Pests of Cucurbit Crops: Marrow, Pumpkin, Squash, Melon and Cucumber

York, Alan C.

doi:10.1007/978-1-349-09924-5_5

Cited by 20 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…The striped cucumber beetle (Acalymma vittatum: Chrysomelidae), a specialist on Cucurbitaceae, frequently attacks cucumber both above-and belowground. Adult beetles feed on leaves, stems, and flowers, while larvae feed on roots for 10-20 days before pupation; multiple generations may occur per year (York 1992). In our system, larvae are present from mid-June until the end of the growing season.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of above- and belowground herbivory on growth, pollination, and reproduction in cucumber

2010

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Plants experience unique challenges due to simultaneous life in two spheres, above- and belowground. Interactions with other organisms on one side of the soil surface may have impacts that extend across this boundary. Although our understanding of plant-herbivore interactions is derived largely from studies of leaf herbivory, belowground root herbivores may affect plant fitness directly or by altering interactions with other organisms, such as pollinators. In this study, we investigated the effects of leaf herbivory, root herbivory, and pollination on plant growth, subsequent leaf herbivory, flower production, pollinator attraction, and reproduction in cucumber (Cucumis sativus). We manipulated leaf and root herbivory with striped cucumber beetle (Acalymma vittatum) adults and larvae, respectively, and manipulated pollination with supplemental pollen. Both enhanced leaf and root herbivory reduced plant growth, and leaf herbivory reduced subsequent leaf damage. Plants with enhanced root herbivory produced 35% fewer female flowers, while leaf herbivory had no effect on flower production. While leaf herbivory reduced the time that honey bees spent probing flowers by 29%, probing times on root-damaged plants were over twice as long as those on control plants. Root herbivory increased pollen limitation for seed production in spite of increased honey bee preference for plants with root damage. Leaf damage and hand-pollination treatments had no effect on fruit production, but plants with enhanced root damage produced 38% fewer fruits that were 25% lighter than those on control plants. Despite the positive effect of belowground damage on honey bee visitation, root herbivory had a stronger negative effect on plant reproduction than leaf herbivory. These results demonstrate that the often-overlooked effects of belowground herbivores may have profound effects on plant performance.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of above- and belowground herbivory on growth, pollination, and reproduction in cucumber

2010

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“…Both nymphs and adults of A. craccivora damage bean crops from vegetative to fruiting stages and may cause yield loss up to 100% in diVerent species of legumes (Attia et al 1986). When plants are heavily infested, leaf distortion and stunted growth commonly occur, and the end result is poor quality of fruits (York 1992). Moreover, A. craccivora transmits about 20 nonpersistent plant viruses including broad bean mosaic, Iranian strain viruses, etc., in many places in the world (Kaiser 1979; Thottappilly and Rossel 1985).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aphidicidal activity of some indigenous plant extracts against bean aphid Aphis craccivora Koch (Homoptera: Aphididae)

2008

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Aphidicidal activity of hot and cold water extracts of some indigenous plants, Azadirachta indica A. Juss (neem), Calotropis procera (Aiton) W.T. Aiton (akanda), Polygonum hydropiper L. (biskatali) and Ipomoea sepiaria J. Koenig ex Roxb.(bankalmi), were tested against the bean aphid, Aphis craccivora Koch. Hot water extract of P. hydropiper and A. indica was found to be the most eVective (87.6-94.5 and 80.47-89.6% mortality respectively, P < 0.01) among all the extracts. Other hot and cold water extracts also appeared to be useful (59.5-87.5% mortality) as pesticides for A. craccivora. The highest yield (3.25 kg per plant) was obtained using hot water extract of P. hydropiper followed by hot water extract of A. indica (3.15 kg per plant). The lowest yield (0.32 kg per plant) was recorded from the control block. All the phytoproduct treatments had signiWcantly (P < 0.01) better yield than the control block.

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“…Certain species of these beetles also feed on soybeans, melons, cucumbers, and peanuts. Besides damaging the crop, the adult beetles transmit bacterial wilt and viral diseases (York, 1992). Much of the insecticide used to control the larvae of these insects is applied to soil prophylactically.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stabilization of cucurbitacin E-glycoside, a feeding stimulant for diabroticite beetles, extracted from bitter Hawkesbury watermelon.

Martin¹,

Blackburnsmall²,

Schröder³

et al. 2002

Journal of Insect Science

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Cucurbitacins are feeding stimulants for diabroticite beetles, including corn rootworms and cucumber beetles, which can be added to a bait containing an insecticide thereby reducing the levels of other insecticide treatments needed to control these pests. One of them, cucurbitacin E-glycoside, is water soluble and easily processed from mutant bitter Hawkesbury watermelons (BHW) that express elevated levels of cucurbitacin. Storage of BHW extract at room temperature resulted in a 92% reduction of cucurbitacin E-glycoside over two months, while refrigeration or freezing resulted in a 60% loss of the active ingredient during this time. The loss of the active ingredient was correlated with an increase in BHW extract pH from 5 to greater than 9. The increase in pH of the BHW extracts at room temperature appeared to be due to the growth of certain bacteria, especially Bacillus spp. In refrigerated extracts, the pH remained relatively constant, and bacterial growth was dominated by bacteria such as Lactobacilli. An alternative to refrigeration is concentration of BHW extract. One means of concentration is spray drying, but the high sugar content of the BHW extract (20mg/ml glucose, 40mg/ml fructose) makes this technique impractical. Fermentation of the BHW extract by the yeast, Saccharomyces boulardii, eliminated the sugars and did not raise the pH nor alter the cucurbitacin E-glycoside content of the extract. Elimination of the sugars by fermentation produced an extract that could be successfully spray dried. BHW extract fermented by S. boulardii produced a higher level of feeding stimulation for spotted cucumber beetles in laboratory choice tests. When applied to cucumbers, there was no difference in control of spotted and striped cucumber beetles between baits of fresh or fermented juices combined with the same insecticide.

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Pests of Cucurbit Crops: Marrow, Pumpkin, Squash, Melon and Cucumber

Cited by 20 publications

References 46 publications

Effects of above- and belowground herbivory on growth, pollination, and reproduction in cucumber

Effects of above- and belowground herbivory on growth, pollination, and reproduction in cucumber

Aphidicidal activity of some indigenous plant extracts against bean aphid Aphis craccivora Koch (Homoptera: Aphididae)

Stabilization of cucurbitacin E-glycoside, a feeding stimulant for diabroticite beetles, extracted from bitter Hawkesbury watermelon.

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