Experimental studies on Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) in protected tomato crops in France : biological control and integrated crop protection
Auteur : Trottin-Caudal (Y.)
Année de publication : 2012
Publication : Bulletin OEPP/EPPO Bulletin. Organisation Européenne et Méditerranéenne pour la Protection des Plantes
Volume :
42
Fascicule : 2
Pagination : 234-240
Résumé :
Tuta absoluta is a pest from South America which has been detected in many European and Mediterranean countries since 2006. It was identified in Corsica and the South of France in late 2008, and by 2010 this Lepidopteran species had spread to further tomato-production areas. The pest is present mainly on tomatoes in protected and field crops, and damage on leaves and fruit can be so severe that it can lead to total destruction of the plant. Since 2010, studies have been carried out in experimental insect-proof glasshouses with artificial infestations of the pest. The objective was to gain better knowledge of this emergent pest and to develop adapted control strategies under the conditions of the South-East of France. Integrated pest management is widely used on tomato crops in France, and the predator Macrolophus pygmaeus and the parasitoid Trichogramma achaeae were studied, alone and in combination. The possible effect of the concurrent prey Trialeurodes vaporariorum on the impact of the predator on T. absoluta was also studied. The best results were obtained when the two beneficials were released in combination, even in the presence of whiteflies T. vaporariorum