Tritrophic defenses as a central pivot of low-emission, pest-suppressive farming systems

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has spotlighted the intricate connections between human and planetary health. Given that pesticide-centered crop protection degrades ecological resilience and (in-)directly harms human health, the adoption of ecologically sound, biodiversity-driven alternatives is imper...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Current opinion in environmental sustainability 2022-10, Vol.58, p.101208, Article 101208
Main Authors: Wyckhuys, Kris AG, Zhang, Wei, Colmenarez, Yelitza C, Simelton, Elisabeth, Sander, Bjorn O, Lu, Yanhui
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
biodiversity
COVID-19 infection
crop diversification
cultivars
ecological resilience
epigenetics
human health
humans
immunity
plant protection
soil quality
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has spotlighted the intricate connections between human and planetary health. Given that pesticide-centered crop protection degrades ecological resilience and (in-)directly harms human health, the adoption of ecologically sound, biodiversity-driven alternatives is imperative. In this Synthesis paper, we illuminate how ecological forces can be manipulated to bolster ‘tritrophic defenses’ against crop pests, pathogens, and weeds. Three distinct, yet mutually compatible approaches (habitat-mediated, breeding-dependent, and epigenetic tactics) can be deployed at different organizational levels, that is, from an individual seed to entire farming landscapes. Biodiversity can be harnessed for crop protection through ecological infrastructures, diversification tactics, and reconstituted soil health. Crop diversification is ideally guided by interorganismal interplay and plant–soil feedbacks, entailing resistant cultivars, rotation schemes, or multicrop arrangements. Rewarding opportunities also exist to prime plants for enhanced immunity or indirect defenses. As tritrophic defenses spawn multiple societal cobenefits, they could become core features of healthy, climate-resilient, and low-carbon food systems.
ISSN:1877-3435
1877-3443
DOI:10.1016/j.cosust.2022.101208