Can Biological crop protection products be used throughout the year?
If the temperatures are low and the crop is dormant, the life cycles of the pests and diseases are probably also ‘dormant’. In which case, it is probably not cost effective to continue applying the biopesticide/biofertiliser. However, the farmer should monitor soil temperatures and soil moisture levels and should consider stopping biofertiliser/ biopesti-cide applications to the soil if the winter soils are too wet to sensibly apply irrigation water or the soil temperatures are below 5 deg C. Once the spring soils begin to dry out and the soil temperatures rise above 5 deg C, the farmer may consider re-starting the regular soil application programme.