Published in Scientific Papers. Series A. Agronomy, Vol. LXIII, Issue 1
Written by Adelina HARIZANOVA, Atanaska STOEVA, Lyubka KOLEVA-VALKOVA, Atanas SEVOV
The need for biological control of pests is increasing every day. Science is trying to minimize the use of conventional pest-control products. The aim of the current study was to examine the effect of Silicon on the population of the twospotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae Koch. on cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) cv. Gergana. The experiment was conducted in a laboratory under controlled conditions at the Department of Entomology, Agricultural University of Plovdiv, Bulgaria. Plants were infested with mites and treated with Si in form of orthosilicic acid. The results showed an effect of Si on the male/female ratio of the mite population, as well as the duration of the development of the different stages of the pest. Some biochemical parameters of the infested plants were also measured. There was an increase of the salicylic acid content and the activity of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase. The results obtained suggest that Silicon could be successfully used for reducing the population density of the two-spotted spider mites on cucumber and to improve the physiological status of the plants.
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