The efficacy of AMinO-FEED UV in manipulating beneficial abundance in dryland cotton
Abstract
An integrated approach to insect pest management, particularly for Helicoverpa spp. within cotton-grain farming systems has gained strong impetus in recent seasons. Current integrated pest management (IPM) practices practices focus on promoting the conservation of beneficial predators and parasitoids. In addition, the use of selective insecticides early season is recommended to delay the use of disruptive broad-spectrum insecticides for as long as possible. This strategy has had some success on the Darling Downs, South Queensland. However, a problem arises mid-late season when the fruit load is most vulnerable to heliothis attack. Typically, on the Darling Downs, adequate control of heliothis is achievable with beneficials and selective insecticides until peak squaring. After this time, IPM is disregarded as pest pressure increases, disruptive pesticides are used and input costs escalate. Minimising input costs is a prerequisite for profitable dryland cotton production and any tools that may reduce our dependence on expensive conventional insecticides will help achieve this goal. A huge void in our knowledge of IPM is how to move beneficials into crops when they are needed. Several products are available in the marketplace that claim to have predator-attracting capabilities. Animo-feed UV, made by Agrichem Manufacturing Industries Pty Ltd, is a concentrated protein, Amino acid and complex sugars formulation that is widely promoted and used in the cotton industry as a food spray and attractant for beneficials. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of Armno-feed UV in moving beneficials into dryland cotton from an adjoining unsprayed cotton strip in mid-late season.
Files in this item
This item appears in the following categories
- 2002 Australian Cotton Conference
Proceedings from the 2002 Australian Cotton Conference