Abstract
The sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is one of the most important crops in Brazilian farming. Many insect are related to this crop, compromising the quantity and quality of the fruit, representing a production problem. Vegetable diversification is one of the main elements that can be managed for suppressing undesirable insect populations in organic production, once that supports the presence of natural enemies. The basil Ocimum basilicum L. and the marigold Tagetes erecta L. are attractive and nutritious plants for parasitoids, being important candidates for diversified crops. This study evaluated the parasitoids attracted by the association of basil and marigold to organic sweet pepper crop. The experiment comprised three treatments: a) sweet pepper monoculture; b) sweet pepper and basil intercropping; c) sweet pepper and marigold intercropping. Hymenopteran parasitoids were collected over 14 weeks. 268 individuals from 12 families and 41 taxa were collected. Sweet pepper monoculture, sweet pepper-basil intercropping, and sweet pepper-marigold intercropping hosted 40, 98, and 130 individuals and richness of 24, 24, and 23, respectively. Furthermore, the insects of greater abundance in the basil and marigold were different to those collected in the monoculture. The number of parasitoids increased in the associations of sweet pepper with basil and marigold, providing advantages in the use of vegetable diversification for the organic pepper crops management.
Highlights
Sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L., 1753) is one of the most significant greenery cultivated in Brazil, with an annual production close to 290,000 tons of fruits
The experiment was composed of three treatments: a) in the sweet pepper monoculture: 72 plants were used, distributed in 4 garden beds with 60 cm between the plants and 1 m between the lines, with 9 plants in each line and 18 plants per bed; b) for the association of sweet pepper and basil: 72 sweet peppers plants were used with same spacing as the other treatment, and the basil were planted at the borders in a spacing of 40cm, being 72 plants in total; c) for the association of sweet pepper and marigold: 72 sweet peppers plants were used with same spacing, and marigold was planted at the borders in a spacing of 40 cm, containing 72 plants in total
According to Clarke (1993), using ANOSIM (Analysis of Similarities) is possible to quantify this difference, and we found an Rglobal of 0.4283, meaning that the difference was not great, but we found a significant difference between monoculture and basil (p= 0.0287), and between monoculture and marigold (p=0.0301), reinforcing the results obtained by the Non-Metric Multidimensional Scaling (NMDS) graphic
Summary
Sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L., 1753) is one of the most significant greenery cultivated in Brazil, with an annual production close to 290,000 tons of fruits. It is cultivated nationwide, especially in the states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Bahia, and Rio de Janeiro, which are the main producers (Marouelli and Silva, 2012). Many arthropods are associated to this culture, and the damage from pests compromises the quantity and quality of the fruit, becoming a great problem to the production. The principal control method used is the application of phytosanitary products. Almost all the cultivations in Brazil show high irregularities, as the presence of non-authorized active ingredients, and in higher concentrations than the maximum authorized by law (ANVISA, 2013)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
