Tackling codling moth with a heightened dose of a naturally occurring viral infection is set to become standard practice in apple orchards, as part of the industry’s efforts to reduce residues, according to an industry expert.
The comments come with the launch of CyD-X, described as the UK’s first granulovirus. This bio-insecticide applies a virus that occurs in nature and that is specific in targeting only the codling moth in the orchard environment. It has been formulated as a spray treatment for apples and pears and delivers control following feeding by the codling moth larva on a treated leaf or fruit surface, with no adverse effects on beneficial insects.
Jerry Cross of East Malling Research has conducted field trials in the UK and believes CyD-X will be an indispensable tool for an industry seeking to eliminate the occurrence of pesticide residues on fruit. He points out that this natural product will be particularly useful for controlling second generation codling moth in the run-up to harvest, instead of using broad spectrum insecticides which result in residues.
“After long delays, at last we have UK registration,” reported Cross. “This granulovirus has been widely used in Europe for many years and it is an important tool for IPM,” he said.
Alan Horgan of Certis, the firm that brought CyD-X to the market, explained that over a period of two to three seasons following routine treatments with CyD-X, the natural pest population level drops significantly.
He advised that timely applications in response to pheromone trapping will deliver good control in about a week. “It is a stomach virus that infects the codling moth through the gut system, attacking and eventually breaking down the internal organs,” he said.
Horgan recommended using it as part of a programmed approach to control, noting that neither immediate nor 100 percent control should be a realistic expectation from the product.
“CyD-X lends itself particularly to organic systems,” he added, although he stressed that currently growers and their advisers must seek written derogation from their accreditation authority before using the product on any organic crop.
“This has not been an easy registration to obtain and has taken rather a long time,” Horgan pointed out. “The UK is behind the major fruit growing countries in Europe in taking this approach to pest control. CyD-X will be a very useful addition to the control measures for codling moth and is the first of this type of product to be introduced by Certis. It is an important step forward for the top fruit industry.”
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