The most important factors influencing the human development and health condition are nutrition habits. The quality of food including first of all health safety as well as usable attributes of products often decides about the consumer choice. Safe food should be characterized by both, adequate nutritive value and the tolerably low content of substances which presence could be a risk and threat for health, e.g. pesticide residues. The aim of the study was to estimate long-term and short-term intake of pesticide residues in Polish fruit and vegetables in 2006. The estimation of dietary exposure was based on pesticide residue data from official control of domestic crops carried out by Institute of Plant Protection and on British food consumption data.The estimated dietary intake has shown the chronic dietary exposure of consumers to the pesticide residues in 2006 in Polish crops was relatively low. For fourteen pesticide residues found in apples the long-term intake did not exceed for adult 1.4% and for toddlers 7.6% of the ADI calculated for each compound and respectively 5.1% and 28.3% of the ADI for all compounds total. For eleven residues found in black currants the data were respectively for adult 1.1% and for toddlers 3.3% of the ADI calculated for each compound and 3.3% and 10.3% of the ADI for all compounds total. The long-term exposure values for other 29 commodities were much lower than those for black currant. An acute dietary exposure was estimated for residues of endosulfan in black currants, fenhexamid in raspberries and captan in sour cherries. An acute dietary exposure did not exceed 18.9% for adults and for toddlers 43.2% of the ARfD. The results show that Polish fruit and vegetables are safe in long- as well as in short-term nutrition.

This paper presents the results of observations on occurrence of Tetranychidae. During 1995-2001 investigations a total of 10 species, namely Bryobia praetiosa, Eotetranychus carpini, E. cary/i, E. pruni, E. tiliarum, Eurytetranychus buxi, Panonychus ulmi, Schizotetranychus schizopus, Tetranychus viennensis and T. urticae were collected in ornamental nurseries in Poland. The T. urticae was the most frequent species ofmites and it was found on 60 different species of plants belonging to 1 7 families. This species caused severe damage on Spiraea japonica (Rosaceae), Ulmus minor 'Jacqueline Hillier' (Ulmaceae), Magnolia spp. (Magnoliaceae), Buddleja davidii (Buddlejaceae), Sambucus nigra (Caprifoliaceae), Laburnum xwatererii (Fabaceae) and Daphne mezereum (Thymelaceae). Among ocher tetranychids, S. schizopus is also dangerous pest of grafted willows.

In 1997, supplying Plant Pathogenic Microorganism Collection, microflora of diseased root crops from field and storage was analyzed. Samples from Districts Inspectors of PIOR from area of Poland were received, and 139 isolates of fungi from 369 samples of sugar and forage beat, forage cabbage, forage carrot and potatoes were obtained. The most often fungi from genus Fusarium occurred, and 23.5% of isolates from beet, 14.2% from cabbage, 29.5% from carrot and 48,2% from potatoes were received. The second dominant was species Alternaria a/terna ta, isolated from diseased plants in 28.9%, 50%, I 8.5% and 20% respectively. Among saprophytic fungi, species Penicillium and Aspergillus were represented in 9,7% of obtained isolates. Received results suggested that Fusarium spp. and Alternaria a/tema/a could be potentially dangerous for root crops as a pathogens or weak pathogens.

Control failure of pests and selectivity of insecticides to beneficial arthropods are key data for the implementation of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the control failure likelihood of Plutella xylostella and the physiological selectivity active ingredients to parasitoid Oomyzus sokolowskii (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) and to predators Polybia scutellaris (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) and Lasiochilus sp. (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae). In bioassays, P. xylostella larvae and O. sokolowskii, P. scutellaris and Lasiochilus sp. adults were used. Concentration-mortality curves of six insecticides for P. xylostella were established. These curves were used to estimate the mortality of P. xylostella at the recommended concentration, in order to check a control failure of insecticides to this pest. Furthermore, the lethal concentration for 90% of populations (LC90) and the half of LC90 were used in bioassays with the natural enemies to determine the selectivity of these insects to insecticides. All tested insecticides showed control failure to P. xylostella, indicated by high LC90 and low estimated mortalities (less than 80%). The cartap insecticide was selective in half of LC90 to Lasiochilus sp. and moderately selective in LC90 and the half of LC90, to Lasiochilus sp. and P. scutellaris, respectively. Deltamethrin was moderately selective in the half of LC90 to predator Lasiochilus sp. Cartap, carbaryl, and deltamethrin reduced the mortality of Lasiochilus sp. in the half LC90. The results also showed that the insecticides methamidophos, carbaryl, parathion methyl and permethrin were not selective to any of the tested natural enemies. The role of insecticides in IPM systems of Brassica crops is discussed based on their control failures to P. xylostella and selectivity to their natural enemies.

The development of the modern economic system is becoming increasingly dependent on the sufficient provision of quality energy resources due to the intensification and transformation of the mechanization and automation of all industries. The growth of the energy needs of society is parallel to the awareness of the need to ensure the environmentally friendly development of society. There are a number of reasons for the search for new energy sources, including the limited reserves of traditional sources, dependence on oil-exporting countries, the greenhouse effect due to the entry of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and air pollution by harmful gases. The biofuel sector offers the potential for both the development of national agriculture and for increasing its energy independence. Global trends in the rapid development of bioenergy in combination with the systemic crisis of the energy sector in Ukraine have necessitated a detailed study on the possibility of increasing the yield of biofuels from crops. The economic and mathematical modeling of the possibility of increasing the yield of bioethanol and vegetable oil from agricultural crops has been carried out. An economic optimization model has been formed, which made it possible to study an increase in the yield of bioethanol from sugar-containing and starch-containing crops and vegetable oil from oil crops from 1 ton per 1 hectare of area. Also, an assessment of the lost yield for the investigated crops has been carried out using the method of analysis of the functioning environment (Farrell’s method).

Rachiplusia nu (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is the main soybean plague in Argentina. The main strategy employed to control this pest is chemical control, applying different chemical groups regardless of their harmful effects on the environment and human health. Different biological products using entomopathogenic fungi have been developed and are commercially available to control different insect pests worldwide. The objective of this work was to develop and apply, under field conditions, different fungal formulations using entomopathogenic fungi to control R. nu larvae. The mortality percentages in bioassays of R. nu larvae treated with different colonies of fungal entomopathogens ranged between 86.6 ± 8.4% for Beauveria bassiana (LPSc 1098) and 56.6 ± 4.2% for Metarhizium anisopliae (LPSc 907). Under laboratory conditions using fungal formulations of B. bassiana, the formulation 4 (LPSc 1086) exhibited the highest mortality percentage (100%), followed by formulation 5 (LPSc 1098), 97 ± 1.3%. Under field conditions, larval mortalities were 82.4 ± 5.56% for formulation F4 and 61.8 ± 7.5% for formulation F5. The results obtained in this work indicate that although a greater number of tests under field conditions with the fungal formulation F4 are necessary, the results obtained in this work allow speculating that it is possible to use this fungal formulation under field conditions to control R. nu.

The formation of optimal crop rotations is virtually unsolvable from the standpoint of the classical methodology of experimental research. Here, we deal with a mathematical model based on expert estimates of “predecessor-crop” pairs’ efficiency created for the conditions of irrigation in the forest-steppe of Ukraine. Solving the problem of incorporating uncertainty assessments into this model, we present new models of crop rotations’ economic efficiency taking into account irrigation, application of fertilisers, and the negative environmental effect of nitrogen fertilisers’ introduction into the soil. For the considered models we pose an optimisation problem and present an algorithm for its solution that combines a gradient method and a genetic algorithm. Using the proposed mathematical tools, for several possible scenarios of water, fertilisers, and purchase price variability, the efficiency of growing corn as a monoculture in Ukraine is simulated. The proposed models show a reduction of the profitability of such a practice when the purchase price of corn decreases below 0.81 EUR∙kg ^–1 and the price of irrigation water increases above 0.32 EUR∙m ^–3 and propose more flexible crop rotations. Mathematical tools developed in the paper can form a basis for the creation of decision support systems that recommend optimal crop rotation variations to farmers and help to achieve sustainable, profitable, and ecologically safe agricultural production. However, future works on the actualisation of the values of its parameters need to be performed to increase the accuracy.

Based on FAO data, the paper presents trends in nitrogen (N) input and output in Poland. As N input ( N _inp), nitrogen from mineral fertilisers, manure application, biological fixation, and deposition was included. The N outputs ( N _out) include the N contained in crop harvest (main products and by-products). The trend analyses were carried out for the period before (1961–1989) and after (1990–2018) the changes in the political and economic systems. Additionally, trends in the nitrogen use efficiency ( NUE) and nitrogen surpluses ( N _S) are presented for these periods. In both compared periods, the mean values of N budget indicators in Poland were (kg N∙ha ^–1 UAA): N _inp 120 and 125, N _out 61 and 84, N _S 60 and 41 and NUE 53 and 67%, respectively. The estimated Y _max, which represents the N _out value reached at saturating N fertilisation, reached the values of 127 and 263 kg N∙ha ^–1 UAA in these periods. The difference in these values suggests a significant impact of agronomy improvement on N _out in the recent period. The trends of nitrogen within 16 regions in period 2002–2019, based on national data, resulted in a significant variation in N indicators. The values found were in the following ranges (kg N∙ha ^–1 UAA): N _inp 78–167; N _out 62–99; N _S 15–83 and Y _max 139–317. The NUE ranged from 50–81%. The obtained results indicate that in Poland and its regions there is still a need to improve of the nitrogen efficiency.

The article examines the influence of physicochemical traits on yield depending on the variety and year of cultivation. Four common to Poland grape cultivars, i.e. ‘Regent’, ‘Rondo’, ‘Seyval Blanc’, and ‘Solaris’, were evaluated by analysing, among others, number of clusters per bush, their weight, number of berries, and the yield per hectare, number of woody shoots, weight of woody shoots, and the diameter of woody shoots. Energy and emission parameters were evaluated by conducting technical evaluation (lower heating value, ash content, volatile matters content, moisture content, fixed carbon) and elemental analysis (carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, sulphur and oxygen contents) of one-year, two-year and three-year vine shoots. In addition, emission factors for CO, CO2, NOx, SO2 and dust were estimated. The study showed that there was no significant differences between years under study (2020, 2021 and 2022) and energy and emission parameters. It was observed that the highest LHV (lower heating value) occurred in the ‘Regent’ cultivar while the lowest level in the ‘Rondo’ cultivar. As regards energy-emission parameters, a significant influence of cultivar (‘Solaris’, ‘Rondo’, ‘Seyval Blanc’ and ‘Regent’) was shown on the parameters studied except for nitrogen content and NOx emission index. The interaction of year and cultivar showed no significant differences except for the moisture content.

The object of the studies conducted in the years 2000–2002 on a field of 3 years’ monoculture of soybean was rhizosphere soil of soybean cultivated after tansy phacelia, winter wheat, white mustard, rye, agrimony and soybean as previous crops. The purpose of the studies was to determine the effect of cultivating the above listed previous crop plants on the formation of microorganism communities in the rhizosphere soil of soybean. The lowest total number of fungal colonies was found in the rhizosphere soil of soybean cultivated after rye and winter wheat (21.09 × 10³ and 22.58 × 10³ c. f. u., respectively), while the highest number was found in soil after soybean (36.95 × 10³ c. f. u.). The highest total number of bacteria was found in 1 g of dr yweight of the rhizosphere soil of so ybean cultivated after agrimony, and the lowest after soybean (5.80 × 10⁶ and 4.09 × 10⁶ c. f. u., respectively). The largest proportion of pathogenic fungi was characteristic of the rhizosphere soil of soybean cultivated after soybean, and the smallest – of the rhizosphere soil of soybean after agrimony as a previous crop. The dominating species among pathogenic fungi in all experimental objects was Fusarium oxysporum. The rhizosphere soil of soybean cultivated after soybean was the poorest in saprophytic fungi (35.2% of all isolations). On the other hand, the highest number of saprophytes, including antagonistic ones, was found in the rhizosphere soil of soybean after agrimony and winter wheat.

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of residual glycerine (5 and 10% w/w) from the biodiesel industry, used as a co-substrate, on biogas production from maize silage. The experiments were conducted in a laboratory-scale, single-stage anaerobic digester at 39ºC and hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 60 d. Addition of 5% residual glycerine caused organic load rate (OLR) to increase to 1.82 compared with 1.31 g organic dry matter (ODM) L-1d-1 for maize silage alone. The specific biogas production rate and biogas yield were 1.34 L L-1d-1 and 0.71 L g ODM-1 respectively, i.e. 86% and 30% higher than for maize alone. Increasing the residual glycerine content to 10% increased OLR (2.01 g ODM L-1d-1), but clearly decreased the specific biogas production rate and biogas yield to 0.50 L L-1d-1 and 0.13 L g ODM-1 respectively. This suggested that 10% glycerine content inhibited methanogenic bacteria and organics conversion into biogas. As a result, there was accumulation of propionic and valeric acids throughout the experiment.

The aim of the present work was to evaluate the selectivity of nicosulfuron, alone and in combinations, applied in post-emergence (V4) of glyphosate and sulfonylurea tolerant (RR/STS) soybean. The experiments were conducted in 2015/16 and 2016/17, in Piracicaba – state of São Paulo (SP). In 2016/17, the experiment was also conducted in Palotina – state of Paraná (PR). The experiment was a randomized block design, with four repetitions and 16 treatments, with combinations of nicosulfuron, glyphosate, chlorimuron, sulfometuron and cloransulam, applied alone or in tank mixture. Crop injury and variables related to agronomic performance were evaluated. Data were subjected to analysis of variance and treatment means were compared by the Tukey test. The results obtained are significant in the positioning of herbicides in RR/STS soybean, since in the five experiments, all the treatments were selective, except for glyphosate + sulfometuron which reduced the yield of a cultivar (CD 2630 RR/STS) in the 2015/16 season.

CropSyst (Cropping Systems Simulation) is used as an analytic tool for studying irrigation water management to increase wheat productivity. Therefore, two field experiments were conducted to 1) calibrate CropSyst model for wheat grown under sprinkler and drip irrigation systems, 2) to use the simulation results to analyse the relationship between applied irrigation amount and the resulted yield and 3) to simulate the effect of saving irrigation water on wheat yield. Drip irrigation system in three treatments (100%, 75% and 50% of crop evapotranspiration – ETc) and under sprinkler irrigation system in five treatments (100%, 80%, 60%, 40%, and 20% of ETc) were imposed on these experiments. Results using CropSyst calibration revealed-that results of using CropSyst calibration revealed that the model was able to predict wheat grain and biological yield, with high degree of accuracy. Using 100% ETc under drip system resulted in very low water stress index (WSI = 0.008), whereas using 100% ETc sprinkler system resulted in WSI = 0.1, which proved that application of 100% ETc enough to ensure high yield. The rest of deficit irrigation treatments resulted in high yield losses. Simulation of application of 90% ETc not only reduced yield losses to either irrigation system, but also increased land and water productivity. Thus, it can be recommended to apply irrigation water to wheat equal to 90% ETc to save on the applied water and increase water productivity.

According to the SRES A1B climate change scenario, by the end of the 21st century temperature in Poland will increase by 2–4°C, no increase in precipitation totals is predicted. This will rise crop irrigation needs and necessity to develop irrigation systems. Due to increase in temperature and needs of sustainable agriculture development some changes in crop growing structure will occur. An increase interest in high protein crops cultivation has been noted last years and further extension of these acreage is foreseen. Identifying the future water needs of these plants is crucial for planning and implementing sustainable agricultural production. In the study, the impact of projected air temperature changes on soybean water needs, one of the most valuable high-protein crops, in 2021–2050 in the Kuyavia region in Poland was analysed. The calculations based on meteorological data collected in 1981–2010 were considered as the reference period. Potential evapotranspiration was adopted as a measure of crop water requirements. The potential evapotranspiration was estimated using the Penman–Monteith method and crop coefficient. Based on these estimations, it was found that in the forecast years the soybean water needs will increase by 5% in the growing period (from 21 April to 10 September), and by 8% in June–August. The highest monthly soybean water needs increase (by 15%) may occur in August. The predicted climate changes and the increase in the arable crops water requirements, may contribute to an increase in the irrigated area in the Kuyavia region and necessity of rational management of water resources.

On the basis of sweep netting samples and young plant and spike samples, the species composition and the incidence of thrips (Thysanoptera) on rye and winter wheat in different regions of Poland have been determined. A list of 49 Thysanoptera species found on these cereal crops and an overview of 11 species referred to "cereal thrips" have been given. The undertaken studies have showed that Haplothrips aculeatus Fab. was dominant on both rye and winter wheat crops.

The objective of the experiment was to evaluate the energy efficiency of the phytoremediation process, supported using energy crops. The scope of conducted work includes the preparation of a field experiment. During the evaluation, 2 factors were into consideration – total energy demand and total energy benefit. The case study, used as an origin of data, consists a 3-years field study, conducted with the use of 2 energy crops – Phalaris arundinacea L. and Brassica napus L. The area subjected to the experiment was polluted with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and herbicides, classified as phenoxy acids (2, 4 D). The experimental design consisted of 4 groups of fields, divided according to the used plant species and type of treatment. For each energy crop, 2 types of fertilization strategies were used. Therefore the 1st and 3rd sets of fields were not treated with any soil amendment while the 2nd and 4th sets were fertilized with compost. The obtained data allowed to observe that the cultivation of P. arundinacea L. and B. napus L. allowed a positive energy balance of the process to be achieved. However, it should be noted, that the B. napus L. growth in the first vegetation season was not sufficient to fully compensate a total energy demand. Such a goal, in the mentioned case, was possible after the 2nd vegetation season. The collected results show also that the best energetic potential combined with the most effective soil remediation were obtained on the fields with the cultivation of P. arundinacea L. fertilized with compost. The number of biofuels, collected from the 1 ha of such fields, can reach a value equal even to12.76 Mg of coal equivalent.

Fall armyworm ( Spodoptera frugiperda) (FAW) is an important invasive pest of maize. The young FAW larva disrupts the photosynthetic system by feeding on the leaves. The older caterpillar interferes with pollination and fertilization processes, destroying the tassel and silks, or it bores into the maize cob, reducing harvest quality and predisposing the cob to secondary infections. The infested plant responds by channeling or converting the primary metabolites into secondary metabolites for plant defense, further reducing crop yield. The devastating feeding effect on maize becomes even more severe when maize plants are exposed to prolonged drought, during which the production of secondary metabolites is optimum. These secondary metabolites are food for herbivorous insects like the fall armyworm. Naturally, plants possess several adaptive features which enable them to cope and survive herbivorous insect attacks without compensating yield for plant defense. Such features include: thickening of the leaf cuticle of the epidermal cell walls, production of certain allelochemicals, defense proteins and the toxic chemical compound, favone glycoside (silk maysin). This review attempts to critically appraise the physiological implications of fall armyworm damage on developmental processes and maize yield. Understanding the mechanisms of various adaptive traits that confer resistance to maize against herbivorous insect damage would assist greatly in crop improvement processes.

The world population is projected to reach 9.8 billion in 2050, and 11.2 billion in 2100 (United Nations) and people will need food, and decrease the farming land. Thus, the importance of Internet of Things (IoT) and Computer Science (CS) in plant disease management are increasing now-a-days. Mobile apps, remote sensing, spectral signature analysis, artificial neural networks (ANN), and deep learning monitors are commonly used in plant disease and pest management. IoT improves crop yield by fostering new farming methods along with the improvement of monitoring and management through cloud computing. In the quest for effective plant disease control, the future lies in cutting-edge technologies. The integration of IoT, artificial intelligence, and data analytics revolutionizes monitoring and diagnosis, enabling timely and precise interventions. Cloud computing facilitates real-time data sharing and analysis empower farmers to combat diseases with unprecedented efficiency. By harnessing these innovations, agriculture can embrace sustainable practices and safeguard crop health, ensuring a bountiful and secure future for the global food supply.

Satellite-based irrigation performance is a valuable tool for improving yields in irrigated areas across the world and requires adequate land for long-term development. This study aimed to increase irrigation performance and yield gap variation of rainfed crops using the database of FAO’s Water Productivity Open Access Portal (WaPOR) and the Global Yield Gap Atlas. The evapotranspiration ( ET) performance of irrigation is expressed in equity ( CV of ET), reliability, adequacy ( CV of ET), and water productivity (kg∙m^-3</p>). The rainfed crops are interpreted in terms of metric tonnes/ha. Specifically, 20,325 km²</p> of suitable pastoral land across eight sub-classes was converted to rainfed rice, sugarcane, maize, and vegetable crops. Results showed that the R²</p> value was 0.97 at Baro Itang and –0.99 at Sor Metu, with the Baro Gambella sub-catchment having the largest yield gap of 4.435.2, 8.870.4, and 10.080∙106 kg when the yield increased by 1/3, 2/3, and 3/4. On the other hand, Gumero Gore had the smallest yield gap of 10,690, 29,700, and 33,750 kg, respectively. The management regime was 2.87, 0.87, and 0.35 kg∙m^-3</p> for growers in the estate, farmer association, and individual, respectively. The study concludes that no single irrigation technique can be considered the best, and a thorough analysis of spatiotemporal variation of the irrigation performance indicators and the yield gap in the water-scarce lower Baro watershed is required.

The study aims at evaluating crop insurance effects on the farms’ production and investment indicators in Lithuania. The Common Agricultural Policy after 2020 considers measures helping farmers to adapt to climate change. For this reason, it is essential to evaluate existing risk management measures in order to propose appropriate schemes for the next programming period. In order to evaluate crop insurance effects on the farms’ production and investment indicators farm-level, data from Farm Accountancy Data Network dataset and propensity score matching approach was used. Study period was 2008–2017. The study revealed that participation in crop insurance schemes was influenced by the factors such as age of the farmer, wealth, specialization, and location of the farm. The study also demonstrated that crop insurance did not show statistically significant effects on the selected farms’ indicators. The main reason was support from the national and EU funds.

Straw, particularly cereal straw, is a valuable by-product of crop production, which can be used for various purposes, e.g. as livestock feed and bedding or for making fuels, however it should primarily be retained on farmland in order to prevent soil organic matter (SOM) losses and thus to maintain or improve soil quality. The aim of this study was to analyze effects of the frequency of crop residues (straw) incorporation into the soil on the content of soil organic matter and on crop yields. There were the following experimental treatments: SR – straw of all crop in the rotation removed, S1 – straw of one crop per rotation incorporated, S2 – straw of two crops in the rotation incorporated, and S3 – straw of three crops incorporated into the soil (loamy sand). After 21 years of crop rotation with straw removal (SR) the SOM level in the soil slightly decreased to 14.4 g∙kg ^–1 soil DM, compared to that in 1997 (14.6 g∙kg ^–1). However, when straw of one crop (rape) per rotation was incorporated (S1) the content of SOM increased to 15.0 g∙kg ^-1 soil DM, and to 15.6 and 16.0 g∙kg ^–1 in S2 and S3 treatments respectively. Straw retention had also a beneficial effect on the content of labile fractions of SOM (hot water extractable C and N). Grain yields and yield components of wheat and triticale, and seed yields of rape in the SR treatment were not significantly different from those obtained in S1, S2 and S3 treatments.

The cartography and quantification of irrigated fields in the context of decreasing rainfall constitute a key element for water resources management. Therefore, in this context, the use of remote sensing methods applied to Landsat-type images with a high spatial resolution for monitoring the changes in land use in general and irrigated crops, in particular, is highly relevant. This paper aims to present a method for mapping spatial and temporal changes in irrigated parcels in the Guigou Plain, located in the central Middle Atlas, based on Landsat images and fieldwork. For the years 1985, 1998, 2010 and 2018, the use of a supervised classification method based on the principle of machine learning, fed by precise field surveys, has made it possible to highlight a significant extension of irrigated areas to the expense of pastureland and rainfed crops. Over the entire period under consideration, the results obtained with good precision (98.5% overall accuracy) showed that the area under irrigated crops has increased from approximately 699 ha to 3988 ha, i.e. an increase of 570%. The corollary of this increase is strong pressure on the water resource, especially groundwater. This information on the total extension of irrigated plots can be taken as a reference in the perspective of reasoned management of water resources in the sector.

The mealybug, Phenacoccus solenopsis (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha: Pseudococcidae), is one of the main pests attacking maize plants in Egypt. Field trials were carried out in the maize field to assess the influence of irrigation periods and potassium fertiliser rates on the mealybug ( P. solenopsis) population estimates, vegetative growth, resulting yield, and its components for the maize cultivar (‘Single-Hybrid 168 Yellow’) in the Luxor Governorate, Egypt. Results revealed that unfertilised plants irrigated every seven days had higher pest population densities than other treatments over the two seasons. The fertilised treatments at 114 kg K ₂O∙ha ^–1 that received water every 10 days had the smallest population of P. solenopsis in every season. Data during the two seasons (2021 and 2022) revealed that the maize to which potassium fertiliser was added by 114 kg K ₂O∙ha ^–1 and irrigated every 10 days had vegetative growth (plant height, diameter, and number of green leaves per plant), yield and its components (average ear length, ear weight, number of grains per ear, weight of 1000 grains, and grain yield) significantly increased as compared to those of the plants that were irrigated every 7 days and without adding fertiliser. A higher dose of potassium fertiliser reduces the infestation of P. solenopsis but causes an increment of maize vegetative growth. This affects the final yield. This information aids farmers in comprehending the good agronomic techniques of maize plants to decrease the infestation of mealybugs and increase the yield.

From May to July in the years 1995-2000 studies on the numbers of density ofCarabidae on two fields with different cultivation systems (intensive and conventional) were performed. Including other elements like kind of a crop and weather conditions during the investigations it was possible to compile a summary numerical index ofmain factors having the influence on the occurrence of Carabidae and being in a very good correlation with the number of these insects in agroecosystems.