The diamondback moth (DBM), Plutella xylostella (Linnaeus, 1758) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), is a severe and most destructive pest of cruciferous vegetables in many parts of the world, including Nepal. The natural history and ecology of the diamondback moth are summarized here, along with appropriate management options. Caterpillar is the most devastating stage of DBM that matures and causes “windowing” damage, leaving only the epidermis. Biological control, cultural practices, effective chemical control, botanical pesticides, and host plant resistance are the most viable options. Insecticide abuse and resistance concerns are likely to persist, as numerous research-based outcomes have proven that none of these measures will suffice independently. However, these techniques can complement each other and result in a better long-term management system when combined. This review highlights the integrated eco-friendly management strategies for DBM and other cruciferous insect pests. Integrated Pest Management (IPM), which focuses on sustainable production, has shown promising results. Modern management techniques include genetic modification, use of parasitoids, modified cultural methods, the precautionary application of chemicals, resistant cultivars, fungal, bacterial (Bt. based biopesticides), and viral entomopathogens, etc., which are found to be more effective and eco-friendlier.

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) has been remained an important agricultural crop in resolving global food issues through decades. The crop has experienced enormous growth in terms of production throughout the world in recent decades because of improvement in agricultural mechanization, fertilizers application and irrigation practices. Nevertheless, a significant proportion of this valuable crop is still vulnerable to losses due to prevalence of different viral, bacterial, fungal and nematodes infestations. Late blight, caused by Phytophthora infestans (Mont.) de Bary, is one of the most threatening pathogenic diseases which not only results in direct crop losses but also cause farmers to embrace huge monetary expenses for disease control and preventive measures. The disease is well known for notorious ‘Irish Famine’ which resulted in drop of Irish population by more than 20% as result of hunger and potato starvation. Globally, annual losses of crop and money spend on fungicides for late blight control exceeds one trillion US dollars. This paper reviews the significance of late blight of potato and controlling strategies adopted for minimizing yield losses incurred by this disease by the use of synthetic fungicides. Advantages and disadvantages of fungicides application are discussed.

Sugar beet is one of the most economically important agricultural crops cultivated in many provinces of Turkey. Especially in recent years, there has been an increase in bacterial tuber rot due to factors related to climate change. In preliminary trials, soft rot disease by Pectobacterium caratovorum subsp. caratovorum (Pcc) and Pectobacterium betavasculorum (Pb) were detected predominantly in sugar beets in Central Anatolia. Today, some cultural measures and copper compounds are used against soft rot agents in sugar beet, but successful results cannot be obtained in preventing the disease. In this study, a total of 270 soil samples were taken from the rhizosphere of 10 different fields in 3 different periods in 3 different ecologically diverse districts (Çumra, Altınekin and Seydişehir) of Konya, one of the provinces with the highest amount of sugar beet production in Turkey. As a result of the isolations, a total of 3064 bacterial isolates were purified and 262 of them showed antibacterial activity against Pcc and Pb in vitro conditions. In addition, 15 antagonist bacteria with the highest inhibitory effect on the development of both pathogens were tested in greenhouse conditions, and according to the results obtained from here, 3 antagonists with the highest effect were tested in field conditions in the cultivation areas of 3 different districts named above. Biochemical, morphological and molecular diagnoses of antagonist bacteria with high efficacy were made. According to the results obtained, it has been concluded that rhizospheric bacteria with antagonistic effect have a success rate of 33-90% against Pcc and Pb pathogens, and that the biological products to be prepared in future studies can be used in ecological, climate friendly and within sustainable agricultural practices in sugar beet production areas.