Economic benefits of using natural enemies to control pest insects in organic vegetable production
Author of the article:CHENG Sen-Di, WANG Xiao-Jing, GUO Rong, ZHANG Fan, WANG Su, LIANG Yu-Yong
Author's Workplace：Institute of Plant Protection, Jiangxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanchang 330200, China
Key Words：Encarsia formosa, Bemisia tabaci, banker plant, loss coefficient, economic beneficial variable
Abstract：
[Objectives] To investigate the practicality and economic benefits of using Encarsia formosa to control Bemisia tabaci in organic tomato greenhouses. [Methods] The practicality and effectiveness of using E. formosa to control B. tabaci in greenhouse tomato production using the plant storage system was compared to conventional organic plant protection (the botanical insecticide-pyrethrum) in 2020 and 2021. The economic benefits of using biological control vs conventional organic plant protection was determined by comparing the control effect, crop yield, economic cost, and final economic benefit of the two different control methods. 【Results】 E. formosa released within a banker plant system exerted the same inhibitory effect on B. tabaci as spraying pyrethrin. The application of E. formosa significantly reduced the crop loss coefficient, and maintained unit yield; there was no significant difference between the application of E. formosa and spraying pyrethrin. In addition, there was no significant difference in Reichelderfer economic benefit variables between E. formosa and spraying pyrethrin. 【Conclusion】 Both organic pesticides and E. formosa exerted the same level of control on B. tabaci in organic tomato crops; there was no significant difference in tomato damage and production between these two control methods. These results not only provide a method for comparing the relative benefits of biological control agents and conventional pest control, but also a foundation for promoting the application and accurate evaluation of biological control.