What is pesticide resistance and what is a common strategy to manage it?

• A. Pesticide resistance is a myth; continue using the same product.
• B. Resistance means pests reproduce faster; increase application rate.
• C. The pest population evolves resistance to a pesticide; manage by rotating modes of action, using mixtures as allowed, applying according to label, and incorporating IPM.
• D. Resistance only occurs in crops with no IPM.

Answer: (C)

Pesticide resistance occurs when pests develop genetic traits that let them survive exposure to a pesticide that would normally kill them. With repeated exposure, these survivors reproduce, and over generations the population becomes less affected by that chemical.

A common way to manage resistance is to slow or prevent that evolution by not relying on a single mode of action. Rotate pesticides that work in different ways, use mixtures only where allowed, and apply exactly as the label instructs to avoid underdosing or sublethal exposures that can promote resistance. Incorporating IPM—monitoring pest levels, using cultural and biological controls, resistant varieties, and other nonchemical tactics—helps reduce overall pest pressure and pesticide use, which further lowers resistance risk.

It’s not about a myth or simply faster pest reproduction, and simply increasing the application rate without changing how you control pests tends to speed up resistance rather than prevent it.