Using crop fertilizer treatments to manipulate host selection by herbivorous field pests

There is growing evidence of effective use of fertilizer treatments to manipulate the suitability of crops as host plants to arthropod pests. That is, phosphorous treatments appear to increase attractiveness of crops, while potassium treatments appear to reduce attractiveness of crops. We report results from several series of controlled choice - and no-choice experiments from different pest-crop systems and discuss the applied implications of using fertilizer treatments as part of an integrated pest management strategy with reduced reliance on pesticide applications.