Insect Control on Fresh Market Tomatoes in West-Central Florida, Spring, 1986

Abstract

Abstract Transplants were set 14 Feb, 18 inches apart on 2.5 ft wide by 8 inches high beds of EauGallie fine sand covered with black polyethylene mulch. Plots consisted of 10 staked plants and treatments were replicated 4 times in a randomized complete block design. Treatments were applied 7, 14, 21, 28 Mar, 4, 11, 17, 25 Apr, 2, 9, 16, and 23 May with a 2.5 gal hand-held CO2 powered sprayer which was operated at 40 psi and delivered 45-145 gal/acre (gallonage increased as the plants grew). Ambush 2EC was combined at 0.1 lb (AI)/100 gal with MK 936 treatments on 9 and 23 May. On 24 Apr, the numbers of thrips were counted in 10 flowers from each plot. On 20 May, the numbers of active leafmines (those containing living larvae) and the numbers of empty leafmines were counted on the terminal three leaflets of the 7th leaf from the top of each of 10 stems from each plot. To complete a residue analysis, 10 undamaged mature green or breaker fruit were harvested and weighed on 23, 24, 26, 28, 30 May and 6 Jun from all check plots and from plots sprayed with MK 936 applied at either 0.02 or 0.01 lb (AIJ/100 gal. The numbers of undamaged ripe fruit and the numbers of ripe fruit damaged by noctuid larvae (principally the southern armyworm, S. eridania (Cramer)) or stink bugs were determined in harvests taken on 21, 28 May, 3 and 11 Jun. Leafmine counts were transformed by the square root of x + 0.5 prior to analyses but are presented in the original scale.