A note on the activity and species composition of sesiids [Lepidoptera: Sesiidae] as measured by pheromone traps and trunk sampling in apple orchards of southwestern Quebec

Adult males and larvae of sesiids were monitored in ten (1989–1991), five (2000) and two (2004) Quebec apple orchards. Multi Pher III traps baited with 99.1% Z, Z-3, 13-octadecadienyl acetate and 0.9% Z, E plus E, Z-3, 13-octadecadienyl acetate were used for adults, and trunk sampling was used for larvae. Synanthedon scitula, S. pyri, Podosesia syringae, S. acerrubri, S. fulvipes, S. exitiosa, S. acerni and Sesia tibialis males were captured between 1989 and 1991. Only 5 of the 347 adults of the S. scitula/pyri complex captured in 2000 belonged to S. pyri.Des adultes mâles et des larves de sésies ont été dépistés dans dix (1989 à 1991), cinq (2000) et deux (2004) vergers de pommiers du Québec. Les adultes ont été capturés à l’aide de pièges Multi-Pher III appâtés de capsules chargées de 99,1 % d’acétate de Z, Z-3, 13-octadécadiényle et 0,9 % d’acétate de Z, E plus E, Z-3, 13-octadécadiényle; les larves ont été échantillonnées par examen visuel des troncs. Les mâles adultes capturés de 1989 à 1991 appartenaient aux espèces suivantes : Synanthedon scitula, S. pyri, Podosesia syringae, S. acerrubri, S. fulvipes, S. exitiosa, S. acerni et Sesia tibialis. Seulement 5 des 347 adultes du complexe S. scitula/pyri capturés en 2000 appartenaient à l’espèce S. pyri

Commercial bumble bee (Bombus impatiens) hives under exclusion netting systems for apple pollination in orchards

Exclusion netting systems are effective in various contexts and are increasingly used to control crop pests. However, factors affecting pollination management under nets are poorly known. The pollination effectiveness of commercial bumble bee hives of Bombus impatiens Cresson (Hymenoptera: Apidae) was studied for apple production under exclusion netting systems in a research orchard located in Quebec, Canada during 2016–2017. Sixteen single-row plots of apple trees (plot length: 18.5 m, cultivar GingerGold) were subjected to one of the following four treatments during bloom: (1) introduction of a bumble bee hive placed at the end of the row, under nets; (2) introduction of a bumble bee hive placed in the middle of the row, under nets; (3) negative control with no pollinators, under nets and (4) agronomic control with nearby bee hives (<50 m), without nets. Resulting post-harvest fruit quality (e.g., fruit weight, size, number and distribution of seeds) was evaluated, as well as correlations between bumble bee visitation rates and fruit quality parameters were evaluated. Results suggest that bumble bees provided adequate pollination under exclusion netting systems and that resulting fruit quality was equivalent to that of apple fruit conventionally pollinated by honey bees and wild bees community (bumble bees and other bees) in the orchard environment. Positioning bumble bee hives in the middle of the row provided better fruit load homogeneity in pollinated trees. Additional discussion on bumble bees as apple pollinators and on pollen distribution methods is also included

Photo initiated chemical vapour deposition to increase polymer hydrophobicity

Apple growers face new challenges to produce organic apples and now many cover orchards with high-density polyethylene (HDPE) nets to exclude insects, rather than spraying insecticides. However, rainwater- associated wetness favours the development of apple scabs, Venturia inaequalis, whose lesions accumulate on the leaves and fruit causing unsightly spots. Treating the nets with a superhydrophobic coating should reduce the amount of water that passes through the net. Here we treat HDPE and polyethylene terephthalate using photo-initiated chemical vapour deposition (PICVD). We placed polymer samples in a quartz tube and passed a mixture of H2 and CO through it while a UVC lamp (254 nm) illuminated the surface. After the treatment, the contact angle between water droplets and the surface increased by an average of 20°. The contact angle of samples placed 70 cm from the entrance of the tube was higher than those at 45 cm and 20 cm. The PICVD-treated HDPE achieved a contact angle of 124°. Nets spray coated with a solvent-based commercial product achieved 180° but water ingress was, surprisingly, higher than that for nets with a lower contact angle

Use of bio-based polymers in agricultural exclusion nets: A perspective

The use of exclusion netting as an Integrated Pest Management technique is likely to become increasingly important as a means to increasing crop yields whilst minimising pesticide use. However, the increasing use of these nets will also lead to a rise in greenhouse gas emissions in the agricultural sector and pose problems related to their end-of-life disposal. Employing biopolymers made from low-carbon and renewable biomass feedstock to fabricate exclusion nets can potentially resolve these issues by merging the benefits of the two emerging technologies. Despite this, there has only been limited work on the use of biopolymer netting in agriculture. By looking at the challenges needed to be overcome for biopolymers to be widely used as a netting material, this review aims to bridge the gaps between the two fields of research. To do so, the past work done on agricultural netting is discussed, with a focus on the implemented materials and their desired properties. After this, potential candidate biopolymers for manufacturing agricultural nets are pointed out, emphasizing their sustainability with respect to widely used Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) parameters, including the end-of-life treatment

Pest Activity and Protection Practices: Four Decades of Transformation in Quebec Apple Orchards

A group of commercial orchards from Quebec (Canada) was followed from 1977 to 2019 as part of a project to implement Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices. Collected data comprised activity of major fruit pests (from monitoring traps), fruit damage at harvest and pesticide applications, from which the annual costs and impacts of protection programs over 42 years were calculated. Activity and fruit damage in commercial orchards were compared to patterns observed in a reference insecticide-free orchard. Some insects (European apple sawfly, codling moth, apple maggot) were more prevalent in the insecticide-free orchard than in commercial orchards, while others were more prevalent in commercial orchards (oblique-banded leafroller) or as prevalent in both orchard types (tarnished plant bug). Annual fruit damage in the insecticide-free orchard was mostly from the apple maggot (up to 98%), the plum curculio (up to 90%) and the codling moth (up to 58%). The average situation was different in commercial orchards, whose damage was mostly from the plum curculio (up to 7.6%), the tarnished plant bug (up to 7.5%) and the oblique-banded leafroller (up to 1.7%). While the number of registered pesticides, the number of applications and the total cost of pesticides gradually increased from 2002 to 2019, the risks incurred, as measured by indicators of environmental and health impacts, followed a downward trend for insecticides and acaricides and varied slightly for fungicides

A note on the activity and species composition of sesiids [Lepidoptera: Sesiidae] as measured by pheromone traps and trunk sampling in apple orchards of southwestern Quebec

Adult males and larvae of sesiids were monitored in ten (1989–1991), five (2000) and two (2004) Quebec apple orchards. Multi Pher III traps baited with 99.1% Z, Z-3, 13-octadecadienyl acetate and 0.9% Z, E plus E, Z-3, 13-octadecadienyl acetate were used for adults, and trunk sampling was used for larvae. Synanthedon scitula, S. pyri, Podosesia syringae, S. acerrubri, S. fulvipes, S. exitiosa, S. acerni and Sesia tibialis males were captured between 1989 and 1991. Only 5 of the 347 adults of the S. scitula/pyri complex captured in 2000 belonged to S. pyri.Des adultes mâles et des larves de sésies ont été dépistés dans dix (1989 à 1991), cinq (2000) et deux (2004) vergers de pommiers du Québec. Les adultes ont été capturés à l’aide de pièges Multi-Pher III appâtés de capsules chargées de 99,1 % d’acétate de Z, Z-3, 13-octadécadiényle et 0,9 % d’acétate de Z, E plus E, Z-3, 13-octadécadiényle; les larves ont été échantillonnées par examen visuel des troncs. Les mâles adultes capturés de 1989 à 1991 appartenaient aux espèces suivantes : Synanthedon scitula, S. pyri, Podosesia syringae, S. acerrubri, S. fulvipes, S. exitiosa, S. acerni et Sesia tibialis. Seulement 5 des 347 adultes du complexe S. scitula/pyri capturés en 2000 appartenaient à l’espèce S. pyri

Établissement et dispersion du prédateur Hyaliodes vitripennis [Hemiptera : Miridae] suite à des introductions dans une pommeraie commerciale au Québec

La présente étude visait à mettre en évidence la capacité d’établissement et de dispersion du prédateur Hyaliodes vitripennis après des introductions successives en vergers commerciaux. Une étude sur 2 ans a été entreprise en 2000 dans un verger sous régie intégrée du sud du Québec, dans lequel le prédateur était absent. Huit cent prédateurs ont été introduits chaque année lors d'un lâcher effectué à raison de 200 prédateurs par pommier, sur quatre pommiers choisis au hasard à l'intérieur d'une zone homogène de 0,2 ha, au centre du verger. Un suivi visuel des populations d’acariens phytophages a été réalisé dans la zone d’introduction de 0,2 ha et un suivi visuel des populations de prédateurs a été réalisé dans une zone de 0,8 ha contenant en son centre la zone d’introduction. Les résultats ont démontré une baisse des populations de l’acarien phytophage Panonychus ulmi dans les arbres où les prédateurs avaient été introduits en 2000. Des prédateurs ont été retrouvés au début de la saison suivante sur des arbres n’ayant pas reçu de prédateurs en 2000 et une augmentation de la population du prédateur a été observée sur ces arbres pendant les 2 années de l’étude. Le prédateur a également été observé dans le verger au début de la saison 2002. La dispersion des prédateurs s’est effectuée jusqu’à 45 m de leur point d’introduction 2 semaines après leur lâcher en 2000. Les résultats sont discutés dans le contexte de la lutte intégrée en vergers de pommiers.The goal of the present study was to assess the establishment and dispersal ability of the predator Hyaliodes vitripennis after repeated releases in commercial orchards. A two-year study was undertaken in 2000 in a commercial apple orchard under IPM in southern Quebec, where the predator was previously absent. Eight hundred predators were introduced at once, each year, at a rate of 200 predators per tree, on four apple trees located in a homogeneous area of 0.2 ha, in the orchard centre. A visual monitoring of mite populations was carried out in the 0.2 ha introduction zone and a visual monitoring of predator population was realised in a 0.8 ha zone containing the introduction zone in its centre. Results showed a decrease of phytophagous mite Panonychus ulmi populations in trees where predators were introduced in 2000. Predators were observed early in the second season on trees that did not receive any predator in 2000, and an increase of the predator population was observed on these trees during the 2 years of study. The predator was also observed in the orchard early in the 2002 season. Predators dispersed up to 45 m from their point of introduction 2 weeks after their release in 2000. Results are discussed in the context of IPM for apple orchards

Impact d’une dose sublétale de lambda-cyhalothrine sur les prédateurs intraguildes d’acariens phytophages en vergers de pommiers

Les impacts d’une dose sublétale de lambda-cyhalothrine, une pyréthrinoïde de synthèse, sur des prédateurs intraguildes d’acariens phytophages en vergers de pommiers ont été évalués en laboratoire. Les niveaux de mortalité de différentes combinaisons de prédateurs ont été notés en absence et en présence de l’insecticide. Deux combinaisons de prédateurs étaient observées : 1) la coccinelle Harmonia axyridis en présence de la punaise prédatrice Hyaliodes vitripennis et 2) H. vitripennis en présence de l’acarien prédateur Amblyseius fallacis. L’application d’une dose sublétale de lambda-cyhalothrine a engendré une mortalité importante du prédateur intraguilde due à une seconde exposition au produit chimique lors de l’ingestion de la proie contaminée. De plus, cette mortalité varie en fonction des stades de développement impliqués. La mortalité de H. axyridis est plus importante en présence d’immatures de H. vitripennis. Chez H. vitripennis, la mortalité des stades immatures est plus importante en présence d’A. fallacis. Les effets d’une application d’insecticide sur les interactions entre prédateurs apparaissent donc comme des facteurs à considérer lors de l’établissement d’un programme de lutte intégrée en vergers de pommiers.The impacts of a sublethal dose of lambda-cyhalothrin, a pyrethroid, on intraguild predators of phytophagous mite in apple orchards were evaluated in laboratory conditions. The mortality in the different combinations of predators was recorded in absence and presence of insecticide treatment. Two predator combinations were observed: 1) the ladybeetle Harmonia axyridis against the predatory bug Hyaliodes vitripennis, and 2) H. vitripennis against the predatory mite Amblyseius fallacis. A sublethal dose of lambda-cyhalothrin caused an increased mortality of the intraguild predator due to the second exposition to the pesticide when the contaminated prey is consumed. Moreover, the mortality level was related to the developmental stages. Mortality of H. axyridis increased in presence of H. vitripennis immatures stages, while mortality of H. vitripennis young in-stars increased in presence of A. fallacis. The effects of insecticide application on predator interaction should therefore be considered in the implementation of integrated control programs in apple orchards