ISHS Acta Horticulturae 820: VIII International Mango Symposium
PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS ON THE EFFECT OF SPINOSAD IN MEDITERRANEAN FRUIT FLY ATTACK TO TREE RIPE SENSATION MANGOES |
| Authors: | E. Guirado, J.M. Farré, J.M. Hermoso |
| Keywords: | mango, Sensation, Spinosad, Mediterranean fruit fly |
| Abstract:
In the 2003 and 2004 mango ripening seasons, GF 120 (0.02% Spinosad) was applied weekly to a 2200 m2 plot of mature Sensation mango trees placed in a wider terrace of 7000 m2. They were surrounded by a collection of mango cultivars that were not sprayed. In a neighbouring terrace 100 m away, also occupied by an unsprayed mango collection, there were 7 Sensation trees of similar size. Both plots had not been sprayed for two years before the start of the experiments, providing valuable reference data. Tree ripe fruits were picked weekly, left to ripen at room temperature and evaluated for presence of Ceratitis capitata (Ceratitis c.) larvae. There were no sources of Ceratitis c. flies in at least a radius of 200 m around the observation area. Fallen fruits were collected and kept in plastic bags. Trees were grouped according to distance from the outer edge of the treated area in 5 groups of 12 (center), 20, 28, 34 and 37 (outside) trees. The 7 Sensation trees in the unsprayed terrace served as controls. In the sprayed plot the outer groups of trees had a higher incidence than the ones near the center. This difference was not statistically significant due to the high between tree variability. The unsprayed (control) trees had a much higher incidence with very consistent differences. In a separate experiment there were no differences between treated and untreated areas when they were less than 20 m apart. These preliminary observations indicate that Spinosad can significantly reduce the attack of Ceratitis c. to tree ripe Sensation mango fruits. | |
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