The effect of cultivar and runner removal on strawberry seed bug, Neopamera bilobata, density and fruit injury

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Presenting Author(s)

ER

Elena M. Rhodes

University of Florida
Gainesville, Florida

Co-Author(s)

CC

Carlene A. Chase

University of Florida
Gainesville, Florida
MS

Marilyn Swisher

University of Florida
Gainesville, Florida
Oscar E. Liburd

University of Florida
Gainesville, Florida

The strawberry seed bug, Neopamera bilobata (Say), is an emerging pest of organic and conventional strawberries in Florida. There is limited information on ecology and management of this pest. Strawberry plants reproduce vegetatively by means of runners. Runners can divert energy away from fruit production and provide shelter for pests. In organic production, runners are removed by hand or clipped. Different cultivars can vary in their levels of susceptibility to pest injury. In this study, we investigated the effect of select cultivars and runner removal on seed bug injury levels. The cultivars tested where ‘Florida Brilliance’, ‘Sensation’, and ‘Strawberry Festival’. There was no effect of cultivar or runner removal on seed bug distribution. However, there was higher seed bug injury to fruits in plots with runners and to ‘Brilliance’ fruits. There were no differences in yield between plots with and without runners nor among cultivars.