Using Beneficial Insects to Control Aphids

Transcription

1 Using Beneficial Insects to Control Aphids Welcome and Overview Chal Landgren, OSU Extension Christmas Tree Specialist New Phone

2 Our Day- (or what your in for...) AM- (3 ODA credits) Intro s Chal L.- Aphids and study Glenn A.- brainstorm (you) Paul J.-IPM frameworkcontrols in context. John M.-Predators and protocols Jana L.- Scouting, I.D. & Research PM-(3 ODA credits) Lunch and Travel Visit Green Valley Farms 3 releases of midges and lacewings in 8 ft. grand fir (4 ac). Carpool or drivemaps in back. Practice scouting and ID of anything flying, eating or resting on trees. Summary and evaluation.

3 Bigger picture- More to come Between now and Oct. Effort partially funded by Clackamas Co. Innovation Grant and OAN Working Group members will be watching for results Ryan Hill (+ Judy and I) will visit the release sites at least 2X and scouting as we will do this afternoon. 1 st year results We will meet again this Oct. Visit or revisit a farm. Summary of the results from the 9 sites Survey results Few on-site controls and we are at the mercy of aphids.

4 Our Trial This is not your typical Training Event! This will be more like group exploration- We are learning together! We do not know if these efforts will succeed. It is possible that some things will work on some sites and not on others

5 Our Typical Aphids Cinara abietis Giant conifer/trunk Typical Found almost any time of year on all true firs. Last week- found on ½ the fields visited- 4-5 trees/ac. Ants protect and move aphids. Minor damage- black stem; leaders stunting. Squish of spot spray

6 Our Typical Aphids Cinara occidentalis Bottom aphids Typical Found beginning in June on noble fir. First sign is shiny sap on needles. Look first on 2014 needles on lower 1/3. Last week- found in 2 of 5 fields visited. Seldom find ants. Wasps and black staining on ground are common. Harder to locate and can make trees unmarketable.

7 Our Typical Aphids Mindarus abietinus twig aphids Typical Found as new growth emerges; esp. on grand fir. Twisting and clumping of new tips. Last week- found on 50% of grand fir fields. Lots of sap flow; wasps and black staining common. Squish of spot spray

8 Signs of Aphids At this stage aphids may have moved on. Look above the black soot

9 Conventional approaches Conventional Control Limited chemical control on younger trees Treat older trees as needed Grand fir and white fir are often targeted Registered and commonly used Lorsban, Ultor/Movento, Admire Less common- AzaMax, Safari, Soaps, Endeavor, SucraShield, Flagship, Safari, pyrethroids.

10 Lessons from 2013 Counting aphids takes time!!! Damage stays on Aphids decline on their own. Can we assist in the decline.

11 Treatment Set #1 Wasps PredaLure

12 PredaLure Lasts around 1 mo. 15 tea bags /ac A. I.-Methyl salicylate (MeSA) is a herbivoreinduced plant volatile. Caution- do not place in your car on a warm day even in double plastic bags!

13 Treatment Set #2 Midge At Home

14 Treatment Set #2 Lacewing-1 Lacewing- 2

15 The 9 sites (volunteers) 1. 4 ac large NF- midge + lacewing compared to ladybugs ac NF with midge, 2 ac GF with lacewings ac midge+lacewings 4. 2 ac. midsize NF; PredaLure nearby ac midsize NF-4 release sites- all treatments ac. large GF mixed midge + lacewings 7. 1 ac. NF wasps + PredaLure 8. 4 ac. NF ½ midge; ½ lacewings 9. 2 ac NF wasps+predalure

16 2014 Trial- some examples Beneficial planting in center 2 ac. NF- 3 wasp releases

17 3 ac. large NF with interplanting Both lacewing and midges released on same site Nearby abandoned NF site may serve as control

18 4 ac. large NF Lacewing on ½ Midge on ½ Ladybug releases in past years, U-Cut, Some soot from last year.

19 Early lessons Releasing the midge is more involved than just opening the container; wasps, lacewings and PredaLure are easier.

20 Early thoughts Using beneficial insects for control, likely involves approaches that enhance existing predators along with releasing new ones. Simply releasing bugs rather than spraying, will likely fail. Start with younger trees Weed free fields, far from edge rows might be hard to sustain populations?????