Nursery and tree application

This paper assesses the current status of the biological control of pest problems in the nursery industry (including ornamental trees, shrubs and perennials) with entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) by (1) reviewing the results of pot and field tests and the key factors of success and failure of EPNs in practice, (2) giving recommendations for practical application and (3) identifying the research necessary to solve the limiting factors in pest control with EPNs in nursery and tree applications. Aspects of effectiveness, information availability, management complexity, labour requirements and costs of EPNs are discussed. The essential components for field efficacy and the factors affecting efficacy of EPNs against Otiorhynchus sulcatus, root-feeding white grubs, wood-boring beetles, leaf beetles, Lepidoptera larvae boring roots, trunks and branches, leaf-eating Lepidoptera larvae and leaf-eating sawfly larvae are highlighted