CURTAILING OVIPOSITION BY THE GLASSY-WINGED SHARPSHOOTER ON NURSERY PLANTS

• Author(s): Blua, Matthew; Redak, Richard; Bethke, James; Bowers, Brad; Gutman, George;
• Abstract: The containerized ornamental nursery industry in California has been implicated as the most likely source of new outbreaks of the glassy-winged sharpshooter (GWSS) Homolodisca vitripennis (formerly H. coagulata) in areas of the state that are not infested. For nurseries in GWSS-infested areas, rigorous quarantine requirements mandate GWSS monitoring, thorough plant inspections at shipping and receiving locations, and insecticide treatments. These requirements assume that one GWSS adult, or one egg mass can initiate a stable population. Thus, plant shipments are frequently rejected at the receiving location on the basis of an egg mass that was not detected and removed during the shipping site inspection. The costs associated with quarantine requirements and shipment rejection has become an important economic problem. Many nurseries in infested areas do not ship their product to areas that are not infested with GWSS, resulting in multi-million dollar losses. In this study, we examine the impact of selected insecticides on GWSS oviposition on containerized nursery plants. The insecticides we selected for study are currently being used by the nursery industry in California to suppress insect populations. In two trials, examining 4 different plant species and 8 insecticides applied as foliar sprays or soil drenches, we found no suppressive impact on GWSS oviposition.
• Publication Date: Nov 2006
• Journal: 2006 Pierce's Disease Research Symposium