Published in Scientific Papers. Series B, Horticulture, Volume LXI
Written by Maria CĂLIN, Tina Oana CRISTEA, Silvica AMBĂRUȘ, Creola BREZEANU, Petre Marian BREZEANU, Marcel COSTACHE, Gabriela ȘOVAREL, Liliana BRATU
The paper aims to present the attack characteristics and the results of biological control of two-spotted spider mite on pepper and melon crops cultivated in tunnels. The attack of two-spotted spider mite began in the first decade of June. The degree of attack of two-spotted spider mite on pepper plants was ascendant reaching 17.5% in the second decade of September. The degree of attack of two-spotted spider mite in melon was high, reaching 61.3% in the third decade of September. The predator, Phytoseiulus persimilis At.-H. (Arachnida: Mesostigmata: Phytoseiidae) was used to control the spider mite in peppers and melons. The variants utilized in our experiment were as it follows: V1 - one release with 50,000 ex./ha; V2 - one release with 100 thousand ex./ha; V3 – one release with 150 thousand ex./ha; V4 - Untreated control. The releases of Phytoseiulus persimilis has reduced the two-spotted spider mite degree of attack (DA%) on pepper in late August to 2.3% in V1, 2.1% in V2 and 1.7% in V3. In September the DA% was below 1% in all the three variants. In the untreated control, the pest degree of attack level increased from 9.5% in the first decade of August, up from 17.5% in the 2nd decade of September, and then began to decline. In melons, the releases of Ph. persimilis have reduced the attack degree in the third decade of August at 1.8% in V1, 1.9% in V2, 1.5% in V3. In all three variants, the degree of attack in September was less than 1%. In V4 (untreated control), DA% increased from 4.3% in the first decade of August, to 61.3% at the end of September.
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