Compositions and methods to reduce the population of wheat-stem sawfly and hessian fly

摘要

Novel strains of Beauveria pseudobassiana, B. amorpha, B. bassiana, Metarhizium pemphigi, and M. anisopliae have been isolated from wheat stem sawfly and demonstrated to endophytically colonize wheat and kill wheat stem sawfly and Hessian fly larvae diapausing in the stems of the wheat. Biocontrol compositions containing at least one of these fungal strains in an effective amount to kill wheat stem sawfly and Hessian fly larvae are generated. One can apply at least of these fungal strains or a biocontrol composition containing at least one of these fungal strains to a grain crop field or land where wheat stem sawfly and Hessian fly larvae live in order to kill the larvae and to reduce the population of the diapausing wheat stem sawfly and Hessian fly larvae.