Project Number: 6402-22000-063-08
Project Type: Specific Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Aug 01, 2011
End Date: Aug 31, 2014

Objective:
1. To discover and evaluate new biopesticides against sweetpotato insects. 2. To develop relationship between sweetpotato root damage and insect population density. 3. To determine correlation between wireworm larval population and adult trap catch. 4. To detect sweetpotato weevil (Cylas formicarius) populations in quarantined counties of southern Mississippi by using pheromone traps. 5. To promote sweetpotato production practices through outreach activities (field days, growers’ meetings and field demonstration plots).

Approach:
New botanical and other biological compounds will be extracted and evaluated against major sweetpotato insect pests. New and conventional sweetpotato varieties will be evaluated for root damage by insects. Root damage will be correlated with insect pest numbers collected by using different sampling methods. Seeds of corn, wheat and crimple oats will be used in bait treatments to collect wireworm larvae in sweetpotato fields. Relationship of adult beetles will be established with wireworm larvae captured in bait traps. Pheromone traps will be used to detect adult Cylas (C.) formicarius population in southern Mississippi. The knowledge gained through research will be dissipated through seminars, research publications, internet, presentations in professional meetings, on-farm demonstrations and workshops.