Vapor heat treatment against Planococcus lilacinus Cockerell (Hemiptera:Pseudococcidae) on dragon fruit

Abstract

BACKGROUND:The coffee mealybug Planococcus lilacinus Cockerell, is an invasive pest that infests dragon fruit [Selenicereus undatus (Haworth) D.R. Hunt], that may require a phytosanitary treatment to meet quarantine requirements. In this study, vapor heat treatment was conducted to disinfest P. lilacinus on dragon fruit and the quality of dragon fruit was evaluated thereafter.RESULTS: Adult female P. lilacinus was the most heat-tolerant stage at 47, 48 and 49 °C. The death kinetic model and probit model were used to predict LT 99.9968 at the three temperatures. The treatment times predicted by the kinetic model that could effectively disinfest adult female P. lilacinus females were 120.84, 78.06 and 67.96 min at 47, 48 and 49 °C, respectively. In a confirmatory test of vapor heat treatment at 49 °C for 70 min, complete mortality was recorded for 33 195 adult females infesting 148 dragon fruits; thus, the efficacy level of disinfestation was 99.9910% at 95% confidence level. The quality of dragon fruit generally was not affected by heat treatment, fruit firmness was increased remarkably and respiration rate was significantly decreased.CONCLUSION: Our result indicates that vapor heat treatment at 49 °C for a duration of 70 min is an effective phytosanitary treatment for control of P. lilacinus on dragon fruit that minimally impacts fruit quality.

Comparison of fumigation efficacy of methyl bromide alone and phosphine applied either alone or simultaneously or sequentially against Bactrocera correcta in Selenicereus undatus (red pitaya) fruit

“…Results on the postharvest quality of red pitaya fruits showed that the RR during storage was closely related to MB exposure and accelerated cell‐wall softening and swelling as well as weakening of the structure 11,39 . Therefore, MB treatment alone will cause long‐term and irreversible effects, resulting in pesticide damage to fruits and loss of commercial value 40 . Combined fumigation treatments can inhibit fruit respiration, reduce nutrient loss, improve postharvest quality of fruit and prolong shelf life.…”

“…11,39 Therefore, MB treatment alone will cause long-term and irreversible effects, resulting in pesticide damage to fruits and loss of commercial value. 40 Combined fumigation treatments can inhibit fruit respiration, reduce nutrient loss, improve postharvest quality of fruit and prolong shelf life. We compared fruit quality parameters after a 14-day lowtemperature storage period and an additional 4-day simulated shelf-life period, and found that there was no significant difference in fruit colour, firmness, SSC or TA.…”

Toxicity and synergistic activity of compounds from essential oils and their effect on detoxification enzymes against Planococcus lilacinus

“…Mealybug, Planococcus lilacinus Cockerell (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), is a major surface-feeding pest of many fruits and flowering plants ( Huang et al., 2021 ; Ren et al., 2022 ). It is also regarded as a major pest that causes severe damage to various commercially significant crops, including citrus, coconut, coffee, custard apple, dragon fruit, guava, grape, mango, and tamarind, leading to significant economic yield loss ( Nguyen et al., 2016 ).…”