WHAT IS A PESTICIDE?
You know I like the series, I hope it does not tire you. It's just a way
to classify subjects by theme.
It is difficult to talk about agriculture today, without talking about
plant protection, with all that it integrates, including, of course pesticides.
I've already mentioned it, but diluted in other subjects.
This series will be devoted entirely to it.
So the first part, because you have to start at the beginning, will be
devoted to define, in my own way, pesticides.
Everybody talks about it.
Few people understand something, let alone to know something about this
theme.
Those who speak the loudest about them, often have a militant argument,
which aims generally their ban.
Those who use them, end up feeling the need to shut up, because the
societal debate has become so biased and negative.
But what is the reality?
So what is it, and what is it for?
Living organisms live in association with countless organisms of all
types and sizes, some beneficial (in humans, the intestinal flora, for example)
or harmful (mycoses or lice among others), as appropriate.
Among these organisms there are bacteria, viruses, insects, mites,
nematodes, fungi, algae, etc.
To fight against pests, humans use three types of products:
- Medicines to take care of their own health.
- Veterinary products for animals (dogs and cats, but also chickens,
cows, sheep, horses and pigs), which are medicines, but which use is specific
for the health of animals.
- Pesticides or phytosanitary products, which are medicines, but which
use is specific for plant health.
Plants, like all living organisms, suffer attacks that affect their
health. They are subjected to rain, wind, sun, heat and the conditions
surrounding them may promote the development of certain parasites or diseases.
Pesticides are simply medicines to treat them.
Damage to nectarine, of fusicoccum
canker (Phomopsis amygdali), a fungus, wound parasite, which enters in rainy
weather. The first symptoms are small, with a few drying branches. But if the
farmer does not intervene, it's the survival of the orchard that can be
questioned.
You can also see it in reverse, and that could also open new horizons to
you: medicines are just pesticides for humans. And more, a large majority of
pesticides for humans are chemical pesticides.
In animals and humans, some conditions can be treated by natural
remedies, others not. In cases, ultimately very numerous where natural
medicines are not enough effective, we usually resort to chemical drugs, more
selective and more powerful.
Curiously it happens exactly the same thing in the case of plants.
Certain conditions cannot be prevented or treated by natural methods. In these
situations it is usual, and eventually normal and coherent, to use medicines
for plants, from chemical origin. These medicines, chemical pesticides,
generally have a higher efficiency than natural products (they were designed
for that purpose), and allow to control the evolution of the problem.
Moreover, all medical methods, natural or chemical, have side effects on
the organisms they are designed to treat.
It is important, in each case, to see a specialist who will choose the
most suitable type of treatment for each case, for optimal results with minimal
side effects. A misdiagnosis or poor treatment choices can cause inefficiency,
delay in remission or even can aggravate the situation.
In agriculture, it is the same. The specialist will be the farmer, if he
has received the proper training, or advisor, specifically trained to take such
decisions.
In short, plant protection is the medicine for plants, and this is one
of the bases in order to produce healthy food from healthy plants.
It is evident that those who do not understand this fundamental point
cannot understand the high stakes.
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