Integrated Control of Scales on Highbush Blueberry in Poland

Abstract

In the past decade, the development of highbush blueberry production in Poland has been followed by the occurrence of new pests in the plantations, including scales. Since both the assessment of the populations of natural enemies present in a territory and the knowledge of the scale species present in the crop are crucial for the correct application of IPM strategies, a study was carried out to address these aspects and evaluate the efficacy of several active substances in controlling Parthenolecanium spp. in several highbush blueberry plantations. Specimens of adult larvae collected on several plantations were phylogenetically closely linked to two species, P. corni and P. fletcheri. However, considering the ecology and behavior of these species, it was concluded that the pest population was more likely to belong to P. corni. Analyzing the scale parasitoids’ community present in the different locations, it emerged that it was quite diversified, including species affecting both the initial and adult biological phases of the scales, with differences also in the population size and diversity, including both general or specialized parasitoids and predators. The different active substances tested in the efficacy trials, which included both synthetic and bio-based compounds, were suitable for controlling the scale infestation. However, the different efficacy observed between them, depending on season and location, could be interpreted taking into consideration the initial level of infestation. It is concluded that applying an IPM strategy that combines agronomical practices with the application of insecticides with different mechanisms of action, attentive to the benefit of protecting natural enemies, can result in satisfactory control of P. corni in highbush blueberry plantations.

Evaluation of the yield of highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) cultivars and their economic efficiency on commodity plantations in Poland in the years 2020–2022

“…In research on highbush blueberry cultivation, in addition to economic and market conditions, natural, technological, and cultivation aspects that affect plant yield are widely considered 2 . From a review of Polish and foreign literature [Krzewińska et al 2010, Komosa et al 2017, Tryngiel-Gać and Treder 2017, Masłowska et al 2018, Jiang et al 2019, Piencek and Kukuła 2020, Hera et al 2021, Messig et al 2021, Merca (Laieș) et al 2021, Smrke et al 2021, Lenart et al 2022, Appiah et al 2023, Tartanus et al 2023 show that blueberry yields depend both on the cultivar grown, soil conditions and weather factors prevailing in a given year, as well as on the agrotechnical practices used in cultivation, i.e. irrigation, fertilisation, mulching, pruning or plant protection, among others.…”