Larval performance of the pyralid borer Eldana saccharina Walker and stalk damage in sugarcane:: Influence of plant silicon, cultivar and feeding site

Applied silicon (Si) can improve resistance of plants to insect attack. We investigated the interactions between soil applied Si, sugarcane cultivar, and three documented feeding/penetration sites (internode, leaf bud, and root primordia), each at three heights (top, middle, and base) on the stalk and their effects on stem borer, Eldana saccharina Walker (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) performance and the stalk damage it inflicts. Four sugarcane cultivars, treated (Si+) and untreated (Si-) with calcium silicate, were artificially infested with E. saccharina and the larvae were examined 21 days later. Silicon treatment significantly increased stalk Si content in all sugarcane cultivars and, overall, significantly reduced borer growth rate and also reduced stalk damage, particularly at the internode. Borer survival and growth rate and stalk damage were lowest at the internode, particularly in Si+ resistant cultivars. Although the internode had the hardest rind, hardness at each site was not significantly increased by Si+.