Pest control refers to the regulation or management of a species defined as a pest, usually because it is perceived to be detrimental to a person’s health, the ecology or the economy.
Pest control is at least as old as agriculture, as there has always been a need to keep crops free from pests. In order to maximize food production, it is advantageous to protect crops from competing species of plants, as well as from herbivores competing with humans.
The conventional approach was probably the first to be employed, since it is comparatively easy to destroy weeds by burning them or plowing them under, and to kill larger competing herbivores, such as crows and other birds eating seeds. Techniques such as crop rotation, companion planting (also known as intercropping or mixed cropping), and the selective breeding of pest-resistant cultivars have a long history.
In the UK, following concern about animal welfare, humane pest control and deterrence is gaining ground through the use of animal psychology rather than destruction. For instance, with the urban Red Fox which territorial behaviour is used against the animal, usually in conjunction with non-injurious chemical repellents. In rural areas of Britain, the use of firearms for pest control is quite common. Airguns are particularly popular for control of small pests such as rats, rabbits and grey squirrels, because of their lower power they can be used in more restrictive spaces such as gardens, where using a firearm would be unsafe.
Chemical pesticides date back 4,500 years, when the Sumerians used sulfur compound as insecticides. The Rig Veda, which is about 4,000 years old, also mentions the use of poisonous plants for pest control. It was only with the industrialization and mechanization of agriculture in the 18th and 19th century, and the introduction of the insecticides pyrethrum and derris that chemical pest control became widespread. In the 20th century, the discovery of several synthetic insecticides, such as DDT, and herbicides boosted this development. Chemical pest control is still the predominant type of pest control today, although its long-term effects led to a renewed interest in traditional and biological pest control towards the end of the 20th century.