`Toxin free farming - with friendly insects'

Read the newspaper article below and answer the questions below.
Questions



a. Why is Paul Buxman critical of the way some farmers deal with the control of pests?

Paul Buxman feels that farmers should not monitor pesticides by using chemicals fully, since he himself has used not harmful chemicals for nine years since his son developed leukaemia. He did this also because groundwater tests showed chemical levels is 20 time US health levels, and he wanted to prevent this, by using a healthier method of pest monitoring. Also, soil fertility is built naturally by growing cover crops, spreading manure and compost.

b. What is 'integrated pest management'? Is it labour¬-saving or more labour-intensive?

‘Integrated pest management’ is an integrated approach of crop management to solve ecological problems when applied in agriculture. These methods are performed in three stages: prevention, observation, and intervention. It is an ecological approach with a main goal of significantly reducing or eliminating the use of pesticides while at the same time managing pest populations at an acceptable level. This is more labour-intensive than pure chemical usage, since the involvement organic farming requires manpower to monitor the pests.

c. How do insecticides affect bird and worm numbers?

Insecticides decrease the bird and worm numbers.

d. What is meant by `organic farming'?

‘Organic farming’ is the form of agriculture that relies on techniques such as crop rotation, green manure, compost and biological pest control to maintain soil productivity and control pests on a farm.

e. What 'balance of pests and predators' is the article talking about?

The ‘balance of pests and predators’ means that the number of pests and predators are in proportion to what the pyramid of numbers would be like in the natural environment. For example, spiders, ladybugs, praying mantis and the six-spotted thrips (or the predators) would be there to feed on pests such as aphids and mites, while the lacewing eats larvae four times its weight in pests every week.

f. What is meant by `broad spectrum fertilisers'?

‘Broad spectrum fertilisers’ is meant by fertilisers that are effective against a wide variety of microorganisms.

References:
http://bbe-tech.com/bees/2011/06/14/how-does-integrated-pest-management-work-for-you/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_farming
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integrated_pest_management
http://www.yourdictionary.com/broad-spectrum