The objective of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of foliar appliedinsecticides for control of Blueberry Stem Gall Wasp (BSGW).Treatments were applied to a ‘Jersey’ cultivar planting in West Olive,MI where mature bushes had been mowed off two years before sothere were many vigorous shoots on the 5-ft-tall bushes. There werefour replicate plots of each insecticide treatment plus the untreatedcontrols. Plots were seven bushes long and one row wide at a 10′ ×5′ ft spacing. The spray solutions were applied to both sides of theplots using a CO2-powered backpack sprayer operating at 55 PSI ina volume of water equivalent to 100 gallons per acre and equippedwith a single head boom and a TeeJet 8003VS spray nozzle. The totalnumber of galls and their size (small, medium, or large) on each ofthree central bushes in each plot were assessed in November once theleaves had dropped to allow for an accurate assessment. Gall size iscorrelated with the number of inhabitants per gall, so a reduction inthe size of the gall also reflects a reduction in the number of BSGWthat will emerge in the following spring.
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