The Rosa damascena has organic production and this plant is the most important economic crop in Kerman province. Roses have been used since the earliest times in rituals, cosmetics, perfumes, medicines and aromatherapy. The rose stem sawfly (Hartigia trimaculata) and rose stem girdler (Agrilus aurichalceus) are new and major pests of R. damascena in the Lalehzar region of Kerman province. These pests cause severe damage to plants by feeding stems and new management strategies for their control are continually being investigated. To investigate appropriate biological control agent in the region during 2005-2007, 184 isolates of fungi were collected from these pests. Isolation of fungi was achieved using standard methods. In this study, H. trimaculata and A. aurichalceus from R. damascena for the first time were recorded in Iran. Lecnicillium muscarium from H. trimaculata, L. muscarium from A. aurichalceus, Acremonium kiliense from H. trimaculata, and A. egyptiacum from A. aurichalceus have for the first time been recorded, and L. muscarium has been introduced as a suitable biological agent for control of these pests.

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The effect of four vermicomposts, obtained from different organic sources (pistachio waste [PWV], date waste [DWV], cattle manure waste [CMV], and food waste [FWV]), as well as two chemical fertilizers (complete fertilizer [CF] and NPK fertilizer [NPK]) on some life history traits of the sweetpotato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) was investigated in a series of choice and not choice experiments. In a choice experiment, adult whiteflies exhibited significantly lower preference for settling and oviposition on plants treated with vermicomposts than those in control, CF, and NPK groups (P < 0.01), with better results were observed in PWV group. In no choice experiment, adult whiteflies laid significantly fewer eggs in PWV group in comparison with control, CF, and NPK groups (P < 0.01); other treatments had intermediary values. Fertilization had a significant effect on the preadult development time of sweetpotato whitefly, with the longest development times were recorded for plants treated with PWV (24.65 d) and FWV (22.04 d), respectively. The preadult mortality of sweetpotato whitefly increased significantly following fertilization, with the greatest mortal effects were observed in PWV (54.11%) and DWV (44.68%) groups, respectively. Plants fertilized with PWV had significantly higher phenolic content (10 mg/ml) than control (BAGA; 6.08 mg/ml), while those in CMV group exhibited intermediary value (7.28 mg/ml). Altogether, results of this study reveal both antixenosis (nonpreference) and antibiosis (decreased survival and prolonged development time) resistance of tomato plants mediated by vermicomposts. Particularly, plants treated with PWV obtained the best results in terms of both growth and resistance to sweetpotato whitefly.