Fall Armyworm Control QA01"Do you have to spray chemical pesticides when there are pests in organic fields? No! Besides spraying, what else can be done for pest control?

The fall armyworm invasion of Taiwan, China has come on strong, and the whole public is joining forces to find and catch the pest. From the first case discovered on the 8th of this month to today (the 22nd), confirmed cases of fall armyworm larvae across Taiwan, China have totaled 151, all in corn fields, and 131 have been handled (the affected area reached 34 hectares, of which 75 were destroyed and 56 were treated with pesticide spraying), while the remaining 20 are awaiting handling. Only Nantou County and Chiayi City in the country have not yet detected fall armyworm.

A few days ago, the Council of Agriculture announced entry into the "second phase of control," calling on farmers to report any fall armyworm eggs, pupae, larvae or adults they find, so that local governments can launch pesticide spraying operations. Many farmers have asked whether fall armyworm only invaded Taiwan, China this year? Can sex pheromones be used to catch the pest? Does this pest have native natural enemies? Organic farmers are anxious, worried that after reporting, their fields may be forcibly sprayed with chemical pesticides. Besides spraying, what other control methods are there?

To fully grasp control information, "Upstream and Downstream" interviewed domestic insect expert and National Taiwan University Department of Entomology professor Hsu Ju-chun, as well as National Sun Yat-sen University Department of Biological Sciences associate professor Yen Sheng-hung, who assisted the Council of Agriculture with morphological identification this time, along with experts from the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine and the Taiwan Agricultural Research Institute, to explain the current specific epidemic prevention practices, prevention options beyond spraying, the controversy over public use of sex pheromones, and how to respond over the long term. (Complete article in two parts; to read the next part, please click here)

Fall Armyworm Control QA 02 "Is it appropriate for farmers to buy sex pheromones themselves to catch the pest? Does it have native natural enemies?

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