Strategies for implementation of entomopathogenic fungi in integrated pest management of strawberry

• Grant number: 13/24430-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: April 10, 2014
• End date: April 09, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Plant Health
• Principal Investigator: Italo Delalibera Júnior
• Grantee: Thiago Rodrigues de Castro
• Supervisor: Jørgen Eilenberg
• Host Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
• Associated to the scholarship: 13/10517-0 - Strategies for entomopathogenic fungi usage in integrated pest management of strawberry, BP.DR

Abstract

The strawberry crop is susceptible to many pests and diseases that cause losses to farmers. Pest control with chemicals products in this crop does not present satisfactory results, especially because occurrence of populations resistance to some active ingredients in recent years. In conventional strawberry crop, the extensive use of chemicals has in addition brought concerns both of environmental, economic and social nature, since it increases the risk of pesticide residues in fruits, as well as farmer's poisoning. The fact that the majority of the production is consumed in natura generate a concern regarding the pesticide residues in this culture. This has led to an increase in the demand for products from organic system or integrated production which uses tools such as the biological control of pests. The use of entomopathogenic microorganisms as biocontrol agents has been increasing and is now occupying several market niches. The growth of organic production as well as the search for alternatives by producers who adopt traditional pest management, has thus resulted in significant greater use of biological control agents. However, the use of biocontrol in strawberry in Brazil is still insignificant. This study is part of a project entitled IMBICONT: Improved Biological Control and IPM in fruits and berries (FAPESP næ 2011/51556-3) that is a collaboration between the ESALQ-USP in Brazil and the University of Copenhagen in Denmark. The project aims to find solutions for a sustainable use of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in strawberry in the two countries. The major goal of the project is to understand the interactions of entomopathogenic fungi associated with strawberry to develop biocontrol strategies and to integrate these natural enemies with other management strategies in this crop. Based on the information generated in this project, we seek to design conservation biocontrol strategies for the fungus Neozygites floridana and inundative and inoculation biological control with the hypocrealean fungi Beauveria, Metarhizium and Isaria against the twospotted spider mite and other strawberry pests in Brazil and in Denmark. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

CASTRO, THIAGO; EILENBERG, JORGEN; DELALIBERA, JR., ITALO. Exploring virulence of new and less studied species of Metarhizium spp. from Brazil for two-spotted spider mite control. Experimental and Applied Acarology, v. 74, n. 2, p. 139-146, FEB 2018. (13/24430-4, 11/51556-3, 13/10517-0)

CASTRO, THIAGO; MAYERHOFER, JOHANNA; ENKERLI, JURG; EILENBERG, JORGEN; MEYLING, NICOLAI V.; MORAL, RAFAEL DE ANDRADE; BORGES DEMETRIO, CLARICE GARCIA; DELALIBERA, JR., ITALO. Persistence of Brazilian isolates of the entomopathogenic fungi Metarhizium anisopliae and M. robertsii in strawberry crop soil after soil drench application. AGRICULTURE ECOSYSTEMS & ENVIRONMENT, v. 233, p. 361-369, OCT 3 2016. (13/24430-4, 11/51556-3, 13/10517-0)