Control of Melon Thrips on Pepper Test 1, Spring, 1994

Abstract

Abstract The experiment was conducted in a 2 ha field of rockdale soil located in Homestead, FL. ‘Gator Bell’ pepper transplants were set in the field onto raised black polyethylene mulch covered beds following recommended cultural practices on 2 Jan 1994. Beds were 71.1 cm wide and spaced 139.5 cm apart from center to center. The field was cultivated weekly to clean weeds between the rows. Fertilizer was applied in kg/ha at 366 N, 732 P, 732 K on two dates; at planting and 4 wk after planting. The field was irrigated by drip system at weekly intervals delivering approximately 5 cm depth. Plots were 4 rows each 7.6 m long. Four treatments were arranged in randomized complete blocks with 4 replications. Chemical were applied on 2, 8, 15, 22 and 29 April with a backpack sprayer using 2 nozzles/row delivering 124 gal/ha at 40 psi. Treatments were evaluated by randomly collecting a sample of 25 leaves from the center of two middle rows of each treatment 24 h after each of the last 4 insecticide application dates. Leaf samples were placed separately in one-liter plastic cups and transported to the laboratory. Thrips were separated from the leaves by washing with 70% ethanol, and the number of adults and larvae in each sample were recorded. On the last sampling date, foliage damage was rated visually on five randomly selected plants per plot using a scale from 0 to 10, 0 being the worst. The canopy volume of these plants were also determined. Thrips damage on fruits was determined by randomly collecting five fruits (one per plant) from each plot of each treatment. The fruits were graded visually as discussed above. Fruits scoring 5 or above were considered marketable.