Which is not a step in an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program?

In an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program, the goal is to manage pest populations in an environmentally responsible manner while reducing reliance on chemical pesticides. The process encompasses several steps including pest monitoring strategies to identify and track pest populations, habitat manipulation to disrupt the environment that supports pest life cycles, and preventive pest exclusion to stop pests from entering specific areas.

Scheduled pesticide applications, while a common practice in traditional pest control methods, do not align with the principles of IPM. IPM emphasizes the use of a variety of control methods and solutions, prioritizing non-chemical approaches whenever possible. Relying on scheduled pesticide applications can lead to pesticide resistance, environmental harm, and can disrupt the ecological balance. Therefore, the inclusion of only scheduled pesticide applications deviates from the holistic, preventive focus of an IPM program.