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Beneficial Insects for Vegetable Production
Mary GardinerAssistant ProfessorThe Ohio State University – OARDCThe Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable and Farm Market EXPO December 8, 2011
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Decomposition Biological ControlPollination
Insects provide many benefits or ecosystem services to vegetable producers
© wildlife-pictures-online.com © Peter Bryant© Jackie / Bugguide.net
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Biological control is the suppression of insect pests by natural enemies
Biological Control
Predators
Parasitoids
Pathogens
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Is biological control important?
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PestsSquash Bug
Spotted Cucumber Beetle
Striped Cucumber Beetle
Predators
Stink Bugs
Ground Beetles
Ants
Lady Beetles
Biological control can target any stage of a pest.
Eggs likely fed upon by generalist predators
Do predators provide significant biological control of pest eggs?
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• Spotted CB and Squash Bug eggs studied
• Live sterile colony eggs glued to cards
– OPEN/CLOSED treatments (4 reps)
– In the field for 48 hrs
– July-August
Spotted cucumber beetle eggson ground
Pumpkin Pests – Biological Control of Eggs
Squash bug eggs attached to plant leaves
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Predators reduced squash bug eggs by 10% and spotted cucumber beetle by 80%!!
Pumpkin Pests – Biological Control of Eggs
Squash bug eggs eaten by predator
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PestsSquash Bug
Spotted Cucumber Beetle
Striped Cucumber Beetle
Pest adults are attacked by parasitoid flies Tachinidae
Do we detect significant parasitism of pests in the field?
Feather-legged Fly (parasitoid of squash bug)
Celatoria diabroticae and C. setosa(parasitoids of cucumber beetles)
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• Assessment of adult parasitism
• 2 collections of striped cucumber beetle and squash bug from each site, July – August
• Raised for 8 days, then frozen & dissected
Pumpkin Pests – Biological Control of Adults
Celatoria sp larval mouthparts
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Pumpkin Pests – Biological Control of Adults
• 10-17% of adult pests were parasitized!
• Does not account for number which may have been killed by parasitoids and not captured
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Biological control is an important and sometimes undervalued component of IPM
Diverse group of arthropods contribute to biological control
This service is provided free to growers and can be enhanced through habitat management practices.
Integrated Pest
Management
Physical Control
Biological Control
Chemical Control
Cultural Control
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is the combined use of tactics to manage a pest (insect, disease, or weed) in an economically and ecological sound manner.
Integrated Pest
Management
Physical Control
Biological Control
Chemical Control
Cultural Control
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New video!