Using Surfactants to Increase the Efficacy of Commonly Used Insecticides in Controlling Melon Thrips onTomatoes

摘要

Tomato chlorotic spot virus (TCSV) is one of the emerging tospoviruses transmitted by thrips affecting tomatoes in Miami-Dade County, Florida. In the present study, we used five different surfactants (Joint Venture, Induce, Dyne-Amic, MSO and LI-700)to determine whether they increased the efficacy of four commonly used insecticides (Radiant, Movento, Torac, and Agri-Mek) to manage this insect-borne problem. Mean number of thrips (both adults and larvae) on treated tomato plants did not differ from the untreated plants. However, the occurrence of TCSV incidence increased during the growing season. Insecticides alone or in combination with surfactants significantly reduced the incidence of TCSV and increased the yield in tomatoes when compared to theuntreated control. This information will help developing a sustainable thrips management program in tomato and other vegetable crops.