Integrated pest management in Turkish hazelnut orchards

Insect and mite pests are serious problems in Turkish hazelnut orchards and constitute a major impediment to hazelnut production. Although there are hundreds of pest species, only ten of them are common and cause economic damage. The amount of damage varies over regions and years. In addition to pest species, almost 130 natural enemy species have been found. Most growers use chemicals to control pests, and the number of applications ranges from one to four. This causes a decrease in the effectiveness of natural enemies, an increase in environmental contamination and other well-known problems. On the other hand, some farmers use neither chemicals nor other pest-control measures, and some pests have become more serious in recent years. In this paper, the development and improvement of Integrated Pest Management programs for Turkish hazelnut orchards are discussed.