Skip to main content
ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Kimberly, Idaho » Northwest Irrigation and Soils Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #390704
Research Project: Development of Elite Sugar Beet Germplasm Enhanced for Disease Resistance and Novel Disease Management Options for Improved Yield

Location: Northwest Irrigation and Soils Research

Title: Beet leafhopper and BCTV strain survey 2021 progress report

Author
item Strausbaugh, Carl
item WENNINGER, ERIK - University Of Idaho

Submitted to: The Sugarbeet
Publication Type: Trade Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/28/2021
Publication Date: 4/4/2022
Citation: Strausbaugh, C.A., Wenninger, E.J. 2022. Beet leafhopper and BCTV strain survey 2021 progress report. The Sugarbeet. p. 49-50.

Interpretive Summary: At the request of a sugar beet industry stakeholder, beet leafhopper (BLH) populations in southern Idaho were tracked during the 2020 (4 counties) and 2021 (5 counties) growing seasons in desert areas and sugar beet and dry bean fields in southern Idaho. BLH populations in Elmore Co. were present in at least double-digit numbers per sticky card each week at all sites through most of the summer both years. BLH were evident by mid-summer in Owyhee Co. and by late in the summer in Twin Falls and Bingham Co., but they were almost undetectable in Minidoka Co. Vertical card placement was preferable since horizontal placement reduced captures by 45 to 75%. Sequencing the cytochrome oxidase gene identified that two haplotypes were dominant within the BLH population. Beet curly top virus (BCTV) was detected in 42% of the BLH samples in 2020. The Worland strain of BCTV was the primary strain found in BLH samples. The data for 2021 are still a work in progress. Once all data are collected, the project will establish the BCTV strains for which host plant resistance is needed and the best time for when control of BLH is necessary.

Technical Abstract: At the request of a sugar beet industry stakeholder, beet leafhopper (BLH) populations in southern Idaho were tracked during the 2020 (4 counties) and 2021 (5 counties) growing seasons in desert areas and sugar beet and dry bean fields in southern Idaho. Samples were collected on a weekly basis from mid-April through mid-September to assess all leafhoppers for population levels and the presence of Beet curly top virus (BCTV) strains. Crop plants from monitored fields were also assessed for the presence of BCTV strains. Elmore Co. had green plants in the desert coming out of the winter and through the summer the past two years. Once BLH populations in Elmore Co. began increasing in May, they were present in at least double-digit numbers through most of the summer at all sites both years. Coming out of the winter, the desert sites in Minidoka Co. both years, Twin Falls Co. in 2020, and Owyhee Co. in 2021 were dry and had no green plants. At the 2021 Twin Falls desert site, the only live vegetation was sagebrush. Thus, BLH numbers at these desert sites were at or near zero. Local weed populations appeared to be the primary source of BLH in crop fields in these counties. Preliminary data suggest two haplotypes (based on cytochrome oxidase gene) dominate the BLH population. Over the 22-week collection period, the horizontal card averaged 45 to 75% fewer BLH than the vertical card indicating vertical card placement is preferrable. In 2020, 42% of the BLH samples were positive for the BCTV coat protein and Worland was found to be the dominant strain of BCTV. The phytoplasma, morphotyping, and 2021 BCTV strain identifications are currently a work in progress. Once all data are collected, the project will establish the BCTV strains for which host plant resistance is needed and the best time for when control of BLH is necessary.