Scope and Relevance of using Pesticide Mixtures in Crop Protection: A Critical Review

Development of resistance and resurgence has limited the application of single pesticide and has given way out to tank mixture. Pest management strategy is mainly relying on chemical pesticides. Mixture of two or more pesticides is very common among the farmers. Pest population to be controlled should be susceptible or have low level of resistance to each pesticide used in the mixture. Combination products have synthetic pyrethroids as one of the component to which cotton boll worm has high level of resistance. Mixtures if permitted may be used as a matter of routine and there might be development of multiple resistances in insect pests. A mixture may give best control of complex pests with varying susceptibilities to the different components of the mixture. Pests that are resistant to one or more pesticides may be susceptible to a combination of toxicants and synergism may be exhibited by the components. How best these mixtures can be utilized to overcome the problem of resistance and how can such mixtures is screened for crop protection is our concern.