Aerial applications of abamectin for the control of citrus leafminer in Tucumán, Argentina

SALAS, H.; CASMUZ, A.; GOANE, L.; ZAPATIEL, S.; LAZCANO, J.; WILLINK, E.

Wuhan, China

Congreso; 11th International Citrus Congress; 2008

The Chinese Society of Citriculture

Citrus leafrniner (CLM) was reported in Tucuman, Argentina in 1995. This province produces lemon in a subtropical climate with hurnid and hot surnmer. Under these conditions lemon trees are vigorous with numerous flushes and CLM has a short generation time with several life cycles per growing season. During the surnmer, December to March, leaf fl,ushes of lemon trees are severely darnaged by CLM and this injury results in direct exposure of leaf mesophyll tissue to infection by citrus canker bacterium. Several ground sprays of the insecticide abarnectin per season are necessary to control CLM in lemons for citrus canker disease management purposes (Stein et al., 2007). The aim of this work was to evaluate the efficacy of aerial applications of abarnectin for CLM control. Six commercial orchards were treated and six commercial orchards left untreated with abarnectin in two areasofTucumánprovincebetween2002and2006. Sprays were applied with an Air Tractor plane equipped with a micronairs applicator using 20 1of water, 5 1of mineral oil and 1,8 gr a. i. of abarnectin per hectare. The number of sprays each growing season was varied depending on detection of CLM and parasitoids in weekly monitoring of their populations. Abarnectin significantly reduced the percentage of CLM infestation and leaf darnage in the abarnectin-treated orchards compared to untreated orchards. To achieve a rational management prograrn for CLM, pest and parasitoid monitoring should be conducted during each growing season to determine the need for insecticide applications.