Abstract
Conservation biological control involves manipulation of the environment to enhance the effectiveness of natural enemies in controlling crop pests. In this study, we combined historical data, sticky trap sampling of tomato greenhouses and beat sampling of adjacent vegetation to identify which greenhouse characteristics, habitat management practices and landscape features favour an early colonisation of tomato greenhouses by the key mirid predator Macrolophus pygmaeus and its establishment in NE Spain. Results show that landscape composition and the use of Calendula officinalis banker plants inside the greenhouse are key factors. In general, greater amounts of herbaceous semi-natural cover at the landscape scale promoted M. pygmaeus colonisation, while the use of C. officinalis banker plants encouraged M. pygmaeus colonisation independently of the landscape context. We identified host plants adjacent to tomato greenhouses that sustain M. pygmaeus populations; however, they did not have a major effect on M. pygmaeus colonisation compared to larger landscape and banker plant effects. Early colonisation of greenhouses by this predator species also translated into lower accumulated incidence of pests at the end of the sampling period. This study demonstrates the importance of active habitat management practices in promoting the early arrival of M. pygmaeus in greenhouses with delayed spontaneous colonisation.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the EU-funded projects, EUCLID (Project Number: 633999-2) and EMPHASIS (Project Number: 634179-2), the project AGL2016-77373-C2-1-R (Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness) and the CERCA Programme of the Generalitat de Catalunya. AA was partly supported by a Ramón Areces fellowship while writing this manuscript. We would like to thank the growers of the Associació de Defensa Vegetal del Baix Maresme for kindly allowing the authors to operate in their greenhouses. Big thanks to the Entomology group at IRTA Cabrils for their help and support during the development of this work.
Funding
This study was funded by EU-funded projects, EUCLID (Project Number: 633999-2) and EMPHASIS (Project Number: 634179-2), the project AGL2016-77373-C2-1-R (Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness) and the CERCA Programme of the Generalitat de Catalunya. AA was partly supported by a Ramón Areces fellowship while writing this manuscript.
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Ardanuy, A., Figueras, M., Matas, M. et al. Banker plants and landscape composition influence colonisation precocity of tomato greenhouses by mirid predators. J Pest Sci 95, 447–459 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-021-01387-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-021-01387-y