Search for predatory mites to control tomato pests

• Ano de defesa: 2019
• Autor(a) principal: Cardoso, André Costa
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Tipo de acesso: Acesso aberto
• Idioma: eng
• Instituição de defesa: Universidade Federal de Viçosa
• Palavras-chave em Português: Tomate - Doenças e pragas - Controle biológico; Bemisia tabaci; Aculops lycopersici; Amblyseius herbicolus; CIENCIAS AGRARIAS::AGRONOMIA::FITOSSANIDADE::ENTOMOLOGIA AGRICOLA
• Link de acesso: https://locus.ufv.br/handle/123456789/32402

With the excessive use of pesticides and the increasing impact on the environment and human health, safer pest control practices such as biological control have gained strength. It is applied in many agricultural areas and provides an alternative to chemical pest control. One of the most important crops in the world, the tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Miller), is among the crops that require many sprays with agrochemicals. Biological control on tomato is often difficult because its glandular trichomes can release substances that are toxic to arthropods and may hinder the foraging of natural enemies of the pests. Adaptation of natural enemies to this crop is one of the selection criteria for potential biocontrol agents. Tomato originates from southern America, therefore, predators from wild plants from this continent may be adapted to tomato. Therefore, predatory mites were collected from wild and feral plants in the Minas Gerais state, Brazil, where the predatory mite Amblyseius herbicolus Chant (Acari: Phytoseiidae) was found. Our aim here was to evaluate the potential of this predator as a biological control agent on tomato plants. In Chapter 1 and 2, I evaluated the potential of this predatory mite to control the whitefly, Bemisia tabaci and the tomato russet mite, Aculops lycopersici. Amblyseius herbicolus develops and reproduces when feeding on these two important tomato pests. Moreover, it was able to significantly reduce B. tabaci densities on tomato plants.