*Corresponding author: dorys.chirinos@utm.edu.ec

Carlos J. García-Vélez

Dorys T. Chirinos

Jesús A. Centeno-Parrales

Luis A. Cedeño

Darlinton Pin

Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2023, 40(1): e234010

ISSN 2477-9407

DOI: https://doi.org/10.47280/RevFacAgron(LUZ).v40.n1.10

Crop Production

Associate editor: Professor Juan Vergara-Lopez

University of Zulia, Faculty of Agronomy

Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela

Keywords:

Azadirachtin

Ecuador

Lambda-cyhalothrin

Thiamethoxam

Eect of a synthetic insecticide and a botanical on pests, natural enemies and melon productivity

Efecto de un insecticida sintético y un botánico sobre plagas, enemigos naturales y productividad

del melón

Efeito de um inseticida sintético e um botânico sobre pragas, inimigos naturais e produtividade do

melão

Universidad Técnica de Manabí, Instituto de Posgrado,

Portoviejo, Código Postal 130150, Manabí, Ecuador.

Universidad Técnica de Manabí, Facultad de Ingeniería

Agronómica, Portoviejo, Código Postal 130150, Manabí,

Ecuador.

Received: 16-11-2022

Accepted: 21-02-2023

Published: 08-03-2023

Abstract

Melon is attacked by pests such as the whitey, Bemisia tabaci

(Gennadius), the cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover, the ower thrips,

Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) as well as Diaphania worms that

can aect yield and crop productivity. To control it, frequent spraying of

organo-synthetic insecticides is carried out, which can generate ecological

imbalances. During two productive cycles, experimental plots were

established to test the eect of an organo-synthetic insecticide and a

botanical one on some pests, a natural enemy and on melon productivity. The

treatments tested were, 1. Organo-synthetic insecticide: lambda-cyhalothrin

+ thiamethoxam. 2. Botanical insecticide: azadirachtin. 3. Untreated plot.

The populations of A. gossypii, B. tabaci, F. occidentalis, percentage of

fruits damaged by Diaphania spp. (% FDD), and the eect on parasitism

in B. tabaci (% PBT), as well as on yield (t.ha

-1

) and crop productivity. The

% FDD, the populations of A. gossypii and F. occidentalis did not show

dierences between treatments. The yields were higher in plots treated with

azadirachtin, where there were lower populations of B. tabaci and higher

% PBT. Productivity presented a negative correlation with the populations

of B. tabaci. Despite the control exerted by azadirachtin on B. tabaci, there

was a decrease in productivity, which added to the damage of Diaphania

spp. suggest the importance of these pests and for their management other

alternatives should be tested that reduce populations to levels that do not

aect yield and at the same time guarantee sustainable production.

This scientic publication in digital format is a continuation of the Printed Review: Legal Deposit pp 196802ZU42, ISSN 0378-7818.

Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2023, 40(1): e234010. Enero-Marzo. ISSN 2477-9408.2-7 |

Resumen

El melón es atacado por plagas, como, la mosca blanca, Bemisia

tabaci (Gennadius), el pulgón del algodón, Aphis gossypii Glover,

el trips de las ores, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) así como

gusanos del género Diaphania que pueden afectar el rendimiento

y productividad del cultivo. Para su control se realizan frecuentes

aspersiones de insecticidas órgano-sintéticos, que pueden generar

desequilibrios ecológicos. Durante dos ciclos productivos, se

establecieron lotes experimentales para testar el efecto de un

insecticida órgano-sintético y un botánico sobre plagas, un enemigo

natural y sobre la productividad del melón. Los tratamientos fueron:

1. Insecticida órgano-sintético: lambda-cihalotrina + tiametoxam.

2. Insecticida botánico: azadiractina. 3. Parcela no tratada. Se

evaluaron las poblaciones de A. gossypii, B. tabaci, F. occidentalis,

frutos dañados por Diaphania spp. (% FDD), y el efecto sobre el

parasitismo en B. tabaci (% PBT), así como sobre el rendimiento y

la productividad del cultivo. Las poblaciones de A. gossypii, de F.

occidentalis y el % FDD no mostraron diferencias entre tratamientos.

Los rendimientos fueron superiores en parcelas tratadas con

azadiractina, donde ocurrieron las menores poblaciones de B. tabaci

y los mayores % PBT. La productividad presentó una correlación

negativa con las poblacionales de B. tabaci. A pesar del control

ejercido por azadiractina sobre B. tabaci, hubo disminución de la

productividad, lo que aunado a los daños de Diaphania spp. sugieren

la importancia de estas plagas y para su manejo deben probarse otras

alternativas que disminuyan las poblaciones a niveles que no afecten

el rendimiento y a la vez garantizar una producción sostenible.

Palabras clave: azadiractina, Ecuador, lambda-cialotrina,

tiametoxam.

Resumo

O melão é atacado por pragas como a mosca branca, Bemisia

tabaci (Gennadius), pulgão do algodão, Aphis gossypii Glover, tripes

das ores, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande), bem como vermes

Diaphania que podem afetar o rendimento e a produtividade das

culturas. Para controlá-la, são realizadas pulverizações frequentes

de inseticidas organossintéticos, o que pode gerar desequilíbrios

ecológicos. Durante dois ciclos produtivos, foram estabelecidos

lotes experimentais em blocos ao acaso para testar o efeito de

um inseticida organossintético e um botânico sobre algumas

pragas, o rendimento e a produtividade do melão. Os tratamentos

testados foram: 1. Inseticida organo-sintético: lambda-cialotrina

+ tiametoxam. 2. Inseticida botânico: azadiractina. 3. Parcela não

tratada. As densidades populacionais de A. gossypii, B. tabaci, F.

occidentalis, porcentagem de parasitismo em B. tabaci (% PBT),

porcentagem de frutos danicados por Diaphania spp. (% FDD),

rendimento (t.ha

-1

) e produtividade da cultura. As populações de A.

gossypii, de F. occidentalis e o % FDD não apresentaram diferenças

entre os tratamentos. As ninfas de B. tabaci foram signicativamente

menores nas parcelas tratadas com azadiractina. A % PBT exercida

por Encarsia nigricephala (Dozier) (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) foi

afetada pelas pulverizações L+T. Os rendimentos foram menores

nas parcelas tratadas com L+T, tratamento em que as ninfas de B.

tabaci atingiram os maiores níveis. A produtividade apresentou

correlação negativa com as densidades populacionais de B. tabaci,

podendo diminuir para menos de 90% a partir de quatro ninfas.

folha

-1

. Bemisia tabaci e Diaphania spp. Eram pragas importantes e

outras alternativas devem ser testadas para seu manejo, garantindo

uma produção sustentável.

Palavras-chave: azadiractina, Equador, lambda-cialotrina,

thiamethoxam.

Introduction

Melon, Cucumis melo L., belongs to the family Cucurbitaceae

which includes herbaceous, annual and perennial plants with creeping

and climbing stems (Wan et al., 2020). Its origin is attributed to tropical

Africa and it is currently planted worldwide, mainly in tropical and

subtropical regions, but also in temperate climates as protected crops

(Abraham-Juarez et al., 2018; Kesh and Kaushik, 2021). Cantaloupe

melon is one of the most demanded melons due to its sweet taste,

juicy consistency, as well as for its nutritional value and probable

health benets (Bianchi et al., 2016; Rolnik and Olas, 2020).

FAO (2022) indicated that in 2020, 1,068,238 ha of melon were

harvested worldwide, with a production of 28,467,920 t, while 17,928

t were obtained in Ecuador from 1,669 ha. Gabriel-Ortega et al.

(2021) mentioned that, in that country, melon planting has increased

considerably, becoming the second most produced cucurbit. On the

Ecuadorian coast, 924 ha are planted (55.4 % of the national total),

reaching a production of 7,549 t, mainly for domestic consumption

and approximately 1 % is exported to the European market (Gabriel-

Ortega et al., 2021). Melon production can be limited by nutrition

problems, as well as diseases and pests (Abraham-Juarez et al.,

2018). According to melon producers in some Ecuadorian provinces,

the main insect pests are, whitey (Bemisia tabaci Gennadius)

(Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), cotton aphid (Aphis gossypii Glover)

(Hemiptera: Aphididae), as well as bollworms of the genus Diaphania

(Lepidoptera: Crambidae) (Chirinos et al., 2020).

These pests are controlled by frequent spraying of organo-

synthetic pesticides (Valarezo et al., 2008; Chirinos et al., 2020)

because their use is considered the most accepted and eective control

for agricultural pest damage reduction (Perez-Olvera et al., 2011). In

some Ecuadorian provinces growing cucurbits, two to three weekly

organo-synthetic insecticide sprays have been carried out (Chirinos

et al., 2020). However, the indiscriminate use of synthetic pesticides

has caused devastating attacks by some pests, which is attributed to

both the emergence of resistance mechanisms in pests and ecological

imbalances (Karuppuchamy and Venugopal, 2016).

To reduce the frequent use of organo-synthetic pesticides, other

strategies have been considered, including the selective use of organo-

synthetic pesticides according to crop phenology, as well as the use

of aqueous extracts and oils derived from the neem tree (Azadirachta

indica Juss.) (Valarezo et al., 2008). Since the main pests of melon are

sucking pests (whiteies, aphids, thrips), as well as Lepidoptera larvae

(Diaphania spp.), one of the insecticides used in this crop consists

of a mixture of lambda-cyhalothrin + thiamethoxam, since lambda-

cyhalothrin is eective for the control of boreworms (Mohapatra et al.,

2021), and thiamethoxam is a neonicotinoid eective against sucking

insects (Kurwadkar et al., 2013). On the other hand, azadirachtin

as a botanical insecticide has a broad spectrum of action being able

to control both types of pests, but with less environmental impact

compared to chemical pesticides of synthetic origin (Fernandes et al.,

2019).

Then, evaluating the eect of a smaller number of sprays of these

insecticides, organo-synthetic and botanical against sucking pests

This scientic publication in digital format is a continuation of the Printed Review: Legal Deposit pp 196802ZU42, ISSN 0378-7818.

García-Vélez et al. Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2023 40(1): e2340103-7 |

and perforating worms, if eective could be used as alternatives

to the high use of pesticides. Based on the above, the objective of

this research was to evaluate the eect of applications of an organo-

synthetic insecticide and a botanical insecticide on some pests, a

natural enemy and on melon crop productivity.

Materials and methods

The study was carried out during two production cycles,

September - November, in the years 2020 and 2021 at the campus

“La Teodomira”, Lodana, Manabí (coordinates 01° 09’ 51” S and 80°

23’ 24” W, 60 m above sea level), whose life zone corresponds to a

tropical dry forest. To initiate the research, a 1000 m

(50 x 20 m) plot

of Cantaloupe melon variety Maximo

F1 hybrid was planted in each

cycle, designed in randomized complete blocks with four replications

and three treatments. Among the agronomic tasks, three fertilizations

were made, 11, 22 and 40 days after transplanting at a dose of 60

kg.ha

-1

. The rst fertilization was carried out with nitrogen (40 %)

and phosphorus (90 %), while in the second one potassium (60 %)

was applied and in the last one nitrogen (60 %) and phosphorus (10

%) were applied again. Irrigation was carried out twice a week for 30

minutes through a drip system with 0.02 mm drippers placed at 40 cm

(according to the distance between plants) with a capacity of 3 L.h

-1

In the plot, each treatment and replicate were 3 m apart. The

experimental plot measured approximately 30 m

and consisted of

six rows of approximately 3 m long, separated by 2 m distance. The

treatments included were: 1. organo-synthetic insecticide: lambda-

cyhalothrin + thiamethoxam (L+T) mixture [141 g.L

-1

+ 106 g.L

-1

active ingredient (a.i.)] (dose: 300 mL.ha

-1

). 2. Botanical insecticide:

azadirachtin (4 g.L

-1

a.i.), (dose: 400 mL.ha

-1

). 3. Untreated plot.

A total of six sprays were made, which began one week after

germination and were applied at weekly intervals for six weeks.

Insecticide applications were made in the morning using a 20 L hand-

held sprayer.

Leaf sampling for sucking pests began one week after germination

and was carried out prior to each spray in the four central rows of the

experimental plot to avoid edge eects between treatments, totaling

ten samplings in each cycle. Five leaves were randomly selected (two

young and three of the middle layer) per plot (20 for each treatment)

on which the number of live and parasitized nymphs of B. tabaci,

nymphs and adults of A. gossypii and the ower thrips, Frankliniella

occidentalis (Pergande) (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), were counted

once a week. A Carl Zeiss

stereoscope with a magnication range of

18-40 X was used for this purpose. The number of parasitized nymphs

and the number of live nymphs of B. tabaci were used to calculate the

percentage of parasitism:

% Parasitism x 100

The parasitoid of B. tabaci was identied using the characteristics

indicated by Polaszek et al. (1992). Damage by Diaphania hyalinata

L. and Diaphania nitidalis Stoll. on fruit was also estimated. For

this purpose, during the last three weeks of the trial, ve fruits were

randomly selected from the two central rows per experimental plot to

determine the number of perforated fruits and estimate the percentage

of damage:

% of damage

The number of individuals of each Diaphania species was

counted in the damaged fruits and the percentage of damaged fruits

per species was calculated:

In addition, during those three weeks, all the fruits of each

experimental plot were counted and weighed with a balance,

thus obtaining the yield for the four experimental plots (120 m

)

per treatment. Yields were then estimated in tons per ha for each

treatment. To relate the population densities of insect pests to yield,

the productivity percentage (% Productivity) of the melon crop was

calculated with the formula descrited for Moura et al. (2018):

% Productivity

The potential yield of the Cantaloupe hybrid Maximo variety,

according to its technical data sheet, is 50 t.ha

-1

Data analysis

The population densities of pests, parasitism and damage were

subjected to normality tests, and some transformations were used,

among these, √x+1, log(x), and did not follow a normal distribution.

Because of this, they were analyzed and compared with the Kruskal-

Wallis nonparametric H-test (P<0.05). Yield was analyzed by ANOVA

and mean comparisons were performed with Tukey’s test (P<0.05).

A Spearman correlation analysis (P<0.05) was performed between

productivity and population densities of A. gossypii, B. tabaci and

F. occidentallis. With the pest that was detected the highest and

signicant negative correlation (P<0.05), an exponential regression

analysis was run between pest population densities (X axis) and

Productivity (Y axis), following what was done in other research

(Moura et al., 2018, Costa et al., 2019). The analyses were performed

with the statistical program Infostat (Di Rienzo et al., 2019).

Results and discussion

Aphis gossypii and Frankliniella occidentalis

The Kruskal-Wallis H-test detected no dierences when comparing

the number of A. gossypii individuals, whose densities varied from 1.8

to 3.8 aphids.leaf

-1

(table 1). Experiments carried out to establish the

eectiveness in the control of A. gossypii showed dierences in the

levels of control according to the insecticides sprayed. The number

of A. gossypii individuals ranged from 3.17 and 47.38 aphids.leaf

-1

untreated plots of yellow melon in a eld trial (Bomm et al. 2015).

In that experiment, populations declined to zero individuals, seven

days post-application of a commercial formulation of thiamethoxam

at all doses evaluated (Bomm et al., 2015). Populations of A.

gossypii decreased from 81.3 to 10.6 individuals.leaf

-1

at 336 hours

post-application in plots sprayed with azadirachtin on a hydroponic

cucumber (Saleem et al., 2019). In a eld experiment conducted

on cotton, A. gossypii populations failed to be controlled with L+T

observing maximum levels of 63 individuals.leaf

-1

(Zambrano et al.,

2021).

Number of damaged fruit by species

% damaged fruit by

Diaphania species

x 100

Total damaged fruit

Damaged fruit

Total damaged fruit

x 100

Parasitized nymphs

Parasitized nymphs+live nymphs

Crop yield in the eld t.h

-1

Potencial crop yield

x 100

This scientic publication in digital format is a continuation of the Printed Review: Legal Deposit pp 196802ZU42, ISSN 0378-7818.

Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2023, 40(1): e234010. Enero-Marzo. ISSN 2477-9408.4-7 |

Table 1. Overall average number of individuals of Frankliniella

occidentalis and Aphis gossypii on melon leaves under

the treatments in the evaluated cycles.

Treatments Cicle F. occidentalis A. gossypii

Thiamethoxam +

Lambda cyhalothrin

1 13.9 ± 2.2 2.1 ± 0.8

2 24.6 ± 4.6 1.8 ± 0.4

Azaridachtin

1 10.3 ± 3.6 2.2 ± 1.2

2 22.5 ± 5.4 3.8 ± 0.5

Control

1 12.7 ± 5.1 3.8 ± 1.4

2 22.7 ± 5.3 3.2 ± 1.2

Means ± standard error. Comparisons of means performed with the Kruskal-

Wallis H-test (P<0.05). No signicant dierences between treatments.

In the case of F. occidentalis, the number of thrips ranged from

10.3 to 24.6 individuals.leaf

-1

with no signicant dierences between

treatments (table 1). These populations could be considered high

if compared with damage thresholds of 0.36 thrips.leaf

-1

estimated

for Frankliniella schultzei Trybom (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) in

commercial melon elds in the region of Formoso do Araguaia,

Tocantins state, Brazil (Diamantino et al., 2021).

These results dier from what was found in a eld trial

conducted on cotton in Anand, India that evaluated the

eectiveness of L+T on the yellow thrips, Scirtothrips dorsalis

Hood (Thysanoptera: Thripidae); in which populations were

reduced to 2.29 individuals.leaf

-1

in treated plots, compared to

the control that reached 10.99 individuals.leaf

-1

(Padaliya et al.,

2018). Golmohammadi and Mohammadipour (2015) detected F.

occidentalis populations of approximately 19 thrips.ower

-1

plots sprayed with azadirachtin in an investigation conducted on

strawberries grown under greenhouse conditions. The researchers

concluded that the botanical insecticide was acceptably eective.

Bemisia tabaci

The number of B. tabaci nymphs followed a similar trend in

the two cycles. During the rst two weeks, populations remained

close to zero in the experimental plots (gure 1). After the third

week, populations began to increase depending on the treatment

applied. In plots treated with the L+T mixture, B. tabaci reached

peaks of 198 and 229 nymphs.leaf

-1

for the rst and second cycle,

respectively. In untreated plots, maximum population levels ranged

from 156 nymphs.leaf

-1

to 81 nymphs.leaf

-1

between the rst and

second cycle, while plots sprayed with azadirachtin exhibited the

lowest populations (peaks of 65 and 52 nymphs.leaf

-1

, for the rst

and second cycle, respectively) (gure 1), diering statistically

from the L+T-based treatment (gure 1, P<0.05).

The observed B. tabaci populations show similarities and

dierences with those found in research on this and other crops.

Bleicher et al. (2007) evaluated several doses of A. indica leaf

and seed extracts and detected B. tabaci populations that ranged

from 0.16 to 2.46 nymphs per 2.8 cm

leaf disk, attributing to

these botanical formulations a high eciency in the control of this

phytophagous. Carvalho et al. (2015) observed low populations of

B. tabaci due to the high mortality caused (<90%) by azadirachtin-

based nanoformulations on greenhouse-grown tomato plants. In

a eld experiment on melon conducted in Lodana, Ecuador, B.

tabaci populations ranging from 200 to 370 nymphs.cm

-1

were

detected in plots treated with azadirachtin-based aqueous extracts

demonstrating the ineectiveness of the extract (Navarrete et al.

2017).

Figure 1. Number of Bemisia tabaci nymphs. Comparisons of

means using the Kruskal-Wallis H-test (P<0.05).

Means with equal letters in each cycle do not dier

signicantly. Arrows indicate dates of spraying.

Flores-Alaña et al. (2015) in research conducted with tomato

grown in cage-umbraculum, observed that applications of

azadirachtin did not reduce B. tabaci populations that reached up

to 57 nymphs in a leaf area of 1.67 cm

. A eld trial conducted

by Lasheen et al. (2020) on pumpkin, for the control of B. tabaci,

showed that in plots treated with thiamethoxam and lambda-

cyhalothrin there was the greatest reduction in population densities

of the pest, for the 2017-2018 production cycles. Firmino et al.

(2021) observed up to 234 nymphs.leaf

-1

in experimental soybean

plots treated with L+T showing its ineectiveness in control.

Parasitism was lower in plots treated with L+T (table 2, P<0.05),

suggesting that pesticide sprays aected the biological control

exerted by parasitoids. Although organo-synthetic insecticides

such as pyrethroids and neonicotinoids represent widely used

alternatives for the control of B. tabaci, their frequent use could

generate resistance, as well as suppression of natural enemies

(Oliviera 2001, Abubakar et al., 2022). On the other hand, the low

negative eect of azadirachtin on B. tabaci parasitoids has been

reported (Gigo et al., 2021).

Encarsia nigricephala (Dozier) (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae)

was the parasitoid species detected in this study. It is an

endoparasitoid that oviposits on second instar nymphs of aleyrodids

(Cardona et al., 2005), whose diagnostic characters coincided

This scientic publication in digital format is a continuation of the Printed Review: Legal Deposit pp 196802ZU42, ISSN 0378-7818.

García-Vélez et al. Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2023 40(1): e2340105-7 |

with those referred by Polaszek et al. (1992) for this species. This

parasitoid was reported for Ecuador in the 1990s parasitizing nymphs

of B. tabaci on asthma weed plants, Euphorbia hirta L. in Quevedo,

Los Ríos province (Evans and Polaszek, 1998). It was later mentioned

parasitizing whitey species collected on cucurbits, fabaceae and

solanaceae in an inventory carried out in several provinces of the

Ecuadorian highlands and coast (Valarezo et al., 2008).

Yield, productivity and population densities

In the plots treated with azadirachtin, higher yields were obtained,

as well as higher weights and numbers of fruits in both cycles,

diering from those obtained in the plots treated with L+T (table 3),

which coincides with the lower populations of B. tabaci (Figure 1). In

addition, in the second cycle, no signicant dierences were observed

between plots treated with azadirachtin and those untreated (table 3).

Table 3. Estimated yield (t.ha

-1

) for the dierent treatments in the

evaluated cycles.

Variable Cycle

Thiamethoxam

+ Lambda

cyhalothrin

Azaridachtin

Untreated

plot

Fruit weight (g)

1 948 960 950

2 920 969 954

Fruits.120 m

-2

1 340 385 366

2 325 457 397

t.ha

-1

1 26.86

31.09

28.98

2 24.92

36.56

31.56

Means with the same letter in the line did not dier signicantly. Comparisons of

means performed with Tukey’s test (P<0.05).

Spearman’s correlation analysis showed a negative and highly

signicant association between productivity and B. tabaci nymph

densities, but did not detect a correlation between productivity and

population densities of A. gossypii and F. occidentallis (table 4). This

would indicate that, in part, crop productivity could be a function of

B. tabaci population densities.

Table 2. Percentage of parasitism by Encarsia nigricephala in the

evaluated cycles.

Treatments

% P a r a s i t i s m

Cycle 1

% P a r a s i t i s m

Cycle 2

Thiamethoxam + Lambda

cyhalothrin

10.8

7.9

Azaridachtin 55.1

41.6

Control 56.7

45.5

Comparisons of means were performed with the Kruskal-Wallis H-test (P<0.05).

Means with equal letters in each cycle do not dier signicantly.

Table 4. Spearman correlation analysis (P<0.05) between

productivity and populations of three melon sucking

insect pests.

Aphis gossypii

Bemisia

tabaci

Frankliniella

occidentallis

% Productivity r: -0.67 r: -0.89 r: 0.14

P-value: 0.14 P-value: 0.05 P-value: 0.85

Regression analysis between B. tabaci (X-axis) and productivity

(Y-axis) suggests that productivity decreases as B. tabaci nymph

densities increase, which is corroborated by the high and signicant

value of the calculated exponential equation. Figure 2 shows that

at 20 nymphs.leaf

-1

, productivity drops to 80 % of crop potential.

Furthermore, with four nymphs.leaf

-1

, productivity reaches 88

% of its potential. Espinel et al. (2008) established a threshold of

three nymphs.leaf

-1

, due to the severe damage caused by this stage

of development. Based on B. tabaci adults collected in commercial

melon elds, Costa et al. (2019) estimated that 11 adults feeding

on leaves at the reproductive stage could drastically decrease crop

productivity, decreasing to 45 % of its potential. In the present

investigation, average yields were decreased in a range from 49.8

% (L+T-treated plots) to 73.1 % (azadirachtin-treated plots), which

coincided with those plots where higher and lower densities of B.

tabaci nymphs were observed, respectively.

Figure 2. Average population densities of Bemisia tabaci nymphs

(X axis) and productivity (Y axis).

Fruits damaged by Diaphania spp.

D. nitidalis was found in 88.8 % of the drilled fruits, and in the

rest D. hyalinata (11.2 %), dierences are due to feeding habits;

while D. hyalinata feeds on the foliage and occasionally attacks the

fruit, D. nitidalis is a fruit boring worm exclusively in the cucurbit

family (Everatt et al., 2015). The percentage of damaged fruit showed

no dierences among treatments (table 5). In plots sprayed with

L+T, damage ranged from 3.5 to 4.8 % while in plots treated with

azadirachtin it reached percentages ranging from 7.7 to 8.8 % (table 5).

This scientic publication in digital format is a continuation of the Printed Review: Legal Deposit pp 196802ZU42, ISSN 0378-7818.

Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2023, 40(1): e234010. Enero-Marzo. ISSN 2477-9408.6-7 |

Table 5. Damaged fruit (%) by Diaphania spp. in the dierent

treatments.

%Fruits Damaged

Treatments Cycle 1 Cycle 2

Thiamethoxam +

Lambda cyhalothrin

3.5 4.8

Azaridachtin 7.7 8.8

Untreated plot 13.9 8.2

Azadirachtin applications failed to reduce the damage caused by

Diaphania indica (Saunders) on bitter gourd (Momordica charantia

L.) reaching up to 16.57 % of damaged fruits (Nagaraju et al., 2018)

which is like what was obtained in this research. Field trials evaluating

various insecticide treatments conducted during the 2009 and 2010

production cycles of gherkin (Cucumis anguria L.) showed 16.8 and

17.7 % damaged fruits, respectively, when lambda-cyhalothrin was

applied which was lower than approximately 36 % fruit damage in

untreated plots (Balikai and Mallapur, 2017).

Conclusions

During the evaluated production cycles, the lowest populations of

B. tabaci were observed in plots treated with azadirachtin. Encarsia

nigricephala was the parasitoid species detected attacking B. tabaci

nymphs whose parasitism percentages were decreased with the use of

lambda-cyhalothrin + thiamethoxan.

The treatments applied showed no dierences in the reduction of

Diaphania spp. damage, as well as aphid and thrips populations in

the melon crop. Yields were signicantly higher in plots treated with

azaridactin, associated with lower populations of B. tabaci. Despite

the control exerted by azadirachtin on B. tabaci, there was a decrease

in productivity, which together with the damage caused by Diaphania

spp. suggests the importance of these pests, and other alternatives for

their management should be tested to reduce populations to levels

that do not aect yields and at the same time guarantee sustainable

production.

Literature cited

Abubakar, M., Koul, B., Chandrashekar, K., Raut, A., & Yadav, D. (2022).

Whitey (Bemisia tabaci) Management (WFM) Strategies for Sustainable

Agriculture: A Review. Agriculture, 12(9), 1317. https://doi.org/10.3390/

agriculture12091317

Abraham-Juárez, M. R., Espitia-Vázquez, I., Guzmán-Mendoza, R., Olalde-

Portugal, V., Ruiz-Aguilar, G. M. L., García-Hernández, J. L.,

Herrera-Isidrón, L., & Núñez-Palenius, H. G. (2018). Development,

yield, and quality of melon fruit (Cucumis melo L.) inoculated with

mexican native strains of Bacillus subtilis (Ehrenberg). Agrociencia,

52(1), 92–102. https://www.scielo.org.mx/scielo.php?pid=S1405-

31952018000100091&script=sci_arttext&tlng=en

Balikai, R. A., & Mallapur, C. P. (2017). Bio-ecacy of ubendiamide 480 SC

(Fame 480 SC) against fruit borer in Gherkin. International Journal of

Horticulture, 7(28), 250–261. https://doi.org/10.5376/ijh.2017.07.0028

Bianchi, T., Guerrero, L., Gratacós-Cubarsí, M., Claret, A., Argyris, J., Garcia-Mas,

J., & Hortós, M. (2016). Textural properties of dierent melon (Cucumis

melo L.) fruit types: Sensory and physical-chemical evaluation. Scientia

Horticulturae, 201, 46–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2016.01.028

Bleicher, E., Gonçalves, M. E. de C., & Silva, L. D. da. (2007). Efeito de derivados

de nim aplicados por pulverização sobre a mosca-branca em meloeiro.

Horticultura Brasileira, 25(1), 110–113. https://doi.org/10.1590/s0102-

05362007000100022

Bomm, G. V. do, Azevedo, B. M. de, Viana, T. V. de A., Manzano, J., &

Vasconcelos, D. V. (2015). Methods of application and dosages of

insecticides for Aphis gossypii (Glover) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in the

yellow melon. Revista Ciência Agronômica, 46(3), 488–496. https://doi.

org/10.5935/1806-6690.20150030

Cardona, C., Rodriguez, I. V., Bueno, J. M., & Tapia, X. (2005). Biología y manejo

de la mosca blanca Trialeurodes vaporariorum en habichuela y fríjol

césar. CIAT.

Carvalho, S. S., Vendramim, J. D., De Sá, I. C. G., Da Silva, M. F. D. G. F.,

Ribeiro, L. D. P., & Forim, M. R. (2015). Efeito inseticida sistêmico

de nanoformulações à base de nim sobre Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera:

Aleyrodidae) biótipo B em tomateiro. Bragantia, 74(3), 298–306. https://

doi.org/10.1590/1678-4499.0404

Chirinos, D. T., Castro, R., Cun, J., Castro, J., Peñarrieta Bravo, S., Solis, L., &

Geraud-Pouey, F. (2020). Los insecticidas y el control de plagas agrícolas:

la magnitud de su uso en cultivos de algunas provincias de Ecuador.

Revista Ciencia & Tecnología Agropecuaria, 21(1), 1–16. https://doi.

org/10.21930/rcta.vol21_num1_art:1276

Costa, T. L., Sarmento, R. A., Araújo, T. A. d., Pereira, P. S., Silva, R. S., Lopes,

M. C., & Picanço, M. C. (2019). Economic injury levels and sequential

sampling plans for Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) biotype B

on open-eld melon crops. Crop Protection, 125, 104887. https://doi.

org/10.1016/j.cropro.2019.104887

De Moura, M. F., Lopes, M. C., Pereira, R. R., Parish, J. B., Chediak, M., Arcanjo,

P. L., Carmo, D. G., & Picanço, M. C. (2018). Sequential sampling plans

and economic injury levels for Empoasca kraemeri on common bean

crops at dierent technological level. Pest Management Science, 74(2),

398–405. https://doi.org/10.1002/ps.4720

Diamantino, M. L., Ramos, R. S., de Almeida Sarmento, R., Pereira, P. S., &

Picanço, M. C. (2021). Decision-making system for the management

of Frankliniella schultzei thrips in commercial melon elds. Crop

Protection, 105346. doi:10.1016/j.cropro.2020.105346

Di Rienzo, J. A., Casanoves, F., Balzarini, M. G., Gonzalez, L., Tablada, M., &

Robledo, C. W. (2019). InfoStat versión 2019. Centro de Transferencia

InfoStat, FCA. http://www.infostat.com.ar

Espinel, C., Lozano, M. D., Villamizar, L., Grijalba, E., & Cotes, A. M. (2008).

Estrategia MIP para el control de Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae)

en melón y tomate. Revista Colombiana de Entomologia, 34(2), 163–168.

https://doi.org/10.25100/socolen.v34i2.9281

Evans, G.A. & Polaszek, A. 1998. The Encarsia cubensis species-group

(Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae). Proceedings of the Entomological Society

of Washington, 100(2), 222-233.

Everatt, M., Korycinska, A., & Malumphy, C. (2015). Cucurbit moths Diaphania

species.https://planthealthportal.defra.gov.uk/assets/factsheets/

diaphania-indica-nitidalis-hyalinata.pdf 23.06.2022

FAO. (2022). Food and agriculture data. Datos Sobre Alimentación y Agricultura.

http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QC

Fernandes, S. R., Barreiros, L., Oliveira, R. F., Cruz, A., Prudêncio, C., Oliveira, A.

I., Pinhoa, C., Santos, N. & Morgado, J. (2019). Chemistry, bioactivities,

extraction and analysis of azadirachtin: State-of-the-art. Fitoterapia,

134, 141-150. https://recipp.ipp.pt/bitstream/10400.22/13849/1/ART_

SaraFernandes_2019.pdf

Firmino, J. L., Martins, G. L. M., & Tomquelski, G. V. (2021). Eciência de

inseticidas no controle de Bemisia tabaci Biótipo B na cultura da soja

na região dos Chapadões. Ciências Multidisciplinares, 1(1), 46–58.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352767267_Eficiencia_de_

inseticidas_no_controle_de_Bemisia_tabaci_Biotipo_B_na_cultura_da_

soja_na_regiao_dos_Chapadoes

Flores-Alaña, L., Geraud-Pouey, F., Chirinos, D. T., & Meléndez-Ramírez, L.

(2015). Efectividad de algunos insecticidas para el control de Bemisia

tabaci (Gennadius) en tomate, Solanum lycopersicum L. Interciencia,

40(2), 121–126. https://www.redalyc.org/pdf/339/33934014005.pdf

Gabriel-Ortega, J., Burgos-López, G., Barahona-Cajape, N., Castro-Piguave, C.,

Vera-Tumbaco, M., & Morán-Morán, J. (2021). Obtención de semilla

híbrida de melón (Cucumis melo L.) en invernadero. Journal of the

Selva Andina Research Society, 12(1), 38–51. https://doi.org/10.36610/j.

jsars.2021.120100038

Gogi, M. D., Syed, A. H., Atta, B., Sufyan, M., Arif, M. J., Arshad, M., Khan,

M. A., Mukhtar, A. & Liburd, O. E. (2021). Ecacy of biorational

insecticides against Bemisia tabaci (Genn.) and their selectivity for its

parasitoid Encarsia formosa Gahan on Bt cotton. Scientic Reports,

11(1), 1-12. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-81585-x

Golmohammadi, G., & Mohammadipour, A. (2015). Ecacy of herbal extracts and

synthetic compounds against strawberry thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis

(Pergande) under greenhouse conditions. Journal of Entomology

and Zoology Studies, 3(4), 42–44. https://www.entomoljournal.com/

vol3Issue4/pdf/3-3-113.1.pdf

Karuppuchamy, P., & Venugopal, S. (2016). Integrated Pest Management. In

Omkar (Ed.), Ecofriendly Pest Management for Food Security (pp.

651–684). Elsevier B.V. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-803265-

7.00021-X

Kesh, H., & Kaushik, P. (2021). Advances in melon (Cucumis melo L.) breeding:

An update. Scientia Horticulturae, 282(February), 110045. https://doi.

org/10.1016/j.scienta.2021.110045

This scientic publication in digital format is a continuation of the Printed Review: Legal Deposit pp 196802ZU42, ISSN 0378-7818.

García-Vélez et al. Rev. Fac. Agron. (LUZ). 2023 40(1): e2340107-7 |

Kurwadkar, S. T., Dewinne, D., Wheat, R., McGahan, D. G., & Mitchell, F. L.

(2013). Time dependent sorption behavior of dinotefuran, imidacloprid

and thiamethoxam. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part B,

48(4), 237-242. https://doi.org/10.1080/03601234.2013.742412

Lasheen, S. G., Sherif, R. M., Youssif, M. A. I., & Sallem, H. M. (2020).

Eectiveness of some insecticides against Bemisia tabaci (Genn)

infesting squash plants. Zagazig Journal of Agricultural Research, 47(1),

79–86. https://doi.org/10.21608/zjar.2020.70122

Moura, M. F., Lopes, M. C., Pereira, R.R., Parish, J.B., Chediak, M., Arcanjo, P.L.,

Carmo, D.G., & Picanço, M.C. (2018). Sequential sampling plans and

economic injury levels for Empoasca kraemeri on common bean crops at

dierent technological level. Pest Management Science, 74(2), 398–405.

https://doi.org/10.1002/ps.4720

Mohapatra, S., Siddamallaiah, L., & Matadha, N. Y. (2021). Behavior of

acetamiprid, azoxystrobin, pyraclostrobin, and lambda-cyhalothrin in/

on pomegranate tissues. Environmental Science and Pollution Research,

28(2), 27481–27492. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-12490-z

Nagaraju, M., Nadagouda, S., Hosamani, A., & Hurali, S. (2018). Field evaluation

of insecticides for the management of cucumber moth , Diaphania

indica (Saunders) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae ) on bitter gourd. Journal of

Entomology and Zoology Studies Materials, 6(2), 79–82. https://www.

entomoljournal.com/archives/2018/vol6issue2/PartB/6-1-158-672.pdf

Navarrete, B., Valarezo, O., Cañarte, E., & Solórzano, R. (2017). Efecto del nim

(Azadirachta indica Juss.) sobre Bemisia tabaci Gennadius (Hemiptera:

Aleyrodidae) y controladores biológicos en el cultivo del melón Cucumis

melo L. La Granja: Revista de Ciencias de La Vida, 25(1), 33–44. https://

doi.org/10.17163/lgr.n25.2017.03

Oliveira, M. R. V., Henneberry, T. E., & Anderson, P. (2001). History, current

status, and collaborative research projects for Bemisia tabaci. Crop

protection, 20(9), 709-723. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/

viewcontent.cgi?article=1357&context=usdaarsfacpub

Padaliya, S. R., Thumar, R. K., Borad, M. G., & Patel, N. K. (2018). Bio-ecacy

of dierent ready-mix insecticides against thrips, Scirtothrips dorsalis

Hood infesting Bt Cotton. International Journal of Current Microbiology

and Applied Sciences, 7(7), 2904–2915. https://doi.org/10.20546/

ijcmas.2018.707.340

Perez-Olvera, M. A., Navarro-Garza, H., & Miranda-Cruz, E. (2011). Use

of pesticides for vegetable crops in Mexico. In M. Stoytcheva (Ed.),

Pesticides in the Modern World - Pesticides Use and Management (pp.

97–118). Open Intech. https://doi.org/10.5772/18510

Polaszek, A., Evans, G. A., & Bennett, F. D. (1992). Encarsia parasitoids of

Bemisia tabaci (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae, Homoptera: Aleyrodidae): A

preliminary guide to identication. Bulletin of Entomological Research,

82(3), 375–392. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007485300041171

Rolnik, A., & Olas, B. (2020). Vegetables from the Cucurbitaceae family and their

products: Positive eect on human health. Nutrition, 78, 110788. https://

doi.org/10.1016/j.nut.2020.110788

Saleem, M. S., Batool, T. S., Akbar, M. F., Raza, S., & Shahzad, S. (2019).

Eciency of botanical pesticides against some pests infesting hydroponic

cucumber, cultivated under greenhouse conditions. Egyptian Journal of

Biological Pest Control, 29(37), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41938-

019-0138-4

Valarezo, O., Cañarte, E., Navarrete, B., Guerrero, J., & Arias, B. (2008).

Diagnóstico de la “mosca blanca” en Ecuador. La Granja: Revista de

Ciencias de La Vida, 7(1), 13–20. https://doi.org/10.17163/lgr.n7.2008.03

Wan, W. N. S. S., Ablah, N. L., Nur, H. N., Alam, A., Ma’Arup, R., Jahan, M.,

Mustafa, K. A., & Alias, N. (2020). Breeding strategies for enhancing

nutrient content and quality in Cucurbitaceae: a review. International

Journal of Vegetable Science, . https://doi.org/10.1080/19315260.2020.

1833125

Zambrano, N. D., Arteaga, W., Velasquez, J., & Chirinos, D. T. (2021). Side eects

of Lambda Cyhalothrin and Thiamethoxam on insect pests and atural

enemies associated with cotton. Sarhad Journal of Agriculture, 37(4),

1098–1106. https://doi.org/10.17582/journal.sja/2021/37.4.1098.1106