THE application of insecticides is often necessary in greenhouse crop production to prevent damage from insect pests that could render the plants unsalable. However, pesticide usage can lead to toxicity issues, which may adversely affect plant growth and development. It seems plausible that applications of foliar insecticides could adversely affect photosynthesis by clogging, or at least partia...

Extensive cultivation of crops genetically engineered to produce insecticidal proteins from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) has suppressed some major pests, reduced insecticide sprays, enhanced pest control by natural enemies, and increased grower profits. However, these benefits are being eroded by evolution of resistance in pests. We report a strategy for combating resistance by cro...

Parasitic nematodes infect thousands of plant species, but some plants harbor specific resistance genes that defend against these pests. Several nematode resistance genes have been cloned in plants, and most resemble other plant resistance genes. Nematode resistance is generally characterized by host plant cell death near or at the feeding site of the endoparasitic worm. The timing and localiza...

Shifts to Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in agriculture are assisted by the identification of chemical applications that provide effective control of pests relative to broad-spectrum pesticides but have fewer negative effects on natural enemy (beneficial) groups that assist in pest control. Here, we outline a framework for identifying such applications and apply this framework to field trials...

The long-term fitness of individuals is examined in complex and temporally dynamic ecosystems. We call this multigeneration fitness measure "future fitness". Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is a polyphagous insect that feeds on many wild and cultivated hosts. While four generations of H. zea occur during the cropping season in the U.S. Mid Southern agroecosysem, the latter two...

A change in climate is known to affect seasonal timing (phenology) of the life stages of poikilothermic organisms whose development depends on temperature. Less understood is the potential for even greater disruption to the life cycle when a phenology shift exposes photoperiod-sensitive life stages to new day lengths. We present a conceptual framework and model to investigate the ways that phot...

The toxicity of aqueous extracts of two plants, Nicotiana tobacum and Eucalyptus globulus were investigated against second instar larvae of Lycoriella auripila, one of the most important pests of button mushroom, using agar dilution technique. Seven concentrations of aqueous extracts of both plants were applied on second instar larvae and their mortality were evaluated after 24, 48 and 72 h. Th...

Medicinal plants are consumed worldwide for the treatment of several diseases and are important raw materials for the production of photochemical by pharmaceutical industries. The medicinal plant is susceptible to wide ranges of pests and diseases, which causes economic crop loss as well as quality of herbal products and is often treated with chemical pesticides to manage these problems. The pr...