**Table 2.**

*Plant protection products approved by the European Union (EU) for use in organic farming [24].*

**143**

**Figure 1.**

*Jebusaea hammerschmidti.*

*Insect Pest Management in Organic Farming System DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.84483*

**6. A case study of organic date palms**

enemies of pests.

**6.1 Selection of planning materials**

There are about 100 million date palms in the world mostly distributed in Asia and North Africa, producing 7.78 million ton of dates annually [25]. The international famous date palm cultivars include Medjool, Deglet Noor, Barhee, Halawy, Khalas, and Khadrawy. Organic dates are now produced in many countries around the world including Tunisia, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, Iran, Algeria, and the USA. Date palm, whether grown conventionally or organically, has numerous pests and diseases including 132 species of arthropod (insects and mites), 52 vertebrate pests (birds, rodents, bats), and 28 non-arthropod pests (slugs and snails, parasitic nematode) [26, 27]. Additionally, more than 16 important fungal, phytoplasma, and unidentified diseases attack the date palm. The major ones include Bayoud, black scorch, *Diplodia*, Khamedj inflorescence rot, Belaat, graphiola leaf spot, Al-Wijam disease, brittle leaf disease, and Faroun disease [28]. These pests and diseases may cause substantial losses in date palm groves if left unmanaged. Therefore, a well-planned and supervised pest management program is important to maintain a sustainable date palm production in organic farming system. Some examples of injuries inflicted by pests on date palm and dates are shown in **Figures 1** and **2**.

Date palm pests of economic important in organic farming could be prevented through an IPM program comprising the following components: selection of planning materials, pest monitoring, cultural management, and conservation of natural

To a healthy vigorous palm that yield good quality date fruits, one should start with good planting materials whether tissue culture seedlings, offshoots, or mature palms. Planting materials should be adapted to the area where to be grown, in addition of being healthy and free from pests and diseases. Such planting materials should be obtained from nurseries certified for organic date palm production, where strict quarantine measures and protocols are applied. Many serious pests and diseases of date palm including the invasive red palm weevil spread rapidly through movement of infested planting materials [29]. Dubas bug, scale insects, longhorn beetle, and rhinoceros beetle also invade new areas through transportation of

*Symptoms of damage on the fruit bunch stalk (left) due to Oryctes elegans and on the trunk (right) due to* 

*Multifunctionality and Impacts of Organic and Conventional Agriculture*

**Name of product Purpose and specifications of use**

Pheromones Used only in traps and dispensers

Quassia from the plant *Quassia amara* Only insecticide and repellent

Ethylene Insecticidal fumigant against fruit flies Paraffin oil Used as insecticide against small-bodied insects Fatty acids (soft soaps) Insecticide against mite, thrips, and aphids

Azadirachtin from the neem tree (*Azadirachta* 

Laminarin (from *Laminaria digitata*) or kelp or

Pyrethrins from the leaves of *Chrysanthemum* 

Microorganisms, e.g., *Bacillus thuringiensis*, *Beauveria bassiana*, and *Metarhizium anisopliae*

Spinosad from the soil bacterium *Saccharopolyspora* 

Lime sulfur (mixture of calcium hydroxide and

Kieselgur (diatomaceous earth) from the hardshelled diatom protist (chrysophytes)

Sodium hypochlorite (bleach or as javel water). It is a disinfectant with numerous uses, and its effect is

Copper compounds such as: copper hydroxide, copper oxychloride, copper oxide, tribasic copper sulfate, and Bordeaux mixture (copper sulfate and

Sheep fat (obtained from fatty sheep tissues by heat extraction and mixed with water to obtain an

Calcium hydroxide Used as fungicide

Pyrethroids (only deltamethrin or

*indica*)

brown algae seaweed

*cinerariaefolium*

*spinosa*

sulfur)

due to the chlorine

calcium hydroxide)

oily water emulsion)

lambdacyhalothrin)

self-defense mechanism. Sunflower oil, whey, and lecithins are used as fungicides, while vinegar is used as fungicide and bactericide, and *Urtica* sp. is used as insecticide, fungicide, and acaricide [21]. In organic farming, only active substances listed in the Commission Regulation (EC) No. 889/2008 (**Table 2**) can be used. New update is frequently being made by the EC to add or remove PPPs from the list.

Beeswax Used as protectant for treatment of cuts and wounds after

Plant oils Used for control of small-bodied insects such as thrips,

pruning or in grafting

aphids, and whiteflies

Used as insecticide

Used as insecticide

Used as fungicide

Naturally occurring aluminum silicate (kaolin) As insect repellent against a wide range of insects at a rate of 50 kg/ha

Sulfur Used as broad-spectrum inorganic contact fungicide and acaricide

Quartz sand Used as repellent against vertebrate pests

*Plant protection products approved by the European Union (EU) for use in organic farming [24].*

per ha annually

Used as mechanical insecticide

Used in seed treatment as viricide and bactericide

Used as fungicide and bactericide maximum of 6 kg copper

A triglyceride consisting predominantly of glycerine esters of palmitic acid, stearic acid, and oleic acid. A repellent by smell against vertebrate pests such as deer and other game animals. It should not be applied to the edible parts of the crop

Origin should not be GMOs

A polysaccharide from the group of the glucans, used to protect plants against fungi and bacteria. Kelp should be

Used only in traps with attractants or pheromones

grown according to the organic standards

**142**

**Table 2.**
