Anthracnose of chili (Capsicum spp.) causes major production losses throughout Asia where chili plants are grown. A total of 260 Colletotrichum isolates, associated with necrotic lesions of chili leaves and fruit were collected from chili producing areas of Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Taiwan. Colletotrichum truncatum was the most commonly isolated species from infected chili fruit and was readily identified by its falcate spores and abundant setae in the necrotic lesions. The other isolates consisted of straight conidia (cylindrical and fusiform) which were difficult to differentiate to species based on morphological characters. Taxonomic analysis of these straight conidia isolates based on multi-gene phylogenetic analyses (ITS, gapdh, chs-1, act, tub2, his3, ApMat, gs) revealed a further seven known Colletotrichum species, C. endophyticum, C. fructicola, C. karsti, C. plurivorum, C. scovillei, C. siamense and C. tropicale. In addition, three novel species are also described as C. javanense, C. makassarense and C. tainanense, associated with anthracnose of chili fruit in West Java (Indonesia); Makassar, South Sulawesi (Indonesia); and Tainan (Taiwan), respectively. Colletotrichum siamense is reported for the first time causing anthracnose of Capsicum annuum in Indonesia and Sri Lanka. This is also the first report of C. fructicola causing anthracnose of chili in Taiwan and Thailand and C. plurivorum in Malaysia and Thailand. Of the species with straight conidia, C. scovillei (acutatum complex), was the most prevalent throughout the surveyed countries, except for Sri Lanka from where this species was not isolated. Colletotrichum siamense (gloeosporioides complex) was also common in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Pathogenicity tests on chili fruit showed that C. javanense and C. scovillei were highly aggressive, especially when inoculated on non-wounded fruit, compared to all other species. The existence of new, highly aggressive exotic species, such as C. javanense, poses a biosecurity risk to production in countries which do not have adequate quarantine regulations to restrict the entry of exotic pathogens.

Oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis, (Hendel) (Diptera: Tephritidae) is a destructive pest to many major crops, including chili pepper (Capsicum frutescens L). The insect can cause yield loss up to 100% in the absence of any control measures. One control tactic commonly used by pepper growers to control the fruit fly is sticky trap to capture the adults. The purpose of the current study was to elucidate the effect of trap color and height on the fly capture. The results showed that yellow trap was consistently the most attractive trap amongst the other trap colors tested with an overall average of 62.6 adults per trap during the study. The second most attractive traps were white and green traps with overall averages of 45.2 and 40 adults per trap, respectively. The attractiveness levels of the red and blue traps were comparable each other with overall averages of 29.4 and 25.4 adults per trap, respectively. The least attractive trap was black trap with an overall average of 17.1 adults per trap, which was significantly lower than the other trap colors. In addition, traps set up at 25 and 50 cm above the ground captured significantly more adults (187.8 and 171.9 per trap, respectively) compared to those set up at 75 and 100 cm above the ground (60.8 and 37.1 per trap, respectively). When the combination of the color and height of the traps were analyzed, the yellow, white and green traps set up at 25 and 50 cm above the ground caught the highest numbers of adult fruit flies and they were not significantly different each other. Thus, these combinations should be recommended to the pepper growers to control the insect in their plantations.

Plant damages caused by leafhopper, Empoasca terminalis Distant (Homoptera: Cicadellidae) on soybean were first encountered in 2007 in Makassar, South Sulawesi. The insect has been constantly associated with soybean crops in the province ever since. The purposes of the present study were to (i) evaluate potential yield loss attributable to the leafhopper in an experimental set up, (ii) seasonal abundance of E. terminalis, and (iii) distribution of E. terminalis in all major soybean-producing areas in the province. Potential yield loss due to the leafhopper was assessed in a field experiment using two large plots. One of the plots was kept leafhopper-free by weekly insecticide sprays; and the other plot was left unsprayed to allow leafhopper infestation to occur. Adult abundance was weekly monitored using a sweep net throughout the season. Nymph abundance was determined by direct count on the plant leaves. Leafhopper distribution was assessed through surveys conducted in all major soybean-producing areas in South Sulawesi, from 2009-2013. The results of the study showed that E. terminalis caused an average yield loss of 26% on susceptible crops without insecticide use. First leafhopper infestation in all planting seasons occurred two weeks after the plant emergence. Rainfall negatively correlated with the leafhopper abundance. The leafhopper existed in all major soybean production areas in the province. Therefore, our results confirmed the status of E. terminalis as an important soybean pest in the region. In addition, crops planted early in the dry season could escape from heavy leafhopper infestation. Nasruddin at al.: Potential, abundance, and distribution of E. terminalis tanam dengan penyemprotan insektisida sekali seminggu. Plot yang lain tidak disemprot, sehingga secara bebas terinfestasi oleh wereng daun. Fluktuasi populasi serangga dewasa dimonitor dengan menggunakan jaring serangga, sedangkan populasi nimfa dihitung langsung pada daun. Penyebaran wereng disurvei sejak 2009 hingga 2013 di sentra pertanaman kedelai di Sulawesi Selatan. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa E. terminalis menyebabkan kehilangan hasil sebesar 26% pada tanaman rentan tanpa penggunaan insektisida. Infestasi pertama wereng terjadi dua minggu setelah tanaman berkecambah pada pertanaman awal dan akhir musim kemarau. Terdapat korelasi negatif antara curah hujan dan jumlah wereng. E. terminalis ditemukan pada semua sentra pertanaman kedelai di Sulawesi Selatan. Dengan demikian, hasil penelitian ini mempertegas status E. terminalis sebagai hama penting pada tanaman kedelai dan telah menyebar luas pada pertanaman kedelai di Sulawesi Selatan. Di samping itu, tanaman kedelai yang ditanam pada awal musim kemarau dapat terhindar dari serangan wereng yang berat.Kata kunci: hama kedelai, fluktuasi populasi, kerusakan tanaman

Chitin is the main component of fungal cell walls. The growth of fungi can be inhibited by chitinolytic bacteria because they can produce chitinase enzymes which play a role in degrading cell walls. The purpose of this study was to test the activity of bacteria isolated from the roots of Ipomea pes caprae in inhibiting the growth of the fungus Lasiodiplodia pseudothebromae. The research method was carried out by isolating as much as 5 g of I. pes caprae roots using specific media and testing for bacterial antagonism using a dual culture method. The results showed that there were four isolate codes obtained namely IPaR1, IPaR4, IPpA2, and IPpA3 and could inhibit the growth of Lasiodiplodia pseudtheobromae.

Greenhouse whitefly, Trialeurodes vaporariorum Westwood was reported for the first time in the South Sulawesi Province of Indonesia, and is causing significant damage to field grown potato crops. In an insecticide trial, the tuber yield in infested, untreated plants was reduced by 39%, and the plants had an average number of 68 adult whiteflies per leaflet.