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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Gainesville, Florida » Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology » Insect Behavior and Biocontrol Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #328588
Research Project: Improved Biologically-Based Tactics to Manage Invasive Insect Pests and Weeds

Location: Insect Behavior and Biocontrol Research

Title: Evaluating plant and plant oil repellency against the sweetpotato whitefly

Author
item Legaspi, Jesusa
item Miller, Neil
item HASEEB, MUHAMMAD - Florida A & M University
item KANGA, LAMBERT - Florida A & M University
item WOLAVER, DANIELLE - Florida A & M University

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/9/2015
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The sweetpotato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci is a major insect pest of vegetables world-wide. We evaluated the effect of commercial plant oils – garlic oil, hot pepper wax, and mustard oil against B. tabaci. Cucumber plants served as the control. Additional treatments included no plants or oil (clear air). Using an odor-detecting equipment (olfactometer), we measured repellency of these oils to the whitefly. We found that mustard oil and garlic oil showed repellency against the whitefly. In another olfactometer experiment, we measured the effects of arugula (Eruca sativa cv. Nemat) and 2 mustard variety plants, (Brassica juncea cv. Caliente 19 and giant red mustard), as whitefly repellents. Preliminary results showed that mustard and arugula are promising repellent plants against the sweetpotato whitefly. These results indicate that mustard and garlic oils, and mustard and arugula plants can be used as a “push” component in the “push-pull” management of the sweetpotato whitefly in vegetables.