Reduced rate of chemical plus additive - an effective IPM tool for managing mirids, Creontiades spp. in Australian cotton

M Khan¹, A Quade¹, and D Murray²

¹QDPI&F, Plant Science, Kinagroy, QLD, Australia and

²QDPI&F, Plant Science, Toowoomba, QLD, Australia

Correspondence: moazzem.khan@dpi.qld.gov.au

In Australia, problems with mirids, Creontiades spp. have increased substantially following the adoption of Bollgard II cotton and 2 to 4 insecticide sprays were required in different valleys to manage them. Unfortunately in Australia most of the registered chemicals for mirids are non-selective and are highly disruptive to a wide range of beneficial species. Use of these chemicals in early or mid season will undermine IPM approaches and potentially flare other pests such as mites, whitefly and aphids later in the season. We conducted trials using an additive, salt (NaCl), with reduced rates of fipronil (Regent) and indoxacarb (Steward) to find out if mixtures can be used as an IPM tool for managing mirids. Trials showed that salt with reduced rate insecticide increased mortality by 20 to 30 percent compared to low rate insecticide alone without reducing residual effectiveness compared with the full rates. Trials also showed that the impact of salt mixture on beneficial species was reduced substantially compared to full rate of chemicals.

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