Biological Control Branch Station
:::

Application of natural enemies on insect pests of organic vegetables and fruits

Date:2014-06-17

Cabbage was grown and managed in the net house this year. Population changes of pest and Eocanthecona furcellata (Wolff) were studied. Results showed that diamond-back moth, cabbage worm, and tobacco cutworm harmed cabbage up to 30.5%. Releasing the third instar of Eocanthecona furcellata could lower the damage to 13.2%.

In study of parasitoid, Dirhinus giffardii Silvestri, under different soil type and parasitize on oriental fruit fly pupa, results showed that soil structure and depth will affect the outcome significantly. As soil depth increased, the amount of pupa parasitized number decreased. The parasitized number in the soil types from large to small were clay, loam, loam+40% sand, and sand. There was no difference in clay soil depth on 1, 3, and 5 cm, however, low pupa parasitized number occurred with little parasitoid eclosion under 10 cm depth clay soil because of low water content between clay granular that let Dirhinus giffardii able to search and parasitize the pupa of oriental fly.

In the study of releasing parasitoid on organic orchard in Kungkuan, Miaoli County, with hanging long effectiveness fruit fly trap and checking the number every 10 days. The number of fruit fly trapped from May, June, July, August, September, and October were 88, 84, 26, 16, 63, and 138, respectively. The average number of lacewing trapped per trap was 15 in the same duration. Therefore, totally 105,000 parasitoids were released on July and August around the organic orchard and the road path nearby resulted in persimmon damage by the fruit fly from 4-14%.The observation fruit fly damage rate is still lasting and being record on non-cash plant such as Terminalia, Sapindus, Garcinia suubelliptica, and Ficus microcarpa.

 

 eocanthecona furcellata prey a larvae of cabbage worm and effect of different soil types on Dirhinus giffardii parasite on pupa of oriental fruit fly

average parasite number of Dirhinus giffardii on different soil types and depths