A specially constructed fence was developed to exclude cabbage flies, Delia radicum (L.), from plantings of rutabaga. The number of first-flight female D. radicum caught on traps inside fenced enclosures declined linearly with fence height from 0 to 90 cm. Females caught in plots surrounded by a 90 cm high fence were 80.6 and 82.8% fewer than in open check plots in 1991 and 1992, respectively. The percentage of transplanted rutabagas killed by cabbage maggot in the 90 cm high enclosures was 1.4% in 1991 and 25.5% in 1992, compared with 11.8 and 84.5% in the open check plots, respectively. The mean damage index rating for rutabagas was severe in the open check plots but slight in the 90 cm high enclosures in 1991. Only 1.2% of rutabagas in the open check plots would have been of marketable grade in 1991, compared with 54% in the 90-cm enclosures. The mean damage rating was highest in the open check plots in 1992, but damage was also severe in all fenced plots due to the heavy infestation levels that year. The potential of exclusion fences for use in pest-management programs for rutabagas and other brassica crops is discussed.

No abstract

The efficacies of registered and unregistered foliar sprays against the tuber flea beetle, Epitrix tuberis Gentner, were compared in 1987, 1988, and 1989 at Abbotsford, B.C. Beetles were released serially in treatment plots and visually counted after each release to determine the effectiveness and longevity of residual control. In 1989, emergence cages placed over previously treated plants measured the effect of sprays on the next generation of beetles. Pyrethroids generally resulted in beetle mortality for longer periods of time than did the nonpyrethroids carbaryl, endosulfan, chlorpyrifos, and methamidophos. Several pyrethroids provided residual beetle control for up to 7 days after application. In 1989, bifenthrin, cyfluthrin, cypermethrin, and deltamethrin were as effective in suppressing emergence of the next generation of beetles as was granular phorate applied at seeding. These studies demonstrated that foliar sprays can be a key component of E. tuberis management programs, especially those operating on soil types where the use of granular insecticides is restricted.

No abstract

The accuracy of visual observations in estimating numbers of tuber flea beetles, Epitrix tuberis Gentner, on young potatoes was determined. Potential sources of observational error examined were as follows: (a) observer competence and experience; (b) time spent observing each plant; (c) time of day; (d) plant height; and (e) weather. Observational accuracy versus tuber flea beetle density on plants followed a linear relationship for both experienced and inexperienced observers. Marked differences between experienced and inexperienced observers generally were reduced after 2 h of sampling experience, but some observers were consistently less accurate at sighting beetles than others. When observing small plants, 5-s observations generally were more accurate at sighting beetles per second of observation than 2-, 8-, or 10-s observations. Under uniform weather conditions, accuracy was the same in the morning as in the afternoon. Observer accuracy was significantly reduced under the combined influences of observer fatigue and wind. The relationship of 5-s-per-plant sampling accuracy to plants between 14 and 56 cm in height was linear; however, a quadratic relationship is suspected for plants over the full range of plant heights (i.e. >1 cm). From these data, total tuber flea beetles per plant estimated by 5-s visual observations per plant would be: TFB = TFB0/EhE0n where TFB0 is the total number of flea beetles observed, n is the total number of plants sampled, Eh is a sampling accuracy constant for the mean plant height sampled, and E0 is the observer accuracy constant calculated as a proportion of the most proficient observer(s).