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Harmful Organisms of Crops and Their Monitoring

Course developers

Course abstract

Students obtain knowledge on the diversity, systematics, occurrence and importance of harmful organisms (invertebrates, causal agents of plant diseases) in agriculture and forestry. Students understand the concept “weeds”, are introduced with the systematics of weeds, possibilities of their spreading, and devastation of weeds. Obtain knowledge on harmful organisms’ assessment methods and the evaluation of their harmfulness, understand the necessity of monitoring.

Learning outcomes and their assessment

Obtain knowledge on the basics and necessity of the systematics of living nature, and are acquainted with the groups of more important harmful organisms (Tests 1 and 2).
Are able to evaluate the damages caused by invertebrates and microorganism’s activity (Tests 1 and 2).
Students obtain knowledge on weeds, know their systematics and the most important ways of spreading, are able to evaluate harmfulness of weeds (Test 3).
Students understand the methods of research and monitoring and the necessity for their use in agriculture and forestry, and are able to analyse the data obtained in monitoring. Are able to analyse scientific literature in relation with the spreading of harmful organisms and the evaluation of damages they cause (Tests 1, 2 and 3).

Course Content(Calendar)

1. Systematics of living nature, and history of its development – 2 h.
2. Introduction into the entomology of agriculture and forestry; the morphology, reproduction and development of insects – 2 h.
3. Diversity of insects – an overview of most important orders of insects in agriculture and forestry – 2 h.
4. An overview of other important invertebrates – Review of other invertebrates - roundworms, chelicerates, mollusks - important in agriculture – 2 h.
5. Basic ecology of insects – 2 h.
6. Methods of the research and monitoring of invertebrates in agriculture and forestry – 2 h.
7. Importance of plant diseases in agriculture and forestry. Symptoms of diseases, their impact on plants – 2 h.
8. The most important genera of fungi and other microorganisms – plant diseases they cause and peculiarities of disease development – 2 h.
9. Evaluation and assessment of diseases – 4 h.
10. Possibilities of the outbreak, development, evaluation, analysis and forecast of epidemics – 4 h.
11. The concept “weeds”; systematics of weeds – 4 h.
12. Devastation of weeds. Monitoring of weeds, and the necessity and techniques of monitoring – 4 h.

Requirements for awarding credit points

The final mark is the average point of the three theoretical tests, provided all three tests are passed successfully (grade of each test must be at least 4 – almost average).
Three tests successfully accomplished.

Description of the organization and tasks of students’ independent work

Studies of lectures’ materials and scientific literature; independent learning for tests.

Criteria for Evaluating Learning Outcomes

Knowledge about harmful organisms, understanding of their harmfulness and the necessity of monitoring. Base mark of the test is 8. Student may earn this mark if his/her knowledge corresponds to the amount of information obtained during lessons. Student may earn a higher mark (9 or 10) by demonstrating an ability to relate knowledge to practice and/or apply his/her deeper knowledge obtained from scientific literature during independent studies. If the answer to the question is incomplete, the mark of the exam is decreased.

Compulsory reading

Augu slimības. B. Bankinas red. Jelgava, LLU, 2003. 247 lpp.
Bankina B., Bimšteine G., Kaņeps J. Vispārējā augu patoloģija: laboratorijas darbi. Jelgava, LLU, 2021. 34. lpp.
Bankina B., Turka I. Augu slimību un kaitēkļu uzskaites metodes. Jelgava, LLU, 2013. 24. lpp.
Kroģere R. Laukkopības praktikums. II daļa Tīruma nezāles. Jelgava: LLU, 2021. 37 lpp. https://llufb.llu.lv/LLU-studiju-materiali/LF/Laukkopibas-praktikums-2dala-Tiruma-nezales_2021.pdf
Priedītis A. Kultūraugu kaitēkļi. Rīga, Zvaigzne ABC, 1996. 296. lpp.
Priedītis N. . Latvijas augi. Rīga, SIA Gandrs, 2014. 888 lpp.
Zimdahl R. (2018). Fundamentals of Weed Science, 5th Edition. Imprint: Academic Press, 2018. 758 p.

Further reading

Kusiņa M. Savvaļas ziedi Latvijas gadalaikos. Rīga: Apgāds Zvaigzne ABC, 2019. 80 lpp.
Liepiņa L.L. Ziedēšanas prieks Latvijas mežos un ārēs. Rīga: V elements, 2008. Rīga. 207 lpp.
CABI: 2020. 437 p.
Gillot C. Entomology. Dordrecht: Springer, 2005. 831 p.
Tronsmo A.M., Collinge D.B., Djurle A., Munk L., Yuen J., Tronsmo A. Plant Pathology and Plant Diseases. Wallingford, Oxfordshire, UK; Boston, MA: CABI, 2020. 438 p.

Periodicals and other sources

Weed Research. The Official Journal of the European Weed Research Society. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13653180

Notes

Master study programme “Geoinformatics and Remote Sensing”