Green-
house Crops
Edited by R. Albajes, M.L. Gullino, J.C. van
Lenteren and Y. Elad, Kluwer Academic Publish-
ers, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, 2000, 545 pp.,
US$ 224, ISBN 0792356314
The call for sustainable plant production sys-
tems has received particular attention in green-
house cultivation, where programmes for the
integrated management of pests and diseases have
been successfully implemented, especially in the
production of vegetables. Integrated crop protec-
tion in greenhouses is largely based upon the
release of biological control agents and a reduc-
tion of pesticide inputs, but also involves host-
plant resistance, environmental control and a
proper use of decision-making tools. Several fac-
tors stimulate the adoption of sustainable crop
protection systems in protected cultivation: grow-
ing consumer concern about pesticide residues,
rapid development of pesticide resistance in pests
and pathogens, ecological side-effects of frequent
chemical applications needed to suppress pests and
disease, the proven efficacy of augmentative bio-
logical control in greenhouse environments and
the production of high-value crops making bio-
control also an economically viable option.
The book ‘Integrated Pest and Disease Manage-
ment in Greenhouse Crops’, appearing as Volume
14 in a series on ‘De6elopments in Plant Pathology’
and edited by R. Albajes, M.L. Gullino, J.C. van
Lenteren and Y. Elad, provides an excellent in-
sight in the field. The book originates from an
international course on ‘Integrated Pest and Dis-
ease Management in Protected Crops’ that was
organised from 19–30 June 1995 at the Mediter-
ranean Agronomic Institute of Zaragoza, Spain,
which is one of the four institutes supported by
the International Centre for Advanced Mediter-
ranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM). The or-
0168-9452/01/$ - see front matter © 2001 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 1 6 8 - 9 4 5 2 ( 0 0 ) 0 0 4 6 1 - 1
ganisers of the course had the idea of publishing
the contributions of the 13 guest speakers, but the
project soon became more ambitious eventually
involving no less than 62 authors from all over the
world (but with a strong European
representation).
The volume is organised in five parts, containing
several chapters each. Part I presents a general
introduction to the subject matter (1 chapter), part
II is on ‘Major Pests and Diseases in Greenhouse
Crops’ (4 chapters), part III on ‘Tools for IPM in
Greenhouses’ (7 chapters), part IV on ‘Biological
and Microbial Control of Greenhouse Pests and
Diseases’ (16 chapters), and part V on ‘Implemen-
tation of IPM: Case Studies’ (6 chapters). An
extensive index with over 2700 entries is a helpful
addition.
After an initial chapter on the characteristics of
protected cultivation, several chapters provide an
overview of the major diseases (viral, fungal and
bacterial diseases) and pests (insects, mites, and
nematodes) that affect greenhouse vegetable and
ornamental crops. Ensuing chapters treat the basic
strategies for the integrated control of pests and
diseases, with particular emphasis on biological
control. Current implementation and future
prospects of integrated pest and disease manage-
ment in the main protected crops (tomatoes, cu-
curbits, sweet peppers, strawberries, ornamentals)
are discussed in the final chapters.
Most chapters consist of a fairly general
overview of the relevant literature on the topic
covered, supplemented with information from
practice and with room for some personal out-
looks at the end. References are given in long form
at the end of each chapter. The literature has been
updated to 1997 so that some of the more recent
developments have not been covered, but surely
this is inherent to the endeavour of compiling a
book on a so diversified and highly dynamic mat-
ter. Indeed, the strength of this book lies not in the
760 Book re6iew
presentation of a great deal of novel information,
but in the bringing together of authors whose
activities and perspectives are complementary:
plant pathologists and entomologists, from private
and public sectors and from different geographical
areas. For instance, the reader is confronted with
different views on the release of mass-produced
and in many cases exotic biocontrol agents: that of
the research ecologist who fears possible side-ef-
fects of the natural enemies (Chapters 13 and 27)
versus that of the natural enemy producer who
emphasises the drawbacks of a restrictive regula-
tion (Chapters 22 and 26). As an additional asset,
each of the chapters has been written by renowned
specialists with a wide practical experience, giving
the book a strong applied bias.
This makes the book an invaluable tool for
students and professionals in the field of research
and practical implementation of integrated crop
protection in greenhouses. In their preface, the
editors say: ‘‘It is our sincere belief that no text
published to date has offered such a diverse yet
integrated approach to pest and disease control in
greenhouse crops’’. A statement that I can fully
subscribe to.
13 December 2000 Patrick De Clercq
Department of Crop Protection,
Ghent Uni6ersity,
Ghent,
Belgium
E-mail: patrick.declercq@rug.ac.be