ISHS Acta Horticulturae 893: International Symposium on High Technology for Greenhouse Systems: GreenSys2009
SCREENHOUSES ON THE MEDITERRANEAN BASIN: PEST INCIDENCE AND PRODUCTIVITY OF A TOMATO CROP |
| Authors: | J.C. Gázquez, J.C. López, E.J. Baeza, J.J. Pérez-Parra, C. Pérez, D.E. Meca, J.A. Acosta |
| Keywords: | Bemisia tabaci, Frankliniella occidentalis, photoselective, TYLCV, TSWV |
| DOI: | 10.17660/ActaHortic.2011.893.16 |
| Abstract:
Pests in general and in particular those insects which act as virus disease vectors, such as Bemisia tabaci and Frankliniella occidentalis, vectors of TYLCV and TSWV, respectively, have become the most important problem in protected horticulture of the Mediterranean basin. Therefore, the use of anti insect screens in the ventilation surfaces is a requirement for cultivation in intensive growing systems. Nowadays, the catalogue of anti-insect screens is being diversified with finer or photoselective screens. Thus, it is necessary to test their efficiency in order to recommend their use by the growers or not. In the Experimental Station of the Cajamar Foundation, a physical characterization of the most usual commercial screens has been done, showing it is not possible to completely limit the entrance of thrips due to their small size, whereas for white fly, the 20×10 threads cm-1 anti-insect screens are providing in general good results. During the spring-summer seasons of 2005, 2006 and 2007 three experiments were performed in which 4 different types of anti-insect screens were evaluated as greenhouse covering materials. The objectives of these experiments were to analyze the influence of the different screen types used as greenhouse covers on: i) yield response of a truss tomato crop, summer-cycle; ii) the incidence of Bemisia tabaci and Frankliniella occidentalis and both the Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl Virus (TYLCV) and the Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus (TSWV). The results show that the use of photoselective or less porosity screens than the 20×10 threads cm-1 significantly decrease the population levels of Bemisia tabaci and TYLCV and thus improve the economic results. Besides, the use of photoselective screens did not decrease the incidence of thrips, the effect which was otherwise observed under a black screen, although the high decrease in radiation below this screen also had harmful effects on final yield. | |
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