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. 2023 Oct 10;116(5):1737-1749.
doi: 10.1093/jee/toad162.

Systemic insecticides for control of stem gall wasp in highbush blueberry

Amber K DeVisser  1 , Christine Vandervoort  2 , Rufus Isaacs  1 , John Wise  1
Affiliations

Systemic insecticides for control of stem gall wasp in highbush blueberry

Amber K DeVisser et al. J Econ Entomol. .

Erratum in

Abstract

The gall wasp, Hemadas nubilipennis Ashmead, is a pest of highbush and lowbush blueberry and can pose a challenge to control with foliar sprays due to adult activity being during bloom and because larval development is within plant tissues. We hypothesized that systemic insecticides that move within the blueberry vascular system would reach areas where H. nubilipennis eggs are laid, causing larval mortality. Three application methods, crown injection, soil drench, and foliar spray were applied to potted 'Jersey' blueberry bushes at 50% and 100% rates to quantify systemic residue concentrations in shoots and leaves. Additionally, systemic insecticides were evaluated for control of gall wasps using single-shoot bioassays and measuring larval mortality at 0.01%, 0.1%, 1%, and 10% of field rate provided within a floral pick. Systemic insecticides tested in both studies included imidacloprid, flupyradifurone, and spirotetramat. The potted bush residue study determined that insecticides moved from three tested sites of entry: the roots, crown cavity, and foliage. Results from the shoot bioassays found that the mean percent larval survival of H. nubilipennis was negatively correlated with the concentration of AI detected in galls. Imidacloprid and spirotetramat were found to have the greatest potential for control of H. nubilipennis due to mortality in the shoot bioassays and similar residue concentrations in the potted bush studies to shoot bioassays. Future research should evaluate systemic insecticides applied in highbush blueberry plantings for control of H. nubilipennis using the bioassay mortality assessment method developed in this study.

Keywords: blueberry; gall wasp; injection; soil drench; systemic insecticide.

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Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Dissected gall caused by Hemadas nubilipennis, showing 3 larval chambers, each with a larva.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Mean AI (parts per million (ppm)) concentration in shoots at 14 DAT and 60 DAT per 50% and 100% rate in 2020. Treatments include imidacloprid injection and drench, flupyradifurone injection and drench, spirotetramat injection and foliar. Significant difference (*) of mean AI detection between DAT within a treatment rate (Tukey’s LSD, *P < 0.05, **P < 0.005). Significant (†) difference of mean AI detection between treatment rates within a DAT (Tukey’s LSD, † P < 0.05, ‡P < 0.005). Error bars indicate SEM.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
Mean AI (parts per million (ppm)) concentration in shoots at 14 DAT and 59 DAT for 50% and 100% treatment rates in 2021. Treatments include imidacloprid injection and drench, flupyradifurone injection and drench, spirotetramat injection and foliar. Error bars indicate SEM. Significant difference (*) of mean AI detection between DAT within a rate (Tukey’s LSD, *P < 0.05, **P < 0.005). Significant (†) difference of mean AI detection between rate within a DAT (Tukey’s LSD, †P < 0.05, ‡ = P < 0.005). Error bars indicate SEM.
Fig. 4.
Fig. 4.
Mean AI (parts per million (ppm)) concentration in leaves at 14 DAT and 60 DAT for 50% and 100% treatment rates in 2020. Treatments include imidacloprid injection and drench, flupyradifurone injection and drench, spirotetramat injection and foliar. Error bars indicate SEM. Significant difference (*) of mean AI detection between DAT within a rate (Tukey’s LSD, *P < 0.05, **P < 0.005). Significant (†) difference of mean AI detection between rate within a DAT (Tukey’s LSD, †P < 0.05, ‡P < 0.005). Error bars indicate SEM.
Fig. 5.
Fig. 5.
Mean AI (parts per million (ppm)) concentration in leaves at 14 DAT and 59 DAT for 50% and 100% treatment rates in 2021. Treatments include imidacloprid injection and drench, flupyradifurone injection and drench, spirotetramat injection and foliar. Error bars indicate SEM. Significant difference (*) of mean AI detection between DAT within a rate (Tukey’s LSD, *P < 0.05, **P < 0.005). Significant (†) difference of mean AI detection between rate within a DAT (Tukey’s LSD, †P < 0.05, ‡P < 0.005). Error bars indicate SEM.
Fig. 6.
Fig. 6.
The effect of chemical (imidacloprid, flupyradifurone, and spirotetramat) concentration on the mean AI (parts per million (ppm)) concentration in gall tissue (grey bars) and leaf tissue (black bars) in highbush blueberry shoots in 2020 and 2021. Bars of the same color with different letters are significantly different using Tukey’s HSD, P < 0.05. Error bars indicate SEM.
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