An Agricultural Detergent as Co-Adjuvant for Entomopathogenic Fungi and Chlorpyrifos to Control Pseudococcus viburni (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae)

Abstract

The agricultural detergent TS-2035® was evaluated using a Potter tower in the laboratory to expose Pseudococcus viburni (Signoret) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) females to a non-lethal concentration (0.001% v/v) as a co-adjuvant of formulations containing the entomopathogenic fungi Beauveria bassiana Vuillemin (Cordycipitaceae) or Metarhizium anisopliae Sorokin (Clavicipitaceae), or the organophosphate insecticide chlorpyrifos. At that concentration, TS-2035 did not significantly remove the epicuticle wax of the pseudococcids, nor affect the pH of the solution. Adding the detergent to the M. anisopliae and chlorpyrifos formulations significantly reduced the LC50 of those solutions at 24, 72, and 144 h post treatment. For B. bassiana, the detergent significantly decreased the LC50 of that product only at 72 h post treatment. Fungal solutions with detergent did not affect the conidial germination of the entomopathogenic fungi. Our results found that mixing B. bassiana, M. anisopliae, or chlorpyrifos formulations with TS-2035 at 0.001% v/v did not control P. viburni by removal of their epicuticular wax, but still contributed significantly to mortality.