title: Effect of vermicompost and cucumber cultivar on population growth attributes of the melon aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae).
abstract: Worldwide, the developing industry of cucumbers (Cucumis sativus L.) grown in greenhouses is threatened by damage from sucking pests, especially aphids. Among these, the melon aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover (Hemiptera: Aphididae), is the most serious. We tested the effect of two cucumber cultivars ('Royal' and'Storm') and three vermicompost concentrations (0 [control], 20, and 30%) in field soil on the development and fecundity rates of A. gossypii, by using a randomized complete block design with four replicates as a factorial experiment. The developmental times of nymphs reared on plants grown into the three vermicompost concentrations ranged from 5.5 (0%) to 8.7 (30%) d (on Storm) and from 4.3 (0%) to 7 (30%) d (on Royal). The developmental time of melon aphid's nymphs was greatest on plants grown in the culture medium with 30% vermicompost rate and least on plants reared in the soil without vermicompost. The intrinsic rate of natural increase (r,,) of A. gossypii ranged from 0.204 d(-1) on plants grown in the soil amended with 30% vermicompost rate (on Storm seedlings) to 0.458 d(-1) on plants grown in the soil without vermicompost (on Royal seedlings). Accordingly, our findings confirm that a combination of a low level of vermicompost and a partially resistant cucumber cultivar might play an important role in managing this aphid on cucumbers in greenhouses.
authors: Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran. razmjou@uma.ac.ir
authors: J
authors: J
authors: Razmjou
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Mohammadi
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Hassanpour
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001042:Aphids / Q000254:growth & development*; D018553:Cucumis sativus / Q000145:classification / Q000469:parasitology*; D005298:Fertility; D008136:Longevity; D011158:Population Growth; D011897:Random Allocation; D012987:Soil
chemical_list: D012987:Soil