Increasing demand for sustainable vegetable production is leading to low- and zero-pesticide farming practices. This review examines many strategies intended to lower pesticide use without impacting crop quality and production. The use of biopesticides, biological control, integrated pest management (IPM), and organic farming are some of the important techniques that are examined. This investigation also covers cutting-edge technology that improves the efficacy and efficiency of various techniques, such as robots, artificial intelligence (AI), and precision agriculture. A rigorous evaluation of the effects of pesticide residues on the environment and human health emphasises how crucial it is to use fewer pesticides. Market trends and customer preferences are considered, as well as the social and economic effects of implementing these strategies. The paper’s conclusion identifies obstacles to the general adoption of low- and zero-pesticide approaches and makes recommendations for future research topics to overcome these obstacles.

The species spectrum and abundance of moths were monitored in a greenhouse in Kameni?any (western Slovakia) in 2020, in which Solanum lycopersicum was grown from seedlings imported from the Netherlands. Moths were caught using light traps plac...

For the first time, the mycophagous beetle Sericoderus lateralis (Gyllenhal, 1827) was documented feeding on tomato leaf mold ( Cladosporium fulvum Cooke, 1878) tissues. The phenomenon was observed during the years 2022 and 2023 in a hydroponic tomato greenhouse situated near the Czech-Polish border within the cadastre of Dolní Lutyně municipality in Czechia. Greenhouse and laboratory observations confirmed that adult and larvae feeding activity led to a reduction in tomato leaf mold lesions. In addition, there was a positive correlation between tomato leaf mold disease progression and increased populations of S. lateralis in the tomato crop. Petri dish observations confirmed egg laying occurred on a diet of tomato leaf mold. Further research is warranted to discern whether S. lateralis is a potential biological control agent for tomato leaf mold or if it acts to facilitate the spread of the disease by acting as a spore vector.