Manejo integrado de la mosca blanca (Homóptera : Aleyrodidae) en cultivos de tomate (Solanum Lycopersicum) en condiciones de invernadero

Abstract

The yield and production of the tomato, Solanum lycopersicum, has been harmed by problems related to the presence of T. vaporariorum. This species of whitefly is one of the main pests affecting tomato crops grown under greenhouse conditions. The use of chemical insecticides is the predominant control method, however there are alternative strategies in integrated pest management that utilize natural enemies as parasitoids. This research evaluates the effectiveness of two species of wasps, Encarsia formosa and Amitus fuscipennis, and the application of a garlic-chili based commercial insecticide on the population control of the whitefly species. The research was carried out under a randomized block design with subsampling (BCA). Data was collected on seven treatments and one control with three clones each. The plants were divided into three categories: low, medium and upper strata. Thirty leaves were collected and sampled for treatment each afternoon starting when the plants were nine weeks old and ending in the fifteenth week. Observations were made on the follow days: 1st, 9th, 17th, 25th, 33rd and 41st. The evaluation of the treatments in the control and reduction of the whitefly population concluded that the use of the endoparasitoid, Amitus fuscipennis, is the most efficient treatment due to its mortality rate of 10 individuals.