Moth Continued from Page 6
“We are going to trial this product against a couple of local standard prod- ucts to determine efficacy in controlling diamondback moth larvae,” Cohen wrote in an email. Meanwhile, one Camarillo farm with sizable cabbage acreage planted for the summer harvest window experimented with releasing biologicals and sterile adult male diamondback moths from drones to try to manage the pest. But the results were unsuccessful. “We got nothing from it,” said Rio Farms general manager Danny Pereira. Two years ago, the farm was a hotspot. Last year, Rio Farms adjusted its planting and harvest schedules, so cabbage was in the ground by midspring, Peirera said. Crews waited until fall to replant, and the results were promising. “It’s hit or miss,” Pereira said. Crop rotation is a best practice used elsewhere against the diamondback. Pereira said his farm managers and pest control advisors discussed potentially ro- tating out growing cabbage this summer to mitigate the threat. The farm team decided against it, mostly because of the presence of nearby fields of Brussels sprouts, anoth- er diamondback moth target. A monitoring program by Daugovish’s team showed that warming temperatures
Attracted to brassica plants, the diamondback moth feeds on cabbage,
left. Researchers at the University of
California Cooperative Extension in Ventura County are developing new integrated pest management strategies to control the pest.
in 2022 and 2023 appeared to trigger dia- mondback moth mating and new popu- lation growth. Rio Farms uses bait traps to keep tabs on the pest’s pressure. By mid- April, the number of male moths in the traps was rising, Pereira said. Diamondback moth researchers in Arizona, Hawaii, Georgia, North Carolina and Florida shared findings with Daugovish on successes controlling the row-crop pest as part of integrated pest management approaches. He is now exploring multiple approach- es for targeting the diamondback moth.
Daugovish said his research team al- ready knows of three species of parasitic wasps that can be deployed as biocontrol organisms to outcompete diamondback moth larvae in Ventura County. The next step is finding how to preserve the benefi- cial wasps on and nearby farms. Another technique that Daugovish said shows promise is to plant certain mustard species as “termination crops” on which diamondback moth females lay eggs that don’t develop into adults. In addition, testing is set for the fall for another potential remedy: pheromone-
based mating disruption. UCCE researchers have also applied for grants to test diamondback moth resis- tance to varied insecticide applications to prevent “useless sprays.” Because of the intensity of cole-crop production in Ventura County, what works in another part of the state won’t necessar- ily transfer across county lines—meaning that lots of field work and testing lie ahead, Daugovish said. (Rob McCarthy is a reporter in Ventura County. He may be contacted at robmccarthy10@yahoo.com.)
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May 15, 2024 Ag Alert 7
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