Combining the use of trap crops and insecticide sprays to control the tarnished plant bug (Hemiptera: Miridae) in strawberry (Rosaceae) fields

The tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris (Palisot de Beauvois) (Hemiptera: Miridae), causes severe damages in strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duchesne ex Rozier; Rosaceae) fields in Quebec, Canada. Currently, only chemical insecticides successfully control that major pest. Lygus lineolaris aggregate in trap crops such as buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum Moench; Polygonaceae) and white mustard (Sinapis alba Linnaeus; Brassicaceae) but do not remain long enough on these plants to significantly reduce damages on strawberries. However, the attractiveness of the trap crop gives the opportunity to gather L. lineolaris in an area of the field where chemical treatments could be applied more efficiently. The aim of this study was to test the effectiveness of the combination of trap crop (buckwheat and white mustard) and chemical treatments to control L. lineolaris. Randomised complete-block design included treatment with either no trap crop, buckwheat, or white mustard row planted close to strawberry plants. Half blocks were treated with insecticide (cypermethrin) sprayed on strawberry plants (in treatment without trap crop) or directly on trap crop. We found that L. lineolaris was more abundant on buckwheat than on white mustard or strawberry plants. Insecticide application on trap crops reduced the population on these hosts, but did not reduce L. lineolaris on adjacent strawberry plants. Behavioural avoidance and physiological pesticide resistance could explain this result.