Contribution from the Dominion Entomological Laboratory, Vernon, BC, based on observations made by Mr. E. P. Venables and Dr. R. D. Bird. between 1927 - 1932, in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia

Venables, E. P.

English

Journal of the Entomological Society of British Columbia

PROCEEDINGS, 1933 N OTES ON TH E TARNISHED PLANT BU G IN THE DRY BELT OF BRITISH COL UM BIA By E. P. V ENABLES 17 I ' u hli"he<i rccord ,; d caling II· ith tarni,;jwd plant bug injury are generall y cun fin ed tu th c il1 ,.;ect in its rc lat io n tu truck cro p ''. f!o\l ·cr gardcn,.; . and nur ,.; ery ,.; t uc k. j njuri e s to hea rin g fruit tree,.;. lI·bil e ucca-,.; iunally m e ntiuncd ill th e pa ,.; t. hal·e in creased co n sid erahl y thruughout thc Pacifi c t\orthll·cst dur ing t he pa,; t fell· yea r ,; . pa r tic ul arly in tho :;e area ,.; 111 lI·hi c h irrigat io n i,.; practiced . Th e [oll()I,·ng nute s are ha:ied upon ub,.;e r l"atiu lh made in different ,.;ections uf the Okan aga n Va ll ey bc t wce n 1927 and 1932, a nd deal particularl y II ·ith th e in ,.;ec t and it,; r e lati·o n til apple a nd pear trees g n lll·n und e r irrigat io n . l\ppru lcd urc h ard m anage11lcnt. in mu"t ,.;ecti u n ,.; o f Ihiti sh Co l-umhia . includ e:; the g r()ll· ing ()f cOI·e r c rops in th c urc harcl in o rd e r that soi l fertil it y Ill ay be maintained. and prutec ti o n affurded to the tree roots durin g th e II· inte r. Th ere is nu du u bt that thi s practice ha s produce d cu nditiuns par-ticularl y s uit ed to the 111ultiplicat ion of thc t a rni s he d plant bug. Orc hard cOI·e r c rups m ay cons i,.; t o f e ither alfalfa, "iII·eet c lo l·e r. o r \·e tche ,; , and uf th e,;e alfa lfa i:i th c m us t II·id e ly g r Oll"11. \\ ' ithuut e n tering int o t he manage m e nt o f the ,.;e di Ue re nt cro p,.; In dctail it may be sa id that uur u h sen·a ti o n ,.; hale Sh Oll"11 that t he perman ent gro ll· ing of alfalfa r e:; ul b in condi t io n s par t ic ularl y s uitabl e t o t he llluiti plication o [ the tarni ,; hed p lant hug, and that thi s c ro p IS pa rti c ularly att ract ile to t he in sect in late fall, fo r hihe rn atiun . Injuries to Apples and Pears The lll o,; t sc ri o u :; type of injury t u the :;e tr ecs is caused 1)\· the puncturing of th e unfo ld ing bud :; in ea r ly s p rin g. by t he adult in sccb . ,,·hi ch ha\·e ,;un·i\·ed th e ,,·inter. The fir s t dfec t of the ,.;e p u nctu res i:; tu ca use an exudat i()n (J[ :;ap [ru1l1 th e bud . at t he :; ite uj th e pu nct ure. Thi ,.; ex uda te fo rlll "; large drup lets u n the I)LEb a nd in th e case of pea r ,.; may be su pru fuo'e as to cOl·er n u t o nl y the bL1lb but abu t he "pur ,; a nd tw ig ,; u n affected tr ee,;. j\pple bud s injured by t he ta rni :;he d plant bug generally di e ,,·ithin a s ho r t t im e; pear huc!,; heing con s id e ra bl y larger at the time injury occu r :;, fr eq ue ntl y p rod ucc ";U l11e lea l e,; anc! may :;e t a fe,,· hl o,.;-:;om s , ulll es,; t he injury h a,.; hee n ve ry se l·e rc. The fruit of the pea r a nd apple i" a t tac ked ea r ly In t he ,.;easo n , t he res ult heing that del·e lop11lent of th e frui t is chec ked at the po int \I·he re fee ding h a :; tak e n place. Thc appea rance of apple:; II·hi c h ha ,·e becn attacked bl· th e in "ecb in ca r"· SU1111l1 e r is di :;t in ct i \e and tak e,; 18 B. C. ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY t hc fo rm of a deep coni ca l dep res :; ion in th e ,; u rface o f t he frui t. w hich in m a ny case:; m ay reac h to the corc. Pea r ,; m ay he at tac ked in late s umm er lI'hen t he fruit i,; a lm ost m atu re a nd in jury a t t hi s ti111 c m ay se ri o us ly lo we r t he g rade of t he fruit. The Influence of Cover Crops On Fall Population In orde r to ,; how th e in fl uence of di ffere n t typc,.; uf co\'C r cro ps cin ta rni :;hed p lant bug popul a t ion it i,; of in te re ,; t tu presen t th e re-s ul t:; ()f q ua nti tat ive co ll ec ti ons u f the in ,.;ect 111 a dc duri ng t he la te s umm er a nd fa ll of 193 1. w hen pa r t icul a r a t te nt io n lI'as pai d to the ac ti\' iti e,; of t he in,.;cc t pri o r to hi be m at io n. Thi :; da ta was ,;ecu re cl hy regul a r pe ri odi ca l sa111pling,; (If ce rtain a reas g roll' in g \'a r io us types ()[ cm'er c rup,.;. in c lu d in g alfa lfa . SlI'ee t c lO\'e r a nd \'e tch , T hese co ll ect iu n ,; lI'e rc m <lde a t Ve rn u n in a lfalfa and vetc h ; a t Pe nti cto n in a lfa lfa a nd ,; wee t c1 o \'er. a nd a t \\:e low na In a lfa lfa, 1\ tota l of t ll'en ty- t ll' () cu ll ect iu n ,; uf ta rni ,; hecl p lan t bug lI'ere m ade be t ween A ug u ,.; t a nd the cnd o f October, A la rge numh er of in,;ecb u f va ri LJ u s kind s we re ta ken in th ese co ll ec ti o ns an d 1 32}~6ti we re act ua ll y coun te d a nd the numb er pe r ac re o f :;e\'er a l s pec ie,; es t im a ted th e ref ru m . Th e data co\'e rin g thi s work has been illumin ati ng a nd ha,; ,; huII'n in th e c lea res t m a nn er that th e ty pe o f co\'e r c rop a nd t he type of so il ha\'e a di rect bearing upon t he ab und a nce o f ce rt a in pe,; b of t he o l'chal'(1. Tt i" not poss ib le to prese n t a ll th e data <:()\'e l'i ng th i,; " 'll rk . in c ludin g' a ,.; it d(Ies num-erou ,; graph,; a nd tab le ,; d ea lin g \I'it h ;;e\'e ra l ;; pecic s o f in sec t s . hut th e fin a l resul t ha ,.; bee n to ,; ho\\' th at a lfalfa a,; a cm'e r crn p is m os t fa \'o urab le t o Lygus pratensis fo r hihe rn a ti o n, Th e popula t ion w a s found tn be a lway,; hig he r in al fa lfa. a nd in th e fa ll a we ll -def in ed mi g rat ion occ ur;; f ro11l areas g row in g sweet cl()\'e r a nd \'etc hes to the alfa lfa. w here hi he rn at in g conditi o ns a re m ost fa \'ourab le. The Influence of Cover Crops On Spring Population Inform ati on on the di s tribu t iu n o f t he ta rni :; hed p la n t hug ITl "' pring . a ft cr leav ing hiiJe rn at ion . lI'a,; sec ured hy th e usc of the swee p-II1 g net . J\ tota l of 100 s weeps lI'c re ta ken as a uni t in eac h ex perim ent , the :"wce ps be in g m a dc in a s un iform a m a nn er a s possib le, a nd were ca rri ed ou t in o rcha rd s in \V hi ch di ffe rent m eth od,; of cove r cro p m a nage m ent ha cl hee n pract iced , T he fo ll o\\' in g sh Ull''; t he r e,; ult :; of co ll ecti ons m adc at s ix dif-fe r ent st a t io ns ill Pe nti cto n, PROCEEDINGS, 1933 19 St. Crop Cultivation Dry Cover Insects Remarks ,\Halfa [\0 fall di ,;cing Thi ck 1-1-IJ Nt) fall di sci ng Thin I 1 III Fall di :;c in g ~11 C()I 'e r 1-1-! \ ' :\0 ia II d i ~c ing Fair -1-1 O rchard pro tec ted fro 111 wi nel, V l~a ll eli::;cing Puur 12 ( >rcharel ,; prayed with L.S, and oil V I :\u fall di sc ing Cuud 12 S prayed lI' ith L.S. 1-9 Frum th e abol'e it appea r ,; that n e ith e r the type of cultil'at ion. nor th c absence of hibernating ,;itc,;. ha l'e mu ch effect upo n the num-ber of in :iecb prese nt in the a lfa lfa in th e ea rl y ,; pring after the in-sect lea l'es hibe rn ati'O n, but that th ey becom e qu ite el'enl y di ,;t ri b uted ul'er Il,ide areas dur ing the warm days of Apri l a n d ~[ay, Ot her co ll ect ion s than tho,,;e tabulated Il'e re mad e in a number uf urcharcb und e r I"ar ied type ,; of cultil'a ti on w ith result s quite s imilar to those ShOl\"ll a bove, The Influence of Orchard Exposure O n Plant Bug Population In 193 1. som e obseJ'l'ation s were made Il'hich indi ca t e that expo-,; ure l11ay play a n il11portant part in r ega rd to the prel'a len ce of th e in sec t. A t s tati on No, I \l th e in sect::; lI'e re al m ost four tim es a s nU11lerous a:; in othe r station ,; gruII' in g s imilar cove r cro p ,; , Tn thi,; area almost entire protect ion from th e prcI'a ilin g co ld II"inc],.; was afforded by s ur-rounding high e r land, Thi s area included a bo ut two acres of pear trees . man) of which had bud damage uf ol'e r 90 per ce nt. T he bug,; w e re num erou s lV ithin thi s s he lte rcd area . a lth ough o n e hundred ya rd,; away an al'e rage of onl y twell'e to fourteen insects cuuld bc taken in the us ua l swee ping, Notes On O viposition Th e egg,; o f the hibernating bruod 11;11"C been fuund quite cummonly in alfalfa s te 111 s during J\pri1. u ,; uall y at th e base of the current sea-sun's g rowt h. Il' hen the plant,; Il'e re about fo ur to s ix in ches in he ight. The :o;e Il'e re located ju,;t abOl"e the so il in the r oug h pu rti o n s of the s tcm. lI'he rc nU1l1 cro u s abra:;iun s and ::; 111all crack s are c0111111 0 nl y found , In S0 111 e ca::ies the egg:; II"e re in :;e rteel in we ll -definccl s plit::; in the s tel11 , n ea r the ground lel'e l. Ko egg" Il' ere found in the "1l1 oo ther portion s of th e s te l11 S, or at a heig ht 111 0 re th a n two in ch e::i above th e so il. Iso la t ed p lants lVith s tro ng cro wn ::; ::iec m to co nta in 1I1 0St eggs, 20 B. C. ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY In sume cases the eggs we re found in s ert~d at ri g ht angles tu th e stem , in uther cases they were placed at an a ng le imlll ediate ly be-nea th the epiderm is. Eggs 1l1ay OCC I11' s in g ly, o r in g roups o f S IX u r 1l1 o re. a nd in one case eig ht were fu und. in une s1l1all area. -'\. few eggs hal'e been (ound in app le hud s . a nd the youn g app les are also u sed for ov ipositi on to sum e exte nt. Control The contro l o f the tarni shed plant hug has bee n th e s ubj ect of Illan y ex perimen ts in the past; nothin g outstanding. howe l·er. has ye t bee n deve loped. Under conditi ons as th ey uccur in th e urcha rd sec ti ons uf 13ritish Columbia it would appear that cover crop m a nagem ent may offe r a partial so lution in preve nting dam age. Repe ll ent spray s of ce rtain s tan da rd ma terials hal'e been tri ed with doubtful results . The app li cat ion of lillie-su lphur. both alu ne and in cumbinati on w ith o il , at the time the bug :; becom e act ive in the spring . is claim ed by some growers to be fairly effec ti l·e. Coun ts made on A pril 15. in pear orchard s whi ch had receil'Cd lim e-s ulphur sprays betll'eenMarch 21-23, showed the following pe rce ntage of injured buds : L. S. I-S plus 470 o il .... Buds dead , 12.S7o. 13uds injured, 20.50/0 L. S. 1-9 al one ...... .. ........ Buds dead , 4.2 0/0. Bud:; injured , 34.S/{ L. S. 1-20 plu s oil (3%) .... Buds dead. Buds injured , 10.00/0 L. S. 1-20 al one ................ Buds dead. Bud s injured. lS.0% Check trees, un spraye d .. ................................... Buds injured. 34% -71 % Test s m ade \I·ith 5 per ce nt. ni cot in e dust again st t he adu lt in-sects were aparently o f 11 0 I·a lue. Se l'era l hundred tarni shed plant bugs were enclosed in a \I·ire screen cage and th e ni cotin e du st bl own in with a ha nd rutary du st er. The in sec ts all fe ll to the g round and were appare ntl y dead, hut at th e expiration o f ha lf a n hour the in sects appeared a s ac ti ve as eve r. In a ny case. contro l based on the des truction uf the adu lt in sect s wou ld have to be appli ed ol'er wider areas in order to be e ff ective. Hecl ucti on o f injury by ('uI'er crop management seem s to offe r some hope of res ul ts, but will req uire t o be tes t ed ove r a cu nsiderabl e acre-age in urder to arril'e at correct conclu sions. Cuntributi on fro111 th e Dominiun ~~ ntu I1l 0 1 og i ca l Laboratury. Ve m on . R C. . based on obser vatio ns 111 ade by Mr. E. P. Ve na bles and Dr . R. D. Bird. between 1927-1 932. in th e O kanagan Va ll ey uf B riti sh Co lu111 b ia. 

Notes on the Tarnished Plant Bug in the Dry Belt of British Columbia

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Notes on the Tarnished Plant Bug in the Dry Belt of British Columbia

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