The toxicity of dicofol, pyridaben, formetanate HCl, and abamectin to European red mite, Panonychus ulmi (Koch), was determined using either a Petri dish or leaf dip bioassay (as potential field assay procedures) and was compared with results from a standard laboratory procedure that requires a Potter spray tower to treat leaf disks. Abamectin and pyridaben were the most toxic acaricides tested, and dicofol and pyridaben were more toxic when applied to Petri dishes than to leaf disks. Formetanate HCl was the least toxic acaricide tested by either leaf disk or leaf dip procedures. Diagnostic concentrations of pyridaben were determined as 5 mg active ingredient per litre (a.i./L) with the Petri dish assay and 15 mg a.i./L with the leaf disk assay. Mortality of European red mites to pyridaben at diagnostic concentrations was consistently 100% with the leaf disk assay and > 90% with the Petri dish assay. Residues of pyridaben on Petri dishes stored at 4 °C in a refrigerator were stable for at least 21 d. For dicofol, both leaf disk and Petri dish assays gave similar results, and 25 mg a.i./L, previously used as the diagnostic concentration in the Petri dish assay, resulted in > 99% mortality of the standard susceptible strain. This technique identified resistant individuals in all of the field populations tested. Abamectin applied at 2 mg a.i./L to leaf disks consistently gave 98–100% mortality, but results at 2 mg a.i./L with the Petri dish assay gave variable results and this was not a reliable technique for monitoring resistance. Concentrations of formetanate HCl required for the leaf dip assay were too high to be useful in field assays; however, all populations of European red mite tested using the leaf disk assay appeared susceptible. For the ovicide, clofentezine, mortality of eggs tested by the leaf disk assay at 100 or 500 mg a.i./L ranged from 89 to 100%. Results with the leaf dip procedure, using a 350 mg a.i./L suspension consistently resulted in > 96% mortality of eggs from susceptible field populations. These procedures are a useful tool in the development of resistance management programs for acaricides used in integrated pest management (IPM) systems for tree fruits.

Resistance was documented in 1995 to commonly used organophosphorus, carbamate, and pyrethroid insecticides in populations of western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande), from six commercial greenhouses in Ontario. Adult female thrips were placed in glass vials treated with technical-grade insecticides and mortality at 18 h was compared with a single discriminating concentration, the computed LC99 of a reference laboratory population. Baseline dose–response regressions for insecticides commonly used in Ontario greenhouses were obtained for the laboratory population of western flower thrips. The organophosphorus compounds chlorpyrifos and malathion and the carbamates methomyl and bendiocarb were the most toxic materials tested; whereas the pyrethroid deltamethrin and a phosphoroamidate acephate were the least toxic. The addition of piperonyl butoxide to solutions of deltamethrin was highly synergistic. The mixture of deltamethrin and endosulfan (1:1) was moderately synergistic. Populations of western flower thrips from commercial greenhouses were resistant to deltamethrin, but deltamethrin mixed with piperonyl butoxide or endosulfan was synergistic in all cases. None of the populations were resistant to all of the insecticides tested. Recommendations are presented for the development of a resistance-management strategy for western flower thrips.

Disruption of mating for control of Oriental fruit moth [Grapholita molesta (Busck) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae)] using Isomate M pheromone dispensers was tested from 1987 to 1990 in the Niagara Peninsula of Ontario. The effectiveness of pheromone was evaluated using virgin female-baited traps, synthetic pheromone-baited traps, and by inspecting samples of twigs and fruit for evidence of G. molesta damage. No males were caught in virgin female-baited traps placed in pheromone-treated plots. Synthetic pheromone-baited trap catches of male moths were reduced by 85–100%. Pheromone provided commercially acceptable control over two consecutive growing seasons at a commercial farm with a relatively low density G. molesta population. Pheromone did not provide commercially acceptable control at an experimental farm with a relatively high density G. molesta population. The incidence of capture of males in virgin female-baited traps, in synthetic pheromone-baited traps, and the incidence of damage to peach twigs by first- and second-generation G. molesta larvae could not be used to predict the incidence of damage to fruit at harvest. The results suggest that pheromone-mediated mating disruption may have potential as a method for controlling the Oriental fruit moth in orchards with relatively low density populations.

Pholetesor ornigis (Weed) from 16 orchards in seven Ontario apple production areas were tested from 1987 to 1989 to determine if their levels of resistance to permethrin and methomyl were higher than those measured earlier in two Ontario populations and if they had developed resistance to azinphosmethyl. Higher levels of resistance were not detected and there was no evidence of resistance to azinphosmethyl. Some possible reasons for the lack of higher levels of insecticide resistance and some alternatives to insecticide resistance for parasite conservation are discussed.

We assessed the effects of microencapsulation on the toxicity of chlorpyrifos, cypermethrin, and lambda-cyhalothrin to larvae of the Oriental fruit moth, Grapholita molesta (Busck), in the laboratory and the field. We also compared the toxicity of microencapsulated and traditional formulations to pyrethroid-susceptible and pyrethroid-resistant populations of the predaceous mite Typhlodromus pyri Scheuten in the laboratory. In laboratory bioassays with neonate larvae of G. molesta, the microencapsulated formulations of chlorpyrifos and cypermethrin were less toxic than the wettable-powder and emulsifiable-concentrate formulations. The emulsifiable-concentrate and microencapsulated formulations of lambda-cyhalothrin were equally toxic. In the field, all trees in insecticide-treated plots contained less damage by first generation G. molesta larvae than unsprayed controls. In the second generation, the microencapsulated formulations of cypermethrin and chlorpyrifos were generally less effective than the emulsifiable-concentrate formulation of cypermethrin. The microencapsulated formulation of lambda-cyhalothrin was as effective as the emulsifiable-concentrate formulation. The microencapsulated formulation of cypermethrin was less toxic than the emulsifiable-concentrate formulation to both pyrethroid-susceptible and pyrethroid-resistant populations of T. pyri. Both populations were highly resistant to chlorpyrifos and unaffected by either formulation. The microencapsulated formulation of lambda-cyhalothrin affected the two populations of T. pyri differently; the microencapsulated formulation was approximately fivefold more toxic than the emulsifiable-concentrate formulation to the pyrethroid-susceptible population, but sixfold less toxic than the emulsifiable-concentrate formulation to the pyrethroid-resistant population. Much of the selectivity reported for the microencapsulated formulations of cypermethrin and chlorpyrifos appeared related to a general reduction in toxicity to both target insects and beneficial mites. The microencapsulated lambda-cyhalothrin was as toxic as the emulsifiable-concentrate formulation to the target insect but was less toxic than the emulsifiable concentrate to pyrethroid-resistant predator mites. This limited increased selectivity may be useful where resistant populations of predators occur.

The susceptibility of male and female Pholetesor ornigis (Weed) to the pyrethroid insecticides permethrin, fenvalerate, and deltamethrin, the organophosphorous insecticides azinphosmethyl and phosmet, and the carbamate insecticide methomyl, was compared in the laboratory using two populations from Norfolk County, Ontario. Female P. ornigis were more susceptible than males to permethrin. There was no sexual difference in the susceptibility of P. ornigis to the other five insecticides tested. The implications of these results for the biological control potential of P. ornigis in commercial apple orchards are discussed. The results obtained for permethrin, fenvalerate, azinphosmethyl, and methomyl were compared with those obtained in a study completed 6 years earlier using P. ornigis from another location in Ontario; the results suggest that P. ornigis from Norfolk County have low levels of resistance to permethrin (3.3-fold), fenvalerate (2.2-fold), and methomyl (4.1-fold).

After about 20 years of wide usage in integrated pest management (IPM) programs on peach in the Niagara Peninsula of Ontario, populations of Oriental fruit moth, Grapholita molesta (Busck), resistant to azinphosmethyl and phosmet have been selected. Resistance, as expressed in first-instar larvae, was only two- to four-fold to azinphosmethyl or phosmet, but up to 45% fruit infestations have been documented in commercial blocks. Resistance to azinphosmethyl was not well expressed in adult Oriental fruit moths. In tests with larvae, cross-resistance occurred to most other organophosphorus insecticides except acephate and chlorpyrifos. Acephate was more toxic to resistant than to susceptible larvae. Resistance was higher (> 100-fold) to the methyl carbamates carbaryl and carbofuran but was approximately fivefold to the carbamoyl oxime methomyl. Cross-resistance to pyrethroids was not observed. Tests with field-collected material, either from crosses on mating trays in the field or from pupae collected in cardboard bands attached to trees, indicated that resistance was widespread across the Niagara production area but that the resistance was not uniformly expressed at all locations. Resistance was expressed in F1 larvae from crosses of susceptible females with field-collected males, indicating that the genetic change in resistant larvae was unlikely the effect of a single recessive gene. Field tests in replicated two-tree plots and in larger (0.25–0.6 ha) plots treated with up to five applications as a season-long control program indicated that neither chlorpyrifos nor acephate were as effective as a pyrethroid (deltamethrin). The sustainability of these IPM programs and potential resistance management strategies are discussed.

In 1986 a greenhouse population of Liriomyza trifolii (Burgess) was shown to be highly resistant (155-fold at LC50) to the organophosphorus compound pyrazophos. However in 1987, the same population had only 35–40% resistant individuals remaining. A survey in 1986 of five other greenhouses reporting leafminer control failures indicated three other resistant populations in southern Ontario. Resistance was not affected by the addition of the synergists diethyl maleate or triphenyl phosphate to pyrazophos. Cross-resistance to the phosphorothioate insecticides demeton, chlorpyrifos, and triazophos was indicated.

Development of resistance to organophosphorus and carbamate insecticides by the Oriental fruit moth, Grapholita molesta (Busck), has caused great concern regarding the sustainability of peach production in Ontario, Canada. Thus, a resistance management program was implemented and a procedure was developed to monitor for resistance to insecticides in adult moths. Diagnostic concentrations needed to distinguish susceptible genotypes from resistant individuals were determined to be carbofuran (0.1 μg per vial), carbaryl (1.0 μg per vial), malathion (0.5 μg per vial), and cypermethrin (2.5 μg per vial). Significant survival of field-collected moths to diagnostic concentrations of cypermethrin suggested that resistance to pyrethroids might be widespread. The seasonal patterns of resistance of several Oriental fruit moth populations from the Niagara Peninsula of Ontario indicated a decrease in frequencies of resistance to all insecticides tested from 1996 through 1998. Resistance levels were unstable, thus suggesting that resistance could be successfully managed. Our data confirmed the usefulness of the vial test to monitor for resistance to insecticides in the adult Oriental fruit moth, and provided the basis for the development of a resistance management strategy designed to extend the efficacy of all classes of insecticides used for control.

The persistence of toxic effects of the contact acaricides dicofol, propargite, and formetanate HCl and the ovicides clofentezine and hexythiazox to the European red mite, Panonychus ulmi (Koch), were tested by bioassays of disks cut from treated peach foliage. Effects of dicofol were more persistent than propargite or formetanate HCl to susceptible mites. Mortality on dicofol-treated foliage was >50% for more than 15 days. Propargite killed >50% of females for 10 days after application, whereas the toxicity of formetanate HCl deposits declined rapidly after 7 days. Mortality of dicofol-resistant mites was less than for susceptible mites. However, resistant mites were affected (>50% killed) by dicofol residues up to 7 days old. The toxic effects of the ovicides clofentezine and hexythiazox persisted for at least 30 days and at the rates tested were approximately equally toxic.

Formetanate HCl and propargite residues were less persistent (half-life 8–9 days) than the other compounds. Dicofol residues had a half-life of about 15 days but approximately 10% of residues persisted for 65 days. Residues of clofentezine and hexythiazox declined more gradually (half-life = 15–20 days) than other compounds and persisted at approximately 10% of initial residues after 65 days.

Two bioassay methods using leaf discs and Petri dishes as the treated medium were compared. Resistance levels were approximately 11-fold with the leaf disc method and 7-fold using the Petri dish assay. Comparisons of the two methods on six wild populations indicated that the Petri dish assay was more sensitive in identifying low frequencies of resistance. Advantages of the Petri dish assay over the previously used leaf disc method for rapid, field-type surveys are discussed.

Surveys of populations from the Simcoe and Niagara areas, using the Petri dish assay, indicated resistance to dicofol in 11 of 22 samples. Resistance was generally correlated with sites where dicofol had been used at least once a year for 2–3 consecutive years. The data indicate a resurgence of dicofol resistance since 1984 when resistance was detected at 4% of the surveyed sites.

The toxicity of the insecticides permethrin, azinphosmethyl, and methomyl to adult Pholetesor ornigis (Weed) and P. pedias Nixon was evaluated in laboratory bioassays. Older P. pedias (2 and 3 days old) were more susceptible than younger parasites (1 day old) to permethrin. Azinphosmethyl was slightly more toxic to female P. ornigis than to male P. ornigis or to P. pedias. There was no consistent difference in the response of adult P. ornigis compared with P. pedias exposed to permethrin or methomyl on treated paper disks. Methomyl was twice as toxic as either azinphosmethyl or permethrin. Male P. ornigis were less susceptible than female P. ornigis to permethrin, but the difference was significant in only one of four populations tested. Male P. ornigis were less susceptible than females to azinphosmethyl. In 1986, populations of P. ornigis which had been exposed previously to pyrethroid insecticides were less susceptible to permethrin than P. ornigis from orchards where pyrethroids had never been applied. The response of both Pholetesor spp. to permethrin varied significantly from 1986 to 1987.

Cypermethrin was more toxic to adults of the tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris Palisot de Beauvois, in both laboratory and field studies, than other synthetic pyrethroid, organophosphorus, or chlorinated-hydrocarbon insecticides. The synthetic pyrethroids were more toxic than other groups of insecticides. Residues of cypermethrin were toxic to plant bugs for 7–10 days; other compounds were effective for shorter periods. In the field 1 application of cypermethrin effectively controlled tarnished plant bugs on peach.

Three benzoylphenylurea insecticides, diflubenzuron, triflumuron, and teflubenzuron, were toxic when applied to eggs of Phyllonorycter blancardella (Fabr.) 0–2 and 4–6 days post-oviposition. Most treated eggs hatched but larvae died in the early instars. High larval mortalities also occurred when treatments were applied to foliage prior to oviposition. Treatments applied to larvae, especially older larvae, were less toxic than those applied to eggs. In the field, control was similar whether insecticides were applied during egg deposition, first hatch of eggs, or against early-instar larvae. Applications during egg deposition are suggested as optimal for control. Control of spotted tentiform leafminer with insect growth regulators was equivalent to that obtained with deltamethrin or methomyl.

Residues of diflubenzuron and triflumuron, applied pre-bloom, persisted until leaf drop 19 weeks later. Residues of teflubenzuron persisted for 9 weeks. Populations of spotted tentiform leafminer were suppressed throughout the season and residues of all insect growth regulators except teflubenzuron applied in May were toxic to larvae into October.

In laboratory tests, many miticides affected more than one life stage of the European red mite but most showed greater toxicity to one specific stage. Most were more toxic to nymphs and adults than to eggs. Cyhexatin was more toxic to nymphs whereas fenbutatin-oxide was more toxic to adults than to nymphs. Propargite, formetanate HCl, and dinocap were more toxic to nymphs than to adults. Dicofol and oxythioquinox were more toxic to adults than to nymphs. Dienochlor was the least toxic miticide tested, and was more toxic to nymphs and adults than to eggs. Amitraz, permethrin, and fenpropathrin were repellent to motile stages at low concentrations, but amitraz was also highly ovicidal. Clofentezine and hexythiazox were toxic to eggs and nymphs but not to adults. Affected nymphs developed into the deutochrysalis or teleiochrysalis stages but were unable to eclose from these quiescent stages.

In field trials, applications timed to coincide with a predominance of sensitive stages were successful. Early season applications suppressed mite numbers for much of the growing season. Populations exhibiting considerable synchrony occurred into August suggesting that susceptible stages could be targeted for control throughout the season.

The occurrence and distribution of resistance to insecticides in populations of the obliquebanded leafroller, Choristoneura rosaceana (Harris) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), from apple, Malus × domestica Borkhauser (Rosaceae), and pear, Pyrus communis L. (Rosaceae), orchards in the various production areas of southern Ontario were assessed in the laboratory and field from 1993 to 1999. Laboratory bioassays were conducted with neonate larvae from the first laboratory generation. Responses of populations from commercial orchards where control failures had occurred or where populations were large or damaging were compared with populations from unsprayed wild hosts. Resistance to azinphosmethyl and to pyrethroids and methomyl was identified in populations from all areas. Resistance levels ranged from 4- to 27-fold for azinphosmethyl, 4- to 8-fold for cypermethrin (a representative pyrethroid), and 3- to 5-fold for methomyl. In the field, deltamethrin was more effective than azinphosmethyl against a population resistant to both insecticides. Resistance to azinphosmethyl was unstable and rapidly declined in a population newly established in the laboratory and not selected with azinphosmethyl. After selection for nine generations, resistance declined only slowly when selection pressure was removed for four generations. This instability may be exploited in the management of resistance, but the possible cross-resistance between azinphosmethyl and pyrethroids needs clarification.

The efficacy of mating disruption for controlling the grape berry moth, Endopiza viteana (Clemens) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), was evaluated from 1987 to 1989 in the Niagara peninsula, Ont. Mating disruption was tested in commercial vineyards with high-, moderate-, and low-density grape berry moth populations using the Biocontrol Ltd. tape-type and wire-type pheromone dispensers. Pheromone-baited trap catches were reduced by 92% or more in plots treated with pheromone. Treatment with pheromone significantly reduced damage (percentage infested clusters) compared with an untreated control in each of two tests, and provided control as good as or better than an insecticide control programme in two of four tests. Damage increased from 1.3- to 12.8-fold between successive generations in plots treated with pheromone, and was greater on the borders of some plots treated with pheromone or insecticide. It is concluded that mating disruption may have potential as a control method for use in the integrated management of E. viteana.

Resistance to pyrethroid insecticides, identified previously in adults of Phyllonorycter blancardella (Fabr.), was shown to extend to both egg and larval stages. Eggs of both resistant and susceptible strains were more susceptible than larvae to various pyrethroid insecticides. Eggs treated 0–2 days post oviposition were more susceptible than 4- to 6-day-old eggs and/or larvae for both strains. Older larvae, especially from resistant strains, were less susceptible than early instars. For eggs and 1st-instar larvae, differences between resistant and susceptible strains were largely overcome by treatment with higher concentrations of permethrin. In the field, low levels of resistance were overcome by applications of permethrin at 212.5 g AI/ha diluted in 3370 L water/ha timed for first hatch of eggs.

The effects of timing of applications on the persistence of chemical and biologically active residues of clofentezine were tested on apple foliage during two seasons. Residues from prebloom and petal fall applications were less persistent than those in mid-season. Early season applications were toxic to European red mite for 7–21 days but mid-season applications were toxic for as long as 50–62 days. Chemical residue losses were also faster in the early season. Persistence of chemical residues was related to the rate of leaf growth and expansion. In 1991, foliage area expanded 244% per week during the prebloom period, 23% per week at petal fall, and 10% per week in July (mid-season).In a field test, applications of clofentezine at petal fall reduced European red mite populations within 7 days and mite numbers remained below economic thresholds for 6 weeks.

Laboratory bioassays showed the occurrence of 8.5-fold resistance to cyhexatin and ca. 15-fold resistance to dicofol in laboratory-selected populations of European red mite (Panonychus ulmi (Koch)). Surveys, in 1984, of 45 orchards, using field-collected mites exposed to discriminating concentrations of cyhexatin or dicofol, detected resistance to cyhexatin in ca. 29% of the populations. Resistance to dicofol was identified in 2 of 45 assays.