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Insecticides, Miticides and Molluscicides Available to Florida's Strawberry Industry1
James F. Price, Curtis Nagle, Elzie McCord, Jr. and Susan E. Webb2Numerous insect and mite pests affect production and economic returns to Florida strawberry growers. Crop managers face enormous difficulties in managing these arthropods efficiently. There are only three management options once strawberries have been set in the field: (1) cultural techniques such as removing ripe fruit from the field to reduce sap beetle infestations, (2) biological techniques such as releasing Phytoseiulus persimilis Athias-Henriot predators for twospotted spider mite control, and (3) chemical techniques such as using insecticides and miticides.
Numerous chemical compounds are available to strawberry crop managers in Florida. In many cases, the selection and effective use of products is essential for the efficient management of arthropods (insects and mites) and gastropods (slugs and snails). Selected products presently available for Florida's commercial strawberry production sites are presented in Table 1 . The list includes active ingredients and their IRAC3 mode of action codes, product trade names, registrants, restricted re-entry intervals (REI) and pre-harvest intervals (PHI) that must be observed. Signal words and an indication of restricted use status or acceptability for organic production4 of each product are also given to enhance the informed selection and safe use of the pesticides. Other products containing the active ingredients presented in Table 1 may be available. Electronic versions of specimen labels can usually be accessed by a search at the Web sites of CDMS (http://www.cdms.net/ manuf/default.asp ), C&P Press (http://www. greenbook.net/ ) or the affiliated manufacturer. This information is provided in order to increase profitability of strawberry production and enhance the safe and environmentally sound use of the pesticides now available.
The product label communicates the lawful use of the product and must be read, understood and followed. The label contains important limitations that are not be presented in Table 1 , such as dosages and restrictions on numbers of applications. When using a pesticide for the first time, it is important to apply the product first to a small portion of the crop and wait to observe possible detrimental effects, such as leaf distortion and plant stunting.
Table 1. Pesticides available in Florida to control insects, mites, snails and slugs on strawberry.
Footnotes
1. This document is ENY-657 (IN400), one of a series of the Entomology & Nematology Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Published: October 2001. Revised: October 2007. For more publications related to horticulture/agriculture, please visit the EDIS Website at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/.2. James F. Price, associate professor, Curtis Nagle, biologist, Entomology and Nematology Department, Gulf Coast Research and Education Center, Wimauma, 33598; Elzie McCord, Jr., associate professor of biology, Division of Natural Sciences, New College of Florida, Sarasota, 34243; and Susan E. Webb, associate professor, Entomology and Nematology Department, Cooperative Extension Service, Insititute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611.
3. Insecticide Resistance Action Committee (IRAC) mode of action codes are from the IRAC Mode of Action Classification version 5.3 available at http://www.irac-online.org/.
4. Products approved for use in organic production by the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI). Restrictions and additional information can be found at
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The use of trade names in this publication is solely for the purpose of providing specific information. UF/IFAS does not guarantee or warranty the products named, and references to them in this publication does not signify our approval to the exclusion of other products of suitable composition. All chemicals should be used in accordance with directions on the manufacturer's label. Use pesticides safely. Read and follow directions on the manufacturer's label.
The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Larry Arrington, Dean.
Copyright Information
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