Sustainable Management of Diseases in Horticulture: Conventional and New Options

Abstract

To reduce the impact of chemical pesticides on the environment, there are relevant efforts to enhance the possibility of controlling plant diseases using environmentally friendly biocontrol agents or natural products that show pathogen control capacity. The European Union, FAO, and the United Nations largely promote and finance projects and programs in order to introduce crop protection principles that can attain sustainable agriculture. Preventive measures related to the choice of cultivars, soil fertility, integrated pest management (IPM), and organic farming strategies are still the basis for obtaining satisfactory crop yields and reducing classical pesticide utilisation through the application of commercially available and ecofriendly control agents. Effective pathogen detection at borders to avoid quarantine pathogens is mandatory to reduce the risk of future epidemics. New technical support for the development of sustainable pathogen control is currently being provided by forecasting models, precision farming, nanotechnology, and endotherapy. New biocontrol agents and natural products, disease management through plant nutrition, systemic resistance inducers, and gene-silencing technology will provide solutions for obtaining satisfactory disease control in horticulture. The “multi-stakeholder partnership” strategy can promote the implementation of sustainable crop protection.