3.3 crop protection

Question 1

Weeds definition

Answer 1

Plants that are unwanted and decrease the productivity of crops through direct competition.

Question 2

Types of weed

Answer 2

Annual and perenial

Question 3

Annual weed characteristics

Answer 3

short lifespan of one year.
High output of seeds.
Sexual reproduction.
Rapid growth rate.

Question 4

Perennial weed characteristics

Answer 4

Have a longer life span of several years.
Reproduce vegetatively (asexually)
Have storage organs for poor conditions.

Question 5

Pests definition

Answer 5

Invertebrates which decrease crop productivity by feeding upon crops.

Question 6

Types of pest

Answer 6

Nematode worms, insects and molluscs.

Question 7

Types of disease to crops

Answer 7

Bacteria , fungi and virus.

Question 8

What does the presence of disease, pests and weeds do

Answer 8

Decrease crop productivity
Weeds directly compete
Pests feed on the crops
Disease kills the crops.

Question 9

What are cultural methods of crop protection

Answer 9

Methods of protecting crops that don’t use chemicals.

Question 10

Examples of cultural methods of crop protection

Answer 10

Ploughing
Weeding
Crop rotation

Question 11

Ploughing

Answer 11

Turning and loosening the top layer of soil to kill weeds on the top of the soil, they decompose and improve nutrient concentration in the soil.

Question 12

Weeding

Answer 12

Removing weeds early on to reduce crop competition.

Question 13

Crop rotation

Answer 13

Where a farmer changes the crops grown on a specific piece of land each season, to ensure that the same disease and pest cannot damage crops. It also ensures that the same nutrients aren’t drained from the soil consistently.

Question 14

Chemical methods of protecting crops

Answer 14

Pesticides

Question 15

Different types of pesticides

Answer 15

Herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, molluscicides, nematicides.

Question 16

Pesticides definition

Answer 16

A group of chemicals which can kill any type of pest.

Question 17

Selective herbicides

Answer 17

Herbicides which kill specific plant species, such as broad leaved weeds.

Question 18

Systemic herbicides

Answer 18

Spread throughout the vascular system of the weeds and kill the weeds, preventing re-growth.

Question 19

Systemic insecticides, nematicides and molluscicides

Answer 19

Spreads through the plant vascular system and kills any pests which consume the crops.

Question 20

Fungicides

Answer 20

Fungicides cannot kill crops infected with fungi, they must be sprayed beforehand to protect them.

Question 21

Problems with pesticides

Answer 21

Toxic to non target species
Bioaccumulation
Biomagnification
Population develops resistance to pests

Question 22

Bioaccumulation

Answer 22

The build up of pesticides within a single organisms.

Question 23

Biomagnification

Answer 23

The build up of pesticides within a food chain, increasing in concentration as you go through each trophic level.

Question 24

Biological control

Answer 24

The introduction of a new species into an ecosystem to kill off pests, weeds and disease.

Question 25

Types of biological control

Answer 25

Pathogen, predator, parasite

Question 26

Predator

Answer 26

An organism which has hunts and kills another organism for food and energy.

Question 27

Pathogen

Answer 27

A disease causing microorganism.

Question 28

Parasite

Answer 28

An agent which infects its host and lives an off the host.

Question 29

Problems of biological control

Answer 29

The species may become invasive, meaning they cause harm to the environment and other organisms within the environment which they shouldn’t.

Question 30

Integrated pest management

Answer 30

A method of protecting crops using cultural, chemical and biological control methods. Only using chemical protection when necessary.

Question 31

Advantage of systemic herbicides

Answer 31

They prevent regrowth of weeds.

Question 32

Advantage of selective herbicides

Answer 32

They kill broad leaved weeds