Abstract:
Objective Thrips infestation on sweet peppers in Fujian province was surveyed, and potential of using Lecanicillium lecanii as a means of biological control against the dominant species of thrips was explored.
Methods Species and numbers of thrips that infested varieties of sweet peppers at vegetable farms in Zhangzhou, Fujian were surveyed. Pathogenicity of L. lecanii LL-01 on the dominant species of thrips was determined in laboratory.
Results The total thrip populations on Lushuai and Bulanni sweet peppers were similar but significantly higher than that on Teyasi. The thrips found were largely Frankliniella intonsa, Thrips hawaiiensis, and T. palmi, and among them, F. intonsa being the most abundant, accounting for 91.31-94.93%. The LC50 of L. lecanii LL-01 was 3.47×105 conidia·mL−1 on F. intonsa 7 d after an inoculated infection. The cumulative lethality was 78.16-87.36% under treatments of 1×107 to 1×108 conidia·mL−1 to reach an LT50 in 3.73-4.24 d.
Conclusion Thrips had varied preferred host plants.F. intonsa was the dominant species that infested the sweet pepper varieties in the province. Since L. lecanii LL-01 was found strongly pathogenic to F. intonsa, it could be applied as a biological agent to deter wide-spread infestation.