IPM has become the standard method for protecting human valued resources from pests. The primary tools of IPM are host plant resistance, biological control, cultural control and a number of artificial interventions including chemical control. The practices of IPM require accumulating biological, ecological, and physiochemical information about the site before the program will be applied, then devising an ecologically, economically, and sociologically acceptable IPM program. This is an interdisciplinary endeavor requiring an understanding and collaboration among entomologists, plant and animal scientists, plant pathologists, soil and weather specialists, and a host of others including statisticians, economists, and sociologists,as well as producers, industry, and federal and state agencies. Extension Agents-IPM implement education and demonstration programs in many areas of the state to assist clientele in understanding and practicing integrated pest management.
Programs are single county, multiple county or statewide depending on the needs of the commodity.
Most of these programs are currently oriented to serve agricultural needs. IPM programs are supported technically by specialists in entomology, plant pathology, soil and crop sciences, agricultural economics, horticulture and other disciplines.