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ARS Home » Plains Area » Sidney, Montana » Northern Plains Agricultural Research Laboratory » Pest Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #154385
Title: DEVELOPMENT OF A BIOLOGICALLY-BASED PEST AND DISEASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN SUGAR BEETS

Author
item Jaronski, Stefan
item JACOBSEN, B - MSU BOZEMAN PLANT PATHOLO
item ZIDACK, N - MSU BOZEMAN PLANT PATHOLO
item LARSON, B - MSU BOZEMAN PLANT PATHOLO

Submitted to: Integrated Pest Management Symposium Workshop Proceedings
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/15/2002
Publication Date: 2/25/2003
Citation: JARONSKI, S., JACOBSEN, B., ZIDACK, N., LARSON, B. DEVELOPMENT OF A BIOLOGICALLY-BASED PEST AND DISEASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN SUGAR BEETS. 4TH NATIONAL INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT SYMPOSIUM WORKSHOP PROCEEDINGS. 2003. ABSTRACT. P. 70.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Sugar beets (Beta vulgaris L.) are beset by one important insect pest, the sugarbeet root maggot (Tetanops myopaeformis), several lesser pests such as wireworms (Coleoptera: Elateridae), and a trio of significant diseases: (1) seedling diseases caused by Aphanomyces and Pythium, (2) Rhizoctonia Crown and Root Rot, and (3) Cercospora Leaf Spot. Although sugar beets are grown on 550,600 hectares in the U.S. (2002) they are considered a minor use crop and farmers have only a narrow choice of chemical control tools. Many of these chemicals are in jeopardy from resistance or regulatory action, creating an ideal stage for the development of a biologically based, integrated system. Our collaborative group is studying the deployment of insect pathogenic fungi (Beauveria bassiana and/or Metarhizium anisopliae) along with Bacillus sp. LS201, Bacillus subtilis MSU127 and Bacillus mycoides BAC J for management of the sugar beet pathogens. These microbial tools are being developed with a view to integrate them with chemically or biologically Induced Systemic Resistance, resistant/tolerant beet hybrids, microbial control agents of sugarbeet cyst nematode, cultural practices, use of disease and pest predictive models, as well as judicious, moderate use of traditional chemical pesticides. During the past two years we have identified several excellent candidate fungi for root maggot and wireworm control to add to the arsenal of the Montana State University bacterial agents. Field evaluations have demonstrated the promise of this approach.