Project Number: 1926-22000-018-02
Project Type: Specific Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Sep 01, 2005
End Date: Aug 31, 2007

Objective:
To determine the role of the imported biological control agent Peristenus digoneutis in reducing tarnished plant bug populations in apples and other crops, and measure the economic benefit this reduction provides to farmers.

Approach:
The tarnished plant bug (TPB) is a major pest of fruit, vegetable, seed, fiber, and nursery crops. This project focuses on apples, because they are grown in many states, are perennial, have a high value per acre, and are damaged by TPB in New York and other northeastern states. Since the establishment of P. digoneutis in the region, which has reduced populations of TPB in alfalfa, incidence of damage by TPB in apples has also fallen. Cooperator will conduct research to determine whether P. digoneutis is responsible for this reduction by 1) measuring the impact of Peristenus digoneutis on TPB in apple orchards grown under different management practices; 2) contrasting the rate of parasitism by P. digoneutis in apples with the rate in adjacent alfalfa, weeds, and other vegetation associated with apple orchards; and 3) measuring the impact of biological control by P. digoneutis on native TPB parasitoids and associated mirids in apples.