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=== Controlling other organisms === [[File:Chloroxylon from India.JPG|thumb|[[Chloroxylon]] is used for pest management in organic rice cultivation in Chhattisgarh, India.]] {{See also|Biological pest control|Integrated Pest Management}} Organisms aside from weeds that cause problems on farms include [[arthropod]]s (e.g., insects, [[mite]]s), [[nematode]]s, [[fungus|fungi]] and [[bacteria]]. Practices include, but are not limited to: Examples of predatory beneficial insects include [[Orius (bug)|minute pirate bugs]], [[Geocoris|big-eyed bugs]], and to a lesser extent [[Coccinellidae|ladybugs]] (which tend to fly away), all of which eat a wide range of pests. [[Neuroptera|Lacewings]] are also effective, but tend to fly away. [[Praying mantis]] tend to move more slowly and eat less heavily. [[Parasitoid wasp]]s tend to be effective for their selected prey, but like all small insects can be less effective outdoors because the wind controls their movement. Predatory mites are effective for controlling other mites.<ref name=Gillman2008/>{{Rp|66β90}} Naturally derived [[insecticide]]s allowed for use on organic farms include ''[[Bacillus thuringiensis]]'' (a bacterial toxin), [[pyrethrum]] (a chrysanthemum extract), [[spinosad]] (a bacterial metabolite), [[neem]] (a tree extract) and [[rotenone]] (a legume root extract). Fewer than 10% of organic farmers use these pesticides regularly; a 2003 survey found that only 5.3% of vegetable growers in California use rotenone while 1.7% use pyrethrum.<ref name=Lotter2003>{{Cite journal |last1=Lotter |first1=D. |year=2003 |url=http://donlotter.net/lotter_organicag.pdf |title=Organic Agriculture |journal=Journal of Sustainable Agriculture |volume=21 |issue=4 |doi=10.1300/J064v21n04_06 |page=59 |bibcode=2003JSusA..21d..59L |s2cid=216090323 |access-date=13 February 2008 |archive-date=8 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180708123123/http://donlotter.net/lotter_organicag.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>{{rp|26}} These pesticides are not always more safe or environmentally friendly than synthetic pesticides and can cause harm.<ref name=Gillman2008>Gillman J. (2008). ''The Truth About Organic Farming''.</ref>{{rp|92}} The main criterion for organic pesticides is that they are naturally derived, and some naturally derived substances have been controversial. Controversial natural pesticides include rotenone, [[copper]], [[nicotine sulfate]], and pyrethrums<ref name=Misconcept>IFOAM. [http://infohub.ifoam.org/sites/default/files/page/files/misconceptions_compiled.pdf Criticisms and Frequent Misconceptions about Organic Agriculture: The Counter-Arguments] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140124115746/http://infohub.ifoam.org/sites/default/files/page/files/misconceptions_compiled.pdf |date=24 January 2014 }}</ref><ref>Pottorff LP. [http://www.colostate.edu/Dept/CoopExt/4DMG/VegFruit/organic.htm Some Pesticides Permitted in Organic Gardening]. Colorado State University Cooperative Extension.</ref> Rotenone and pyrethrum are particularly controversial because they work by attacking the nervous system, like most conventional insecticides. Rotenone is extremely toxic to fish<ref>Marking, L. L. and T. D. Bills. 1976. Toxicity of rotenone to fish in standardized laboratory tests. U. S. Dept. Interior, No. 72. 11 pp.</ref> and can induce symptoms resembling Parkinson's disease in mammals.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1074/jbc.M508628200 |title=Rotenone Model of Parkinson Disease: MULTIPLE BRAIN MITOCHONDRIA DYSFUNCTIONS AFTER SHORT TERM SYSTEMIC ROTENONE INTOXICATION |year=2005 |last1=Panov |first1=A. |journal=Journal of Biological Chemistry |volume=280 |issue=51 |pages=42026β35 |pmid=16243845 |last2=Dikalov |first2=S |last3=Shalbuyeva |first3=N |last4=Taylor |first4=G |last5=Sherer |first5=T |last6=Greenamyre |first6=JT|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |pmid=14645467 |pmc=6740985 |year=2003 |last1=Sherer |first1=TB |last2=Betarbet |first2=R |last3=Testa |first3=CM |last4=Seo |first4=BB |last5=Richardson |first5=JR |last6=Kim |first6=JH |last7=Miller |first7=GW |last8=Yagi |first8=T |last9=Matsuno-Yagi |first9=A |last10=Greenamyre |first10=JT |title=Mechanism of toxicity in rotenone models of Parkinson's disease |volume=23 |issue=34 |pages=10756β64 |journal=The Journal of Neuroscience|doi=10.1523/JNEUROSCI.23-34-10756.2003 }}</ref> Although pyrethrum (natural pyrethrins) is more effective against insects when used with piperonyl butoxide (which retards degradation of the pyrethrins),<ref>Jones, D. 1998. Piperonyl butoxide: the insecticide synergist. Academic Press, London. 323 pp.</ref> organic standards generally do not permit use of the latter substance.<ref name=CGSB2006b>Canadian General Standards Board. CAN/CGSB-32.311-2006.</ref><ref name=OGA2004>OGA. 2004. OGA standard. Organic Growers of Australia. Inc. 32 pp.</ref><ref name=7CFR205>7 CFR, part 205. U.S. Code of Federal Regulations</ref> Naturally derived [[fungicide]]s allowed for use on organic farms include the bacteria ''[[Bacillus subtilis]]'' and ''Bacillus pumilus''; and the fungus ''[[Trichoderma harzianum]]''. These are mainly effective for diseases affecting roots. [[Compost tea]] contains a mix of beneficial microbes, which may attack or out-compete certain plant pathogens,<ref>{{Cite journal| doi = 10.1094/PHYTO.2004.94.11.1156 | title = Compost tea as a container medium drench for suppressing seedling damping-off caused by Pythium | year = 2004 | journal = Phytopathology | pages = 1156β1163 | volume = 94 | issue = 11 |vauthors=Scheuerell SJ, Mahaffee WF | pmid = 18944450| doi-access = free }}</ref> but variability among formulations and preparation methods may contribute to inconsistent results or even dangerous growth of toxic microbes in compost teas.<ref>{{Cite journal | url = http://www.woodsend.org/pdf-files/compost-tea-BD04R.pdf | title = Compost teas: Microbial hygiene and quality in relation to method of preparation | year = 2004 | journal = Biodynamics | pages = 36β45 | access-date = 15 April 2009 | vauthors = Brinton W, etal | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080511212120/http://woodsend.org/pdf-files/compost-tea-BD04R.pdf | archive-date = 11 May 2008 | url-status = dead }}</ref> Some naturally derived pesticides are not allowed for use on organic farms. These include nicotine sulfate, [[arsenic]], and [[strychnine]].<ref name=USDAlist>{{cite web|url=https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-7/part-205/subpart-g|title=USDA National Organic Program, Subpart G. The National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances.|access-date=2 April 2022}}</ref> Synthetic pesticides allowed for use on organic farms include [[insecticidal soap]]s and [[horticultural oil]]s for insect management; and [[Bordeaux mixture]], [[copper hydroxide]] and [[sodium bicarbonate]] for managing fungi.<ref name=USDAlist/> Copper sulfate and Bordeaux mixture (copper sulfate plus lime), approved for organic use in various jurisdictions,<ref name=CGSB2006b/><ref name=OGA2004/><ref name=USDAlist/> can be more environmentally problematic than some synthetic fungicides disallowed in organic farming.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/S0308-521X(00)00045-7 |title=The origin and hazard of inputs to crop protection in organic farming systems: Are they sustainable? |year=2001 |last1=Edwards-Jones |first1=G |last2=Howells |first2=O |journal=Agricultural Systems |volume=67 |issue=1 |page=31|bibcode=2001AgSys..67...31E }}</ref><ref>Leake, A. R. 1999. House of Lords Select Committee on the European Communities. Session 1998-99, 16th Report. Organic Farming and the European Union. p. 81. Cited by {{cite journal | last1 = Trewavas | first1 = A | year = 2004 | title = A critical assessment of organic farming-and-food assertions with particular respect to the UK and the potential environmental benefits of no-till agriculture | journal = Crop Protection | volume = 23 | issue = 9| pages = 757β781 | doi=10.1016/j.cropro.2004.01.009| bibcode = 2004CrPro..23..757T }}</ref> Similar concerns apply to copper hydroxide. Repeated application of copper sulfate or copper hydroxide as a fungicide may eventually result in copper accumulation to toxic levels in soil,<ref>Caldwell, B., E. B. Rosen, E. Sideman, A. M. Shelton and C. D. Smart. 2005. Resource guide for organic insect and disease management. Cornell Univ.</ref> and admonitions to avoid excessive accumulations of copper in soil appear in various organic standards and elsewhere. Environmental concerns for several kinds of biota arise at average rates of use of such substances for some crops.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2009/arla-pmra/H113-27-2009-4E.pdf|publisher=Health Canada |year=2009 |title=Consultation document on copper pesticides - proposed re-evaluation decision - PRVD2009-04}}</ref> In the European Union, where replacement of copper-based fungicides in organic agriculture is a policy priority,<ref>Cooper, J., U. Niggli and C. Leifert (eds.). 2007. Handbook of organic food safety and quality. CRC Press, Boca Raton. 544 pp.</ref> research is seeking alternatives for organic production.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.organic-research.net/european-projects.html |title=European organic farming research projects |publisher=Organic Research |access-date=10 January 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140110074736/http://www.organic-research.net/european-projects.html |archive-date=10 January 2014}}</ref>
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