Why does a different crop not always break a pest’s cycle?
Changing what grows in a field can interrupt a pest’s access to a suitable host. But a crop with a different name may still support that same pest, and leftover volunteer plants may keep it going. Effective rotation therefore depends on the particular pest and its hosts.
Questions you could explore
- What would you need to know before calling a replacement crop a nonhost?
Start reading
- University of California Statewide IPM ProgramCrop Rotation Impacts on Pests: Alfalfa
UC Integrated Pest Management uses alfalfa to explain pest-specific rotations and the importance of volunteer hosts.
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