The Potency of Enthomopathogenic Nematode Isolated from Longicorn Borer in Controlling Squamura Celebensis (Lepidoptera: Cossidae) on cocoa

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Squamura celebensis Roepke is the most important pest among the stem borer on cocoa in Sulawesi, Indonesia. This insect destroy cushion and bark, and the damage may reduce significantly the productivity of cocoa. An experiment was conducted on a farm in Luwu regency to test the effect of treatment with nematodes isolated from cocoa longicorn borer on inhibiting of frass development and on killing of pest above. This treatment was done by spaying of 1000 nematodes to frass with long size of 1-5 cm, long size of 6-10 cm, and long size of 11-15 cm. The nematode was identified as Neosteinerma Nguyen Smart, can persist contantly on frass during two months observation. The linier development of frass stopped after 20 days on frass of 1-5 cm long size, after 40 days on frass of 6-10 cm long size, and after 40 days on frass of 11-15 cm long size, while in each control, frass continue to develop during two month observation. The rate of frass development of 1-5 cm, 6-10 cm, and 11-15 cm was respectively 0.11cm, 0.18 cm, and 0.18 cm per 5 days and in control was successively 0.21 cm, 0.24 cm, and 0.18 cm per 5 days. This decrease and stop of frass development correlate to infection by nematode and death of larvae in stem hole of 73%, 63%, and 62% respectively. These field data support the possibility that entomopathogenic nematode can be used as an S. celebensis management strategy

INTRODUCTION

Squamura celebensis Roepke (Lepidoptera: Cossidae) is the most important pest among the stem borer on cocoa in Sulawesi, Indonesia. This insect destroy cushion and bark, and the damage may reduce significantly the productivity of cocoa if the population of borer in one tree is very high and great number of trees are infested (Khoo et al...

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...4). The application of this nematode can reduce or stop the development of frass of different long size. The linier development of frass stopped after 20 days on frass of 1-5 cm long size, after 40 days on frass of 6-10 cm long size, and after 40 days on frass of 11-15 cm long size, while in each control, frass continue to develop during two month observation. The rate of frass development of 1-5 cm, 6-10 cm, and 11-15 cm was respectively 0.11cm, 0.18 cm, and 0.18 m per 5 days and in control of each treatment , the rate of frass development was successively 0.21 cm, 0.24 cm, and 0.18 cm per 5 days (Fig. 1,2,3). These decrease of frass development and its rate correlate to inhibition and death of insect by nematode with respectively 71% of death for borer in frass of 1-5 cm, 63% in frass of 6-10 cm, and 62% in frass of 11-15 cm and no death on each control.

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