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Strawberry HVAA Webinar Disease and Insect Control Nov (Final)
Strawberry HVAA Webinar Disease and Insect Control Nov (Final)
Strawberry HVAA Webinar Disease and Insect Control Nov (Final)
November 1, 2019
David Picha
Berry Specialist, Chemonics International
Principals of Pest Management
• there are a number diseases and insects of strawberries
• diseases include fungi, bacteria, viruses
• insects range from piercing/sucking types to chewing types
• pan
• sticky cards
• yellow
• blue
• pheromone traps
• leafrollers, armyworms
• digital camera
• microscope
Principal Diseases of Strawberries
Foliar Diseases
• Powdery Mildew (Podosphaera aphanis)
• Leaf Spot (Mycosphaerella fragariae)
• Leaf Blight (Phomopsis obscurans))
• Leaf Scorch (Diplocarpon earlianum)
• Leaf Blotch (Gnomonia comari)
• Angular Leaf Spot (Xanthomonas fragariae)
Fruit Diseases
• Gray Mold (Botrytis cinerea)
• Leather Rot (Phytophthora cactorum)
• Soft Rot (Rhizopus stolonifer)
• Anthracnose (Colletotrichum acutatum)
Phytophthora Root Rot (Phytophthora cactorum)
Red Stele (Phytophthora fragariae)
Symptoms
• infected plants initially appear stunted with small leaves
• as the disease progresses, the young leaves wilt and the plant
eventually collapses and dies
• wilted leaves may develop brown leaf margins with a sharp line
between damaged and healthy tissue
• becomes more noticeable during periods of water stress, during hot
dry weather, and as the fruit load on the plant increases
• when infected plants are cut open, a deep red to brown discoloration
can be seen in the crown tissue
• roots are typically black and have a poor fibrous structure
• root core of red stele infected plants is reddish-brown
Control
• establish field with disease-free plants from certified nurseries
• soil should be well drained and the plants established on raised beds
• drip irrigation is preferred
• soil drench applications of mefenoxam
• mefenoxam can be applied through the drip irrigation system
immediately after the plant establishment
• foliar applications of fosetyl-aluminum
• substrate culture as alternative production system
Black Root Rot (Pythium irregulare, Rhizoctonia fragariae)
• complex disease involving several different fungal
pathogens along with plant stresses or winter injury
Symptoms
• lack of plant vigor, leaf discoloration, and necrosis
• infected plants wilt and the edges of the leaves turn
brown or have a scorched appearance
• June-bearing strawberry plants continue to decline and
often die after the stress of fruit production
• a progression of feeder root death and black roots
• outer layer of the root falls away, leaving only a thin
strand from the core of the root
Control
• diseased plants should be removed from the field as soon as
they are noticed
• avoid moving soil from infected areas of the field to clean
areas on machinery or footwear
• no fungicides control
• soil fumigation may be effective, but the cost of the fumigant
and application equipment usually does not justify treatment
Charcoal Rot (Macrophomina phaseolina)
Symptoms
• wilting of foliage, plant stunting, and death of older leaves
• central youngest leaves often remain green and alive
• symptoms usually appear after the plants are established in the field and
after the plants are subjected to moisture stress or begin bearing fruit
• infected plants will eventually collapse and die
• a longitudinal section of the crown of a charcoal rot infected strawberry
plant will show dark brown to orange-brown coloration
• field diagnosis of charcoal rot is difficult due to similar symptoms caused
by other soil-borne crown and root rot pathogens
• internal crown tissue darkening
• accurate field diagnosis is not possible; the affected plants must be
analyzed by a plant pathology laboratory
Symptoms
• leaf scorch can infect foliage, runners, fruit stalks, and berry caps
• numerous dark-purple, angular to round spots on upper leaf surface
• leaf scorch lesions remain completely reddish-purple and will not turn
tan or gray in the center
• the spots may rapidly increase and coalesce into red or light purple
blotches, which eventually dry up causing the leaf to appear burnt
• in severe cases, the infected area dries to a tan color and the leaf
margin curls upward looking scorched
• older and middle-aged leaves infected more readily than young leaves
• as the spots age, black pimple-like fruiting bodies of the fungus are
produced in the center of each spot
Control
• hot and dry weather will stop leaf scorch disease development
Control
• good field sanitation
• discarded berries and over-ripe fruit should be removed from the field
• handle the fruit carefully to avoid bruising
• rapid cooling after harvest
• maintenance of the cold chain during transport and distribution to market
Anthracnose Fruit Rot (Colletotrichum acutatum)
Symptoms
• dark lesion extending down pedicel which girdles the
stem and kills the flower
• infection after pollination may result in small, hard,
deformed fruit
• light brown water-soaked spots on ripening fruit which
develop into firm dark round lesions
• fruit infections are characterized by dark, circular, tan to brown
sunken lesions that may be covered with salmon-pink spore
masses
Piercing Sucking
• Tarnished Plant Bug, Lygus Bug (Lygus lineolaris)
• Two-Spotted Spider Mite (Tetranychus urticae)
• Cyclamen Mite (Steneotarsonemus pallidus)
• Aphids (Chaetospihon fragaefolii, Myzus persicae)
• Whiteflies (Bemisia tabaci)
• Thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis)
Chewing
• Strawberry Bud Weevil (Anthonomus signatus)
• Strawberry Root Weevil (Otiorhynchus ovatus)
• Leafrollers (Ancylis comptana fragariae)
• Leafhopper (Homoptera sp.)
• Grubworms (Phyllophaga sp., Cyclocephala sp.)
• Sap Beetle (Stelidota geminata)
Tarnished Plant Bug, Lygus Bug (Lygus lineolaris)
Description
• adults are about 6 mm long and elliptical shaped
• brown to black in color with yellow or white patches
• easily identified by the yellow markings behind the head, which vary in
shape from a V, to a Y, to a heart shape
• immature stage, or nymph, is similar to the adult but smaller and
green in color with black spots
• both adults and nymphs feed on the developing flowers and fruit,
sucking out plant juices with their piercing-sucking mouth parts
Life Cycle
• overwinter in protected areas such as leaf litter, plant debris, hedge
rows, and brush piles
• adults become active in the early spring and the mated females lay
their eggs on grasses, broadleaf weeds, and on strawberry plants
• eggs hatch to nymphs in 7-10 days depending on the temperature
• nymphs may be present on the plants in early May
• first observation of nymphs usually occurs during the full-bloom period
of midseason flowering cultivars
• nymphs undergo 5 stages of development
• can be 2 to 5 generations per year
Tarnished Plant Bug, Lygus Bug
Feeding Symptoms
• adult and nymph stages feed on the strawberry flowers and developing fruit, causing the fruit to be
deformed and have seedy ends
• straw-colored seeds that are large and hollow
• damage varies from partial to severe depending on the amount of feeding
• deformed fruit are generally unmarketable
Control
• eliminate weeds from within the production area and along the field borders
• avoid planting strawberries near alfalfa, which attracts lygus bugs
• apply insecticide if nymphs are found in 4 flower clusters out of 30 sampled
• in other leading strawberry producing countries the recommended insecticides are:
• acetamiprid
• carbaryl
• diazinon
• malathion
• imidacloprid
• fenpropathrin
• novaluron
• flonicamid
• permethrin
• bifenthrin
• etoxazole
• Naled
• thiamethoxam
• flupyradifurone
Strawberry Bud Weevil (Anthonomus signatus)
Description
• adults are small beetles, approximately 2.5 mm-long, with a long,
slender, and curved snout
• adults vary in color from dull red to nearly black, with a dark spot just
below the center on each wing cover
Life Cycle
• most bud weevils migrate into strawberry fields in the early spring
from bordering wooded areas
• adult bud weevils feed on pollen inside nearly-mature flowers
• subsequently, the adult lays an egg inside the flower
• larvae feed within the damaged bud for a period of 3 to 4 weeks
• a new generation of adults emerges in mid-summer
• bud weevils overwinter as adults
Strawberry Bud Weevil
Feeding Symptoms
• bud weevils are normally present just before and during bloom
• adult bud weevils feed on pollen inside nearly-mature flowers
• adults girdle the flower bud to prevent its opening and clip the stem
so that it hangs or falls to the ground
Control
• apply insecticide when weevils are observed and there is at least
one freshly clipped flower bud per meter of row
Life Cycle
• overwinter as larvae in soil
• larvae feed on strawberry plant roots in spring
• adults begin to emerge from the soil during harvest
• adults remain in the fields throughout July and August, feeding and
laying eggs
• one generation per year
Strawberry Root Weevil
Feeding Symptoms
• reddish granular excrement on roots
• notched leaves
Control
• in other leading strawberry producing countries, the recommended
insecticides for control of strawberry root weevil
• carbaryl
• diazinon
• malathion
• Imidacloprid
• esfenvalerate
• fenpropathrin
• novaluron
• bifenthrin
• chlorpyrifos
• thiamethoxam
Leafrollers (Ancylis comptana)
Description
• adult moths are reddish brown, with distinct gray, tan, and white
markings on forewings
• wingspan is approximately 12 mm
Life Cycle
• moths lay eggs on the underside of strawberry leaflets
• eggs hatch and the larvae feed on leaf epidermis, secreting silk
threads as tie the leaflets together
• as the larvae feed and grow, they change from pale green to grayish
brown in color
• larvae reach a length of about 12 mm
• pupae are formed within the leaf roll, eventually emerging as an adult
• several generations per year
Leafrollers
Feeding Symptoms
• larvae use silk to spin webs and roll leaves while consuming
leaf tissue
• leaflets tissue turns brown and necrotic
Control
• in other leading strawberry producing countries, the
recommended insecticides for control of leafrollers:
• spinetoram
• spinosad
• chlorantraniliprole
• tebufenozide
• methoxyfenozide
• diazinon
Whiteflies (Trialeurodes packardi, Bemisia tabaci)
• generally more severe inside greenhouses and poly tunnels
Description
• adults are about 1 mm in size with four membranous wings that are
coated with white powdery wax
Life Cycle
• whiteflies go through six development stages: eggs; first, second,
third, and fourth instar immatures; and the adult
• eggs are microscopic and laid on the underside of leaves
• only adults and newly hatched nymphs (i.e., crawlers) are mobile
• in warm weather, whiteflies can complete a generation in 18 days
Whiteflies
Feeding Symptoms
• stunts plant growth and reduces crop yields directly
through their feeding on leaf sap
• excretes sticky honeydew during feeding that support
the growth of black sooty mold fungus
• can transmit virus diseases
Control
• sticky traps are useful for determining infestation levels
• the predator wasp, Encarsia Formosa, is effective in
reducing whitefly populations in greenhouses, but not in
open field production
• early Spring pruning and removal of dead leaves helps to
reduce overwintering pest populations
• in other leading strawberry producing countries, the
recommended insecticides for control of whiteflies:
• thiamethoxam
• imidacloprid
• pyriproxyfen
• Fenpropathrin
• acetamiprid
• insecticidal soap
Two-Spotted Spider Mite (Tetranychus urticae)
• one of the worst strawberry pests inside greenhouses and
poly tunnels
• prefer hot and dry weather
• 10X magnifying glass needed to properly identify mites
Description
• adults vary from slightly amber to greenish in color with two dark
spots on the front portion of the abdomen
• elliptical in shape, about 0.5 mm long, with 8 legs
• eggs of spider mites are attached to fine silk webbing and hatch in
approximately three days
• nymphs are oval in shape and generally yellow or greenish
Life Cycle
• life cycle is composed of the egg, the larva, two nymphal stages,
and the adult
• time from egg to adult varies greatly depending on temperature
• cool, damp weather generally keeps mite populations in check
naturally, but they can increase rapidly under hot, dry conditions
• feeding on undersides of leaves
• adult female lives two to four weeks and is capable of laying
several hundred eggs during her life
• 10-15 generations may hatch each year
Two-Spotted Spider Mite
Feeding Symptoms
• pierce epidermis of leaf with sharp mouthparts
• extract the cell sap and collapse mesophyll tissue of the leaf
• a yellow or bronze-colored spot forms at each feeding site
• injured leaves become dehydrated during hot sunny days and eventually discolor and
begin to senesce and turn necrotic
• webs on the lower surface of the leaf
Control
• water roads to reduce dust from moving vehicles which transports mites into field
• miticides used in other countries for effective control of two-spotted spider mites
include:
• abamectin
• spirodiclofen
• etoxazole
• bifenazate
• fenpyroximate
• hexythiazox
• acequinocyl
• clofentezine
• the predator mite, Phytoseilus persmilis, is used worldwide as a biological control
• release predator mites only when spider mites are present in the field
• ratio of 1 predator to 10 two-spotted mites for control
• predator mites do not cause harm to the strawberry plant or other crops
Cyclamen Mite (Phytonemus pallidus)
Description
• tiny (< 0.3 mm), oval, white-amber colored mite
• magnification (10X) needed for identification
• eggs are oval, translucent and about one-half the size of a mature mite
Feeding Symptoms
• stunted plants, distorted leaves, and buds that fail to open
• compact leaf mass in the center of the plant
• fruit from cyclamen mite infested plants are small, bronzed, and have
prominent seeds
• feeds on the newest strawberry leaves while they are still folded up near
the crown
Control
• avoid infested nursery plants, which can be a major source of mites
• miticides used in other countries for effective control of cyclamen mites
include:
• abamectin
• spiromesifen
• fenpyroximate
• acequinocyl
Control
• recommended insecticides for aphid control in other
commercial strawberry producing countries include:
• spinetoram
• acetamiprid
• dibrom
• sulfoxaflor
Leafhoppers (Homoptera spp.)
Description
• adults are light green or white and about 3 mm long
• young nymphs are tiny, light green, and easily identified by the habit
of moving sideways when disturbed.
Feeding Symptoms
• sucking on leaf tissue and removing solutes from the cells, which
reduces plant vigor
• heavily infested leaves are speckled with white markings
• causes the upper leaves to curl up and develop a yellowish cast
Control
• recommended insecticides for controlling leafhoppers in other
commercial strawberry producing countries include:
• malathion
• carbaryl
• acetamiprid
• bifenthrin
• imidacloprid
• thiamethoxam
• esfenvalorate
• novaluron
• fenpropathrin
• flonicamid
• esfenvalorate
Grubworm (Phyllophaga spp.)
Description
• adults are hard-shelled, block-shaped beetles that fly at night and
are seldom seen in strawberry fields
• larvae are found in the soil; they are C-shaped, with a tan or brown
head capsule and six prominent spiny legs
Life Cycle
• June beetle adults are active in May and early June
• eggs are laid in grassy places
• eggs hatch into grubworm larvae and feed on plant roots
• June beetle larvae remain in the soil for three seasons and feed on
plant roots throughout each growing season
Grubworm
Feeding Symptoms
• stunted growth and plant dieback
• one grub can damage 3- 4 plants
• plants show poor vigor, wilting, and death in patches
• first-year plantings are most susceptible to damage
Control
• typically enter the field in by incorporation of unsterilized
farmyard manure
• calcium chloride mixed into the manure piles will significantly
lower white grub inoculum by desicating the larvae
• use light blue water traps to attract and kill the adult beetles
• insecticides applied as soil drench treatments are effective in
reducing the population of grubworms in the soil
• insecticides used in other leading strawberry producing
countries for control of grubworms include:
• diazinon
• bifenthrin
• imidacloprid
Sap Beetle (Stelidota geminata)
Description
• found mostly on ripe and over-ripe fruit
• adults are about 3 mm long, oval, and mottled brown in color, with orange
or yellow spots
• adults have knobbed antennae
Life Cycle
• overwinter as adults in organic matter in protected sites and become active
early in the spring
• begin laying eggs in fermenting material in May and June
• adults emerge in late June and July
• usually only one generation per year
Feeding Symptoms
• feeds on ripe berries, creating holes in ripening fruit
• beetles may be seen in the holes they chewed, but often drop to the
ground when disturbed
Control
• the best management strategy is good field sanitation
• keep the field free of overripe fruit by picking often and thoroughly
• insecticides that are effective in controlling sap beetles include:
• bifenthrin
• acetamiprid
• naled
Open-Field vs. Protected Structure Pest Challenges
Proper Application of Crop Protectants
• well functioning equipment
• proper dosage