(E95) TOMATO: Lycopersicon esculentum Miller, 'Sunbeam' Green stink bug: Acrosternum hilare (Say) Brown stink bug: Euschistus servus (Say) Corn earworm (CEW): Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) Brian A. Nault and John Speese III Eastern Shore AREC Virginia Tech Eastern flower thrips: Frankliniella tritici (Fitch) 33446 Research Drive Painter, VA 23420 Phone: (757) 414-0724 Email:
[email protected] EVALUATION OF INSECTICIDES TO CONTROL MAJOR INSECT PESTS ON SPRINGGROWN TOMATOES, 1999: Tomato seedlings were transplanted on 28 May at the Eastern Shore Agricultural Research and Extension Center near Painter, VA. Each plot consisted of two 20-ft long rows spaced 6 ft apart. Plots were flanked by a single untreated row. Plot rows were trellised using the Florida weave system. The experiment had four treatments plus an untreated check control arranged in a RCBD replicated six times. On 27 May, certain transplants were treated with Admire 2F using a watering can that delivered 1 pint of spray/200 seedlings. Foliar applications were made on 30 Jun, 7, 15, 21 and 27 Jul, and 4 Aug using a propane-pressurized backpack sprayer and a boom equipped with 3 hollow cone nozzles calibrated to deliver 15 gpa at 40 psi. One nozzle was oriented over the top of the row and two were on drops pointing to the sides of the row. Timing of the first foliar application corresponded with the initiation of fruit set and detection of stink bugs using a black light trap. On 10 and 16 Aug, 50 ripened market-sized fruit per plot were harvested and examined for damage by stink bugs, thrips and CEW. On 11 Aug, Ethrel was sprayed on all plots to induce ripening of fruit remaining after harvest the day before. The level of fruit injury by stink bugs was moderate, whereas injury by CEW and thrips were low. On 10 Aug, the percentage of total damaged fruit and fruit damaged by either stink bugs or thrips did not differ significantly among treatments, including the untreated check. The percentage of CEW damaged fruit was significantly lower in plots treated with either Admire 2F + Warrior T, Warrior T only or Danitol 2.4 EC than in plots treated either with Admire 2F only or were not treated. On 16 Aug, total percentages of damaged fruit and fruit damaged by either stink bugs or CEW were significantly lower in all treatments than in the untreated check, except for plots treated with Admire 2F only. The percentage of thrips damaged fruit in treated plots did not differ from the percentage in untreated ones. Overall (10 and 16 Aug), the total percentage of damaged fruit and fruit damaged by stink bugs in plots treated with either Admire 2F + Warrior T or Danitol 2.4 EC were significantly lower than in plots treated with either Admire 2F only or were not treated. Total damage and damage by stink bugs in plots treated with Warrior T only were intermediate between the damage in Danitol 2.4 EC-treated and untreated plots. Overall, the effects that treatments had on damage by CEW and thrips reflected those from the 16 Aug harvest.
