Using Yellow Rocket as a Trap Crop for Diamondback Moth (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae)

Abstract

Yellow rocket, Barbarea vulgaris (R. Br.) variety arcuata, was evaluated as a trap crop for diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), in cabbage, Brassica oleracea L. variety capitata, in 2003L. variety capitata, in and 2004L. variety capitata, in . In 2003, the numbers of P. xylostella larvae found in Þeld plots of cabbage alone were 5.2Ð11.3 times higher than those on cabbage plants in plots that included cabbage and several rows of yellow rocket. In an outdoor experiment in screenhouses, P. xylostella oviposition on cabbage was compared among six treatments that varied in the percentage of yellow rocket in relation to cabbage (0, 4, 8, 16, 24, and 32% of the plants were yellow rocket). Results indicated that the percentage of eggs laid on cabbage decreased as the percentage of yellow rocket in the treatment increased, but this decrease was not signiÞcant beyond 20% of the plants being yellow rocket. In 2004, the numbers of P. xylostella larvae in Þeld plots of cabbage alone were 1.6 Ð2.4 and 1.7Ð2.8 times higher than numbers in treatments with 10 and 20% trap crop, respectively. Sticky trap and sweep net captures of P. xylostella adults indicated that within-Þeld dispersal was reduced by the presence of yellow rocket and aggregation occurred around yellow rocket plants. Our study suggests that using yellow rocket as a trap crop may reduce P. xylostella infestations in cabbage Þelds, and this possibility is discussed in the context of general crop and insect pest management practices in crucifers.

Designing an effective trap cropping strategy: the effects of attraction, retention and plant spatial distribution

“…To our knowledge, only two studies have attempted to measure even proxies for insect retention by trap crops (Borden & Greenwood 2000; Badenes‐Perez, Shelton & Nault 2005). Borden and Greenwood studied baited trees as trap plants for spruce and bark beetles and concluded that the baited trees’ higher retention potentially contributed to the trap crop’s commercial success.…”

Plant species diversity for sustainable management of crop pests and diseases in agroecosystems: a review

“…Recent reports on the high potential of trap cropping based on field studies using PSD plants include the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella whose infestations in cabbage fields were reduced using yellow rocket (Barbarea vulgaris) as a trap (Badenes-Perez et al 2005) and cotton bollworms Helicoverpa spp. whose infestations in cotton fields were reduced using field pea (Pisum sativum) in Australia (Grundy et al 2004) and grain sorghum (S. bicolor) in the USA (Tillman and Mullinix 2004).…”

Multiple hydroxyphenethyl glucosinolate isomers and their tandem mass spectrometric distinction in a geographically structured polymorphism in the crucifer Barbarea vulgaris

“…Due to genetic variation for strong resistance to an oomycete plant pathogen (van Mölken et al, 2014a,b) and three agricultural pests, the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (Shinoda et al, 2002), the flea beetle Phyllotreta nemorum (Nielsen, 1997) and the cabbage moth, Mamestra brassicae (van Leur et al, 2008), B. vulgaris is also being investigated for useful genes for plant breeding (Augustin et al, 2012;Kuzina et al, 2009Kuzina et al, , 2011Wei et al, 2013) or direct agronomic use as 'deadend' trap crop (Badenes-Pérez et al, 2005. Traditional taxonomy of the species is controversial, possibly because the morphological characters available to classical taxonomists were not sufficiently informative (Agerbirk et al, 2003).…”