PLANT PROTECTION 1 – Pests, Diseases and Weeds

PLANT PROTECTION 1 – Pests, Diseases and Weeds
Pest cycle
Slaters have no metamorphosis, the young
resemble the adults except that they are smaller
and paler in colour. It takes about a year for the
young slaters to reach maturity. The adults live for
about 2 years and each female can produce 60 or
more young in one season, usually in 1-3 broods of
6-40 young during late winter, spring, summer and
autumn. The young are carried in a pouch beneath
the body of the female until they are ready to feed.
‘Overwintering’
All stages in sheltered places.
Spread
By crawling.
By transport of infested plants, containers, soil,
compost, wood chips, bark and other materials.
Conditions favoring
Cool, damp dark places (slaters breath through
gills).
Australia is fairly dry so there are not so many
species.
Plants damaged by other agents are susceptible
to attack.
Pillbugs are more tolerant of dry conditions than
slaters and often live in open, well-drained areas.
Activity is mostly at night on dark wet days and
warmer months in cooler parts of Australia.
Lots of organic matter, mulch, compost and
regular watering.
Management (IPM)
Limited need in this case. Are you a commercial
grower or home gardener?
1.Plan. If slaters are an ongoing problem, prepare a
control plan that fits your situation.
2.Crop, area. Locate plants or areas where control
may be required.
3.Confirm identification, locate main breeding
areas, be familiar with its life cycle, etc. Consult a
diagnostic service if necessary (page xiv).
4.Monitor pest and/or damage to indicate when peak
populations are likely to occur. Remember slaters are
nocturnal so not seen during the day. Know when,
where, what and how to monitor.
5.Thresholds only need to be determined for crops
at risk. Occasionally slaters pose an aesthetic problem
in nurseries.
6.Action/control. Slaters are a good example of
where cultural and sanitation methods are most
effective. Baits or dusts are only useful in protecting
specific plants in unusual problem situations.
7.Evaluation. Review program to see how well it
worked. Recommend improvements if required.
Control methods
Cultural methods. Reduce moisture and
increase air circulation by raising plants off the
ground.
Sanitation. This is the best control method in a
home garden situation, eg
Remove rubbish, rock piles, other hiding and
breeding places, eg piles of rotting timber,
decaying vegetable matter.
Remove decaying low fallen fruit.
Clean up old plant debris, remove old leaves.
Keep mulch away from seedlings and cuttings.
Biological control. No biological control
agents are available, though there are a range of
natural enemies, eg birds, chooks.
Physical & mechanical methods.
Slaters shelter in scraped out potatoes or orange
peel. Inspect traps daily and destroy slaters.
Insecticides.
See Table 44 below.
Table 44. Slaters – Some insecticides.
What to use?
BAITS
Group 1A, eg Baysol (methiocarb)
Others, eg Multiguard (iron-EDTA complex)
When and how to apply?
Only after damage has been confirmed in commercial
crops.
Distribute bait as directed.
SPRAYS, GRANULES, AEROSOLS
Group 1B, eg chlorpyrifos (commercial use only)
Various outdoor garden products, eg
pyrethrum/eucalyptus, cyfluthrin/pyrethrin
Insects and allied pests - Slaters (Isopoda) 213