Biopesticides

Pesticides with a biological origin are known as biopesticides. It encompasses all pest-controlling natural products and organisms. 

Plants, animals, microbes, fungus, bacteria, nematodes, and other species produce biopesticides. Biopesticides primarily operate on pests rather than altering plant physiology or providing nutrition.

 Bacteria, fungi, viruses, compounds originating from plants, such as neem oil, or genetically engineered crops, such as Bt cotton, are examples of these.

  1. What does the term “biocontrol” mean?
  2. a) Use of biological methods for controlling plant diseases
  3. b) Use of chemical methods for controlling plant diseases
  4. c) Use of morphological methods by the plants to control the attack of pathogens
  5. d) Use of physical methods by the plants to control the attack of pathogens

Answer: a 

Justification: The employment of biological approaches to control plant diseases and pests is referred to as biocontrol. Manures and bio-fertilizers are two forms of biological fertilisers.

  1. Chemical fertiliser use does not generally pollute which of the following?
  2. a) Soil
  3. b) Water
  4. c) Ground
  5. d) Air

Explanation: Answer: d Chemical fertilisers have polluted the soil, groundwater, fruits, vegetables, and crop plants in our environment. We use weedicides to get rid of weeds, which pollutes our soil.

  1. What is the organic farmer’s method for pest control in agriculture?
  2. a) Chemical fertilisers
  3. b) Natural predation
  4. c) Morphological method
  5. d) Physiological method

Explanation: Answer: b In agriculture, a method of pest control that depends on natural predation rather than the use of chemicals is used. Organic farmers believe that biodiversity promotes health and that the use of pesticides can kill both beneficial and detrimental living forms.

  1. A landscape with more diversity is more sustainable.
  2. a) True
  3. b) False

Answer: a 

Explanation: A landscape with more variety is more sustainable. Pests are not exterminated, but rather managed at manageable levels by a sophisticated system of checks and balances, which the organic farmer seeks to build.

  1. Which of the following statements about biological farming is false?
  2. a) Farmers understand the webs of interaction among organisms
  3. b) Use of biocontrol measures will increase our dependence on chemical fertilisers
  4. c) Farmers become familiar with the various life forms that inhabit the field
  5. d) Farmers become aware of the life cycles and feeding habits of organisms

Explanation: Answer: b Farmers that practise biological farming are aware of the complex webs of interactions that exist among the many creatures that make up the field flora and fauna. They also learn about the diverse life species that occupy the field’s life cycles, feeding habits, pests, and predators. As a result, using biocontrol techniques reduces our reliance on chemical fertilisers significantly.

  1. How do dragonflies get rid of things?
  2. a) Aphids
  3. b) Mosquitoes
  4. c) Earthworms
  5. d) Honey bees

Answer: b Explanation: Dragonflies are excellent insect repellents. The Ladybird, a recognisable beetle with red and black markings, can help you get rid of aphids.

  1. What are biocontrol agents, and how do they work to keep butterfly caterpillars at bay?
  2. a) Bacillus thuringiensis
  3. b) Lactobacillus
  4. c) Acetobacter aceti
  5. d) Treponema pallidum

Answer: a

Explanation: Biocontrol agents are organisms that are natural adversaries of insect pests or disease-causing microorganisms that can be employed to benefit humans. Bacillus thuringiensis, for example, is a microbe that may be used to control butterfly caterpillars.

  1. How do you get Bacillus thuringiensis to spray on plants?
  2. a) In the form powder
  3. b) In the form of log
  4. c) In the form of dried spores
  5. d) In the form of wet spores

Answer: c

 Explanation: Bacillus thuringiensis is commonly sold in sachets as dried spores that are mixed with water and sprayed onto sensitive plants like brassicas and fruit trees, where the insect larvae devour them.

  1. When a larva eats bacteria, the toxin is released in the larvae’s head.
  2. a) True
  3. b) False

Answer: b 

Explanation: When the larva eats the bacteria, the toxin is produced in its gut, and the larva is destroyed. The bacterial disease kills caterpillars but does not harm other insects.

  1. In India, which of the following crops has been developed by genetic engineering?
  2. a) Bt-potato
  3. b) Bt-pomato
  4. c) Bt-cotton
  5. d) Bt-jute

Answer: c 

Explanation: In the last decade or two, scientists have used several methods of genetic engineering to put Bacillus thuringiensis toxin genes into plants. Bt-cotton is one such example, which is grown in various parts of the United States.

  1. Which of the following statements about Trichoderma is incorrect?
  2. a) It is a bacterium
  3. b) Very common in root ecosystems
  4. c) Free-living
  5. d) Effective biocontrol agents

Answer: a

 Justification: Trichoderma fungi are free-living fungi found in abundance in root habitats. They work as biocontrol agents for a variety of plant diseases.

  1. Baculoviruses are not good candidates for which of the following?
  2. a) Species-specific applications
  3. b) Narrow spectrum applications
  4. c) Insecticidal applications
  5. d) Broad-spectrum applications

Answer: d

 Explanation: Baculoviruses are ideal prospects for insecticidal applications that are species-specific and have a narrow scope. The majority of baculoviruses utilised as biological control agents are of the genus Nucleopolyhedrovirus.

  1. Baculoviruses attack which of the following organs?
  2. a) Arthropods
  3. b) Mammals
  4. c) Fishes
  5. d) Plants

Answer: a 

Justification: Baculoviruses are arthropod-borne diseases that infect insects. Plants, mammals, birds, fish, and even non-target insects have demonstrated no deleterious effects.

  1. What does IPM stand for in its full form?
  2. a) Indian Pests Management
  3. b) Integrated Pest Management
  4. c) Integrated Plant Management
  5. d) Indian plant management

Explanation: Answer: b Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is an acronym for “Integrated Pest Management.” When beneficial insects are being protected as part of an overall IPM programme or when an environmentally sensitive area is being treated, biocontrol agents are especially useful.

Conclusion

Pesticides with a biological origin are known as biopesticides. It encompasses all pest-controlling natural products and organisms. 

Plants, animals, microbes, fungus, bacteria, nematodes, and other species produce biopesticides. Biopesticides primarily operate on pests rather than altering plant physiology or providing nutrition.

 Bacteria, fungi, viruses, compounds originating from plants, such as neem oil, or genetically engineered crops, such as Bt cotton, are examples of these.

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