Beneficial Insects for Vegetable Production

Mary GardinerAssistant ProfessorThe Ohio State University – OARDCThe Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable and Farm Market EXPO December 8, 2011

Decomposition Biological ControlPollination

Insects provide many benefits or ecosystem services to vegetable producers

© wildlife-pictures-online.com © Peter Bryant© Jackie / Bugguide.net

Biological control is the suppression of insect pests by natural enemies

Biological Control

Predators

Parasitoids

Pathogens

Is biological control important?

PestsSquash Bug

Spotted Cucumber Beetle

Striped Cucumber Beetle

Predators

Stink Bugs

Ground Beetles

Ants

Lady Beetles

Biological control can target any stage of a pest.

Eggs likely fed upon by generalist predators

Do predators provide significant biological control of pest eggs?

• Spotted CB and Squash Bug eggs studied

• Live sterile colony eggs glued to cards

– OPEN/CLOSED treatments (4 reps)

– In the field for 48 hrs

– July-August

Spotted cucumber beetle eggson ground

Pumpkin Pests – Biological Control of Eggs

Squash bug eggs attached to plant leaves

Predators reduced squash bug eggs by 10% and spotted cucumber beetle by 80%!!

Pumpkin Pests – Biological Control of Eggs

Squash bug eggs eaten by predator

PestsSquash Bug

Spotted Cucumber Beetle

Striped Cucumber Beetle

Pest adults are attacked by parasitoid flies Tachinidae

Do we detect significant parasitism of pests in the field?

Feather-legged Fly (parasitoid of squash bug)

Celatoria diabroticae and C. setosa(parasitoids of cucumber beetles)

• Assessment of adult parasitism

• 2 collections of striped cucumber beetle and squash bug from each site, July – August

• Raised for 8 days, then frozen & dissected

Pumpkin Pests – Biological Control of Adults

Celatoria sp larval mouthparts

Pumpkin Pests – Biological Control of Adults

• 10-17% of adult pests were parasitized!

• Does not account for number which may have been killed by parasitoids and not captured

Biological control is an important and sometimes undervalued component of IPM

Diverse group of arthropods contribute to biological control

This service is provided free to growers and can be enhanced through habitat management practices.

Integrated Pest

Management

Physical Control

Biological Control

Chemical Control

Cultural Control

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is the combined use of tactics to manage a pest (insect, disease, or weed) in an economically and ecological sound manner.

Integrated Pest

Management

Physical Control

Biological Control

Chemical Control

Cultural Control

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