Articles
Control of weevils harmful to cardoon flower heads grown for agro-industrial production
Article number
1424_16
Pages
129 – 136
Language
English
Abstract
The cultivated cardoon (Cynara cardunculus L. var. altilis DC.) is a perennial plant native to the Mediterranean area.
Its edible parts, the fleshy stems, are commonly used in traditional cuisine, mainly in the preparation of salads and soup dishes.
Nowadays, cardoon has gained interest as a novel crop for bioenergy, multipurpose uses, and industrial bio-based productions.
It is a low-input crop that is well adapted to the climate of Mediterranean regions.
In several areas where cardoon cultivation for agro-industrial purposes is expanding, considerable damage from insects, particularly beetles, attributable to the genus Larinus spp., has been recorded.
Larvae of the genus Larinus feed on the seeds and flower heads of host plants, causing partial or complete destruction of the floral receptacle and/or seeds.
In Italy, the species Larinus cynarae and Larinus scolymi have been reported to infest cardoon.
With the aim of optimizing the control strategy of this phytophage, different protocols based on available active ingredients, were tested in different environments.
In 2017, in the provinces of Avellino and Naples (southern Italy), we started with the evaluation of the efficacy of insecticides, based on phosmet and dimethoate, applied in different phenophases; the first treatment was carried out at preflowering stage and the second at the end of flowering.
These active ingredients have later been revoked in Italy.
In 2020, alternative products to dimethoate and phosmet based on acetamiprid, pyrethroids such as lambda-cyhalothrin and a mixture of lambda-cyhalothrin + chlorantraniliprole, were tested in Terni (TR, central Italy) and Benevento (BN, southern Italy). Among the strategies applied in 2020, promising results were provided by the combined use of acetamiprid in mixture with lambda-cyhalothrin in pre-flowering, followed by the late-flowering treatment of lambda-cyhalothrin + chlorantraniliprole.
Its edible parts, the fleshy stems, are commonly used in traditional cuisine, mainly in the preparation of salads and soup dishes.
Nowadays, cardoon has gained interest as a novel crop for bioenergy, multipurpose uses, and industrial bio-based productions.
It is a low-input crop that is well adapted to the climate of Mediterranean regions.
In several areas where cardoon cultivation for agro-industrial purposes is expanding, considerable damage from insects, particularly beetles, attributable to the genus Larinus spp., has been recorded.
Larvae of the genus Larinus feed on the seeds and flower heads of host plants, causing partial or complete destruction of the floral receptacle and/or seeds.
In Italy, the species Larinus cynarae and Larinus scolymi have been reported to infest cardoon.
With the aim of optimizing the control strategy of this phytophage, different protocols based on available active ingredients, were tested in different environments.
In 2017, in the provinces of Avellino and Naples (southern Italy), we started with the evaluation of the efficacy of insecticides, based on phosmet and dimethoate, applied in different phenophases; the first treatment was carried out at preflowering stage and the second at the end of flowering.
These active ingredients have later been revoked in Italy.
In 2020, alternative products to dimethoate and phosmet based on acetamiprid, pyrethroids such as lambda-cyhalothrin and a mixture of lambda-cyhalothrin + chlorantraniliprole, were tested in Terni (TR, central Italy) and Benevento (BN, southern Italy). Among the strategies applied in 2020, promising results were provided by the combined use of acetamiprid in mixture with lambda-cyhalothrin in pre-flowering, followed by the late-flowering treatment of lambda-cyhalothrin + chlorantraniliprole.
Authors
T. Enotrio, M. Sicignano, M. Falce, A. Ciancolini, G.M. Baldi, L. del Piano, F. Raimo
Keywords
Cynara cardunculus L., pest control, Larinus spp
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