Blackcurrant Gall Mites in Latvia: Resistance of Cultivars and Efficacy of Acaricides

Migration Monitoring of Blackcurrant Gall Mite (Cecidophyopsis ribis Westw.) from Buds to Leaves on Several Blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum L.) Cultivars

“…Therefore, such a situation makes the pest very difficult to control (Apenite et al 2012). However, it is possible to target them during their migration periods (Cross & Ridout 2001).…”

“…As the occurrence and infestation level of blackcurrant buds by the pest depends on cultivar (Łabanowska & Pluta 2010;Gwozdecki 2000;Kahu et al 2009), it is envisaged that the migration period may also be dependent on the currant cultivar (Gajek et al 1996;Gajek 1997;Rubauskis et al 2006). Therefore, the time to control big bud mite should take into account the migration period deadlines on a specific cultivar (Cross & Ridout 2001;Apenite et al 2012;Mitchell et al 2011). The results obtained in these previous studies are confirmed by the data in our studies: both numbers and migration time of big bud mite (C. ribis) on 'Ben Alder', 'Ben Hope', 'Ojebyn' and 'Ruben' used in the experiments was very diverse and depended on the cultivar.…”

“…It is possible to apply this product twice during the growing season; from the beginning of flowering through to full flowering of the bushes (Plant Protection Program 2014). However, chemical protection is most effective during the migration period; that is when mites leave buds following overwintering and before they enter new buds to feed (Łabanowska & Gajek 1999;Mitchell et al 2011;Apenite et al 2012).…”

“…There is much information available on the life cycle of the mite (Massee 1928;Behrens 1964;Taksdal 1967;Gajek 1997;Apenite et al 2012), the annual cycle of egg (Collingwood & Brock 1959;Csapo 1992) and mite content of galls (Smith 1960a(Smith , b, 1961Mitchell et al 2011), and the migration of mites from galls in spring in order to colonize new buds (Łabanowska & Gajek 1999;Cross & Ridout 2001). Although, it has been long recognized that the timing of the migration of the gall mite is not closely associated with a particular growth stage of the plant, commercial acaricide applications are still timed according to plant growth stage (Apenite et al 2012).…”

“…Although, it has been long recognized that the timing of the migration of the gall mite is not closely associated with a particular growth stage of the plant, commercial acaricide applications are still timed according to plant growth stage (Apenite et al 2012). It is probable that such timings are often less than optimal and may contribute to poor control (Cross & Ridout 2001).…”