Integrated management of pomegranate fruit pest, Ectomyelois ceratoniae Zeller

Pomegranate fruit moth (PFM), Ectomyelois ceratoniae (Lep.: Pyralidae), is the most important ofpomegranate in Iran and other pomegranate producing countries. Every year the larvae of E. ceratoniaecauses damage pomegranate fruits. Because a larvae feeds inside fruits, chemical control is notapplicable. Several different methods including collecting and burning of infected fruits and biologicalcontrol have been examined to control this pest, but none of the mention method has showed to beeffective. One way that may prevent fruits to be infected is the obstruction from laying moth‟s eggs insidefruit crown. In the present study, the effect of stamens elimination and application of the kaolin particlefilm were tested in the fields during 2008-2010 years. Based on the results, using stamen-removermachine can reduce fruit damage by 66%. Also the infection rates of PFM in kaolin treatment werereduce by 78% and Sunburn damage of fruits was reduced in the kaolin treated fruits by 38%. Therefore,usage of control methods including stamens elimination with stamen-remover machine in the early June,kaolin (Sepidan® WP) spray over the whole canopy of pomegranate trees, four times at 4–5-weekintervals (5% concentration) and infected fruit gathering during the season and after harvest, in anintegrated management program, could be used successfully to reduce PFM damage on pomegranate

کلیدواژه ها:

pomegranate fruit moth ، Ectomyelois ceratoniae ، integrated pest management ، pest control