Small hive beetles, Aethina tumida are the most devastating insect pest of honey bee (Aphis mellifera) hives (Photo 1). Both adults and larvae of small hive beetle cause direct and indirect damages to honeybees. In case of direct damage, larvae of small hive beetle directly feed on the honeybee brood, honey. pollen and destroy honeycombs. In case of indirect damage, both adults and larvae of small hive beetle spread yeast, Kodamaea ohmeri into the colony and yeast that grows on the honeycombs causes fermentation of honey, which is not suitable for human consumption or as the food for honeybees.
Read MoreOrganic control of plant nematodes with entomopathogenic nematodes /
Plant nematodes are microscopic unsegmented roundworms (Photo 1) that cause severe damage to many plant species. A handful soil may contain several different species of plant nematodes including root-knot (Meloidogyne spp.), Sting (Belonolaimus spp.), lance (Hoplolaimus spp.), root- lesion (Pratylenchus spp.), ring (Mesocriconema spp.), stubby-root (Paratrichodorus spp.), spiral (Helicotylenchus spp.), dagger (Xiphinema spp.) and cyst (Heterodera spp.) nematodes (Photo 1). Of these nematode species, root- nematode is considered the most economically important pests of many plant species including field crops (cotton, peanut, soybean, corn etc) and vegetables (tomato, peppers, cucumbers, eggplants etc).
Read MoreOrganic control of fungus gnats with predatory mite, Stratiolaelaps scimitus /
Predatory mites, Stratiolaelaps scimitus (Hypoaspis miles) are currently used for the organic control of fungus gnats (Bradysia spp.).
Read MoreOrganic Control of Whiteflies with Beneficial Nematodes /
Whiteflies are one of the most damaging insect pests of many greenhouse and field vegetables. The beneficial nematodes like Steinernema feltiae can be used for the effective killing of whiteflies.
Read MoreEarly October is the best month to kill Japanese beetle grubs with beneficial nematodes /
Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica) are one of the most damaging insect pests of many agricultural and horticultural crops, ornamental plants and turfgrasses. Larvae of Japanese beetles are also called as grubs that mainly damage plant roots whereas their adults damage only aboveground plant parts like flowers, fruits, leaves and twigs.
Read MoreNematicidal activities of plant and bacteria based volatiles /
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with nematicidal activities are naturally occurring chemicals generally found in and easily emitted as vapors and gases from many living organisms like bacteria and fungi, and plants.
Read MoreKill fall armyworms now and stop their northward migration during spring /
The fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda is one of the most economically important pests of different plant species including corn, sorghum, forage, and turf grasses. Although fall armyworm larvae actively damage crops throughout the United States during growing season, they generally die when harsh winter begins in northern, central and eastern United States. Then question arises how they could re-infest fields and cause damage to the crops grown in these areas during spring and summer again.
Read MoreSix new beneficial entomopathogenic nematodes from South Africa /
Six newly described species including Steinernema beitlechemi, Steinernema fabii, Steinernema innovation, Steinernema jeffreyense, Steinernema sacchari and Steinernema tophus have been reported from South Africa.
Read MoreBiological control of root-knot nematodes with Trichoderma harzianum /
Plant-parasitic nematodes including root-knot nematodes are the most damaging pest of many organically grown vegetables like beans, carrots, cucumbers, eggplants, melons, okra, peas, peppers, potatoes, squash and tomatoes.
Read MoreA new species of entomopathogenic bacteria /
A new species of entomopathogenic bacteria was isolated from Steinernema aciari nematode is now called as Xenorhabdus ishibashii.
Read MoreFour beneficial nematodes from Portugal /
Four beneficial nematodes including Heterorhabditis bacteriophora, Steinernema feltiae, Steinernema intermedium and Steinernema kraussei have been reported from Portugal.
Read MoreA new beneficial nematode Steinernema sacchari from South Africa /
A new beneficial entomopathogenic nematode collected from a sugarcane field located in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa was named as Steinernema sacchari.
Read MoreA New Beneficial Nematode, Steinernema tophus from South Africa /
A new beneficial nematode identified as Steinernema tophus was collected from a vineyard located in Clanwilliam, South Africa.
Read MoreBiological control of plant parasitic nematodes /
Biological control of plant parasitic nematodes with different organisms was one of the most important topics were thoroughly discussed at the 6th International Congress of Nematology, which was recently held in Cape Town, South Africa from May 4-9, 2014.
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Prevent corn damage from western corn rootworms /
Prevent corn damage from The western corn rootworms (Diabrotica virgifera virgifera) using beneficial entomopathogenic nematodes.
Read MoreA new species of entomopathogenic Steinernema nematodes /
A new species of entomopathogenic Steinernema nematode that isolated from southwest Bohemia, Czech Republic was identified and named as Steinernema poinari sp. n. (Nematoda : Steinernematidae) using both morphological and molecular techniques (Mráček et al., 2014). This new species was recovered from soil using Galleria baiting technique described by Bedding and Akhurst (1975).
Read MoreBeneficial Steinernema carpocapsae nematodes for sod webworm control /
Beneficial Steinernema carpocapsae nematodes have a potential to control tropical sod webworm, Herpetogramma phaeopteralis, one of the most damaging pests of turfgrass. Sod worms are lepidopterous insects that cause a serious damage to turfgrasses that are grown in the athletic fields, golf courses, home lawns and recreational parks. Adult moths do not cause any type of damage to turfgrass but their larval stages feed on turfgrass and reduce its aesthetic value.
Read MoreThree beneficial nematodes for Queensland fruit fly control /
Three beneficial nematodes including Heterorhabditis bacteriophora, Steinernema carpocapsae and Steinernema feltiae have a potential to use as a biological control agents to manage populations of Queensland fruit fly, Bactrocera tryoni, which is one of the most economically important insect pest of many fruit crops.
Read MoreA new Steinernematid nematode species from India /
A new Steinernematid nematode species isolated from central part of India was named as Steinernema dharanaii sp. n. (Nematoda : Steinernematidae) by Kulkarni et al (2012) using both morphological and molecular techniques based on ITS rDNA. These researchers found that this new species was closely associated with 'glaseri-group' of Steinernema spp. but its infective juveniles (Fig. 1), males and females had distinct morphological characteristics.
Read MoreTwo beneficial entomopathogenic nematodes for cucurbit fly control /
Two beneficial entomopathogenic nematodes including Heterorhabditis bacteriophora (Fig.1) and Steinernema carpocapsae (Fig. 2) have showed a potential to control cucurbit flies, Dacus ciliatus (Kamali et al., 2013). These nematodes are considered as beneficial nematodes because they have been used as biological control agents to control insects that are damaging to crops and harmful to animals
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