Downy Chess Grass as a Host of the Pear Psylla

1963 ◽  
Vol 95 (9) ◽  
pp. 1005-1006 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. H. A. Wilde
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Bromus Tectorum ◽  
Field Trials ◽  
Pear Psylla ◽  
Important Host ◽  
Pear Trees ◽  
Okanagan Valley

Pear and quince are primary hosts of the pear psylla, Psylla pyricola Foerster (Smith, 1941; Wilde, 1962), but the scarcity of quince in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia eliminates it as an important host in that area.In 1962 suspicious chlorotic streaking, symptomatic of feeding by sucking insects, was seen on downy chess grass, Bromus tectorum L., growing in two pear orchards heavily infested with pear psylla. As a result, greenhouse and field trials were conducted to ascertain if pear psylla, on occasion, feeds on this grass and causes phytotoxic symptoms. Cages, enclosing small, potted Anjou pear trees and clumps of downy chess grass growing around the base of these trees, were used in the greenhouse for confining 30 adult pear psyllids. An equal number of potted trees and clumps of grass were maintained under the same greenhouse conditions but without adult psyllids. Observations on feeding and phytotoxic symptoms produced in downy chess grass by the pear psylla were made between July 12 and October 19.

BIONOMICS OF THE PEAR PSYLLA, PSYLLA PYRICOLA FOERSTER, IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

1963 ◽  
Vol 41 (6) ◽  
pp. 953-961 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. H. A. Wilde ◽  
T. K. Watson
Keyword(s):  
Biological Control ◽  
British Columbia ◽  
Apple Tree ◽  
Migratory Flight ◽  
Pear Psylla ◽  
Pear Trees ◽  
Heavy Rains ◽  
Okanagan Valley

In the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, the pear psylla, Psylla pyricola Foerster, develops only on pear. It overwinters in a variety of protected situations in or near pear trees, e.g., under bark scales, in ground crevices, occasionally under the bark of apple tree interplants in pear orchards, and even in such unlikely quarters as the nests of hornets. Four summer generations and an over-wintering generation occurred in 1961 and 1962. Development of the psyllid from egg to adult required 6 to 7 weeks in the cool weather of spring but only 4 to 5 weeks in midsummer. Heavy rains readily remove nymphs from leaves and twigs but cannot dislodge the firmly attached eggs. Adults have been noted clinging to leaves and twigs in winds of up to 55 miles per hour. Biological control of the pear psylla is affected mainly by two predators, the anthocorid bug, Anthocorus melanocerus Reuter, and the neuropteran, Chrysopa oculatus Say. Dormant oil sprays are detrimental to the anthocorid. There was a major migratory flight of the pear psylla in August and September and two minor migratory flights in late March and mid-June. Aitborne psyllids decreased in numbers with elevation.

Laboratory and Field Observations on Two Predators of the Pear Psylla in British Columbia

1963 ◽  
Vol 95 (4) ◽  
pp. 435-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. K. Watson ◽  
W. H. A. Wilde
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Effective Control ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Green Lacewing ◽  
Effective Suppression ◽  
Pear Psylla ◽  
Okanagan Valley

AbstractDuring 1961 and 1962 observations were made on the activities of predators of the pear psylla, Psylla pyricola Förster, in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia. Attacking the psylla together, the anthocorid bug, Anthocoris melanocerus Reuter, and the green lacewing, Chrysopa oculata Say, gave more effective suppression than either predator alone. DDT and Diazinon drastically reduced numbers of these predators b commercial plantings. In non-sprayed, isolated orchards, trace numbers of these predators maintained effective control of pear psylla populations.

The Uses of Parathion in British Columbia Orchards

1950 ◽  
Vol 82 (2) ◽  
pp. 44-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. V. G. Morgan ◽  
R. S. Downing
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
European Red Mite ◽  
Pear Psylla ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Wettable Powder ◽  
Fruit Growing ◽  
Tetranychus Pacificus ◽  
Orchard Pests ◽  
Okanagan Valley

In British Columbia parathion was first officially recommended to the fruit grower in 1949 for the control of orchard insects and mites, particularly the pear psylla, Psylla pyricola Foerst.; the European red mite, Metatetranychus ulmi (Koch)=[Paratetranychus pilosus (C. & F.)]; and the Pacific mite, Tetranychus pacificus McG. Similar recommendations were made simultaneously in other Canadian fruit-growing areas. In British Columbia the Okanagan Spray Committee advised the use of only one formulation and one concentration: 15 per cent wettable powder at 0.75 pounds per 100 imperial gallons. At the start of the season most growers were rather reluctant to use parathion, not necessarily because it was new but because the poisonous nature of the material had been so thoroughly impressed upon them. However, as the season progressed and orchard pests became generally more troublesome, their attitude changed, so that by mid-season the use of parathion was common. It is estimated that at least 75 per cent of Okanagan Valley fruit growers used this insecticide at one time or another during the season. They bought from 40 to 50 tons of 15 per cent parathion wettable powder in 1949.

Bionomics of the Pear Psylla, Psylla pyricola Foerster in Pear Orchards of the Kootenay Valley of British Columbia, 1960

1962 ◽  
Vol 94 (8) ◽  
pp. 845-849 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. H. A. Wilde
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Biological Study ◽  
Pear Psylla ◽  
Biological Aspects ◽  
Economic Pest ◽  
Okanagan Valley

Of the fruits grown in the Kootenay Valley of British Columbia, pears are third in importance; in the more arid Okanagan Valley 300 miles to the wrest they are second. During 1959 the pear psylla, Psylla pyricola Foerster, caused severe losses for fruit growers in the Okanagan Valley. The damage was much greater than had occurred during the previous 17 years. It became clear that the insect was a major economic pest, and that it was not being adequately controlled by the recommended insecticides. Obviously, more information was needed on the biological aspects of the situation. The roie of climatic conditions was particularly in question. In 1960 a start was made on a biological study of the pear psylla at Creston in the Kootenay Valley. This paper deals with observations thnf were made there.

Monitoring of Drosophila suzukii (Diptera: Drosophilidae) in Okanagan Valley vineyards, British Columbia, Canada, and assessment of damage to table and wine grapes (Vitaceae)

2020 ◽  
Vol 152 (4) ◽  
pp. 415-431
Author(s):  
Susanna Acheampong ◽  
Etienne Lord ◽  
D. Thomas Lowery
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Wine Grape ◽  
Drosophila Suzukii ◽  
Wine Grapes ◽  
Apple Cider ◽  
Table Grapes ◽  
Soft Fruit ◽  
Grape Cultivars ◽  
Okanagan Valley

AbstractSpotted-wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii, (Matsumura) (Diptera: Drosophilidae), has become a serious pest of soft fruit in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada since its detection in 2009. The study was conducted to determine the distribution of D. suzukii and damage levels in grapes. Apple cider vinegar-baited traps placed in table and wine grape (Vitis vinifera Linnaeus; Vitaceae) vineyards during 2011–2013 demonstrated that D. suzukii was numerous in all sites, with earliest emergence and highest numbers recorded in 2013. Drosophila suzukii were reared from intact and damaged table grapes and damaged wine grapes collected from the field, but not from intact wine grapes. Drosophila suzukii were reared in low numbers in 2011 from intact fruit of 11 wine grape cultivars exposed artificially in the laboratory. Susceptibility of intact wine grapes under laboratory conditions in 2011 when sour rot was widespread might relate in part to undetected infections of berries due to weather conditions. Identification of Drosophila Fallén species revealed that D. suzukii comprised a small portion of the total. Our results demonstrate that healthy wine grapes in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia are largely undamaged by D. suzukii, while certain table grape cultivars should be protected from attack.

Management of Pear Psylla (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) Using Reflective Plastic Mulch

2020 ◽  
Vol 113 (6) ◽  
pp. 2840-2849
Author(s):  
Louis B Nottingham ◽  
Elizabeth H Beers
Keyword(s):  
Field Tests ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
The United States ◽  
Management Program ◽  
Plastic Mulch ◽  
Major Barrier ◽  
Reflected Light ◽  
Pear Psylla ◽  
Pear Trees ◽  
Black Plastic

Abstract Pear psylla, Cacopsylla pyricola (Förster), has remained the most challenging pest of commercial pears in Washington and Oregon, the top producers of pears in the United States. The lack of effective integrated pest management tactics for this pest has been a major barrier to effective management. In this study, we examined the potential for reflective plastic mulch affixed beneath pear trees to suppress pear psylla. In 2017 and 2018, single pear tree (cv. Bartlett) plots of reflective plastic mulch, black plastic mulch, and no mulch (check) were established in a research orchard to compare their effects on pear psylla. Arthropods were sampled every 7–14 d from March through late summer. In both years, reflective mulch plots had significantly fewer pear psylla adults, eggs, and nymphs of the first generation compared with black plastic and check plots. However, later generations of psylla were not suppressed by reflective mulch. Semi-field tests were conducted in 2019 and 2020 using uniformly pruned potted pear trees on either reflective plastic mulch or grass to determine whether summerform adults were tolerant to reflected light from mulch, or if shading from vegetative growth negated the effect of the mulch. In both years, significantly fewer summerform adults and eggs were found in reflective mulch plots, suggesting that shading, rather than summerform tolerance, reduced effects from reflective mulch in the summer. This study demonstrates the potential for reflective mulch to suppress pear psylla and justifies future examination as part of a season-long management program.

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