Controlling Harlequin Bug
March 21, 2012 Using brassica trap crops may help control harlequin bugs, a common pest of cole crops, and offer an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) method in organic vegetable production.
Anna Wallingford, a graduate research assistant in the Department of Entomology at Virginia Tech, received a $9,523 Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education (SARE) Graduate Student Grant to study the effectiveness of a trap cropping system as an alternative to broad-spectrum foliar insecticide applications to manage the harlequin bug.
The harlequin bug, similar to the stinkbug, is a piercing/sucking insect that feeds on the leaves of cole crops, leaving white blotches and making the crops unmarketable. Heavy feeding pressure can cause the plants to wilt and die.
Wallingford found that a mustard border row trap crop is effective in controlling the harlequin bug in collards, and is likely to provide control in other cash crops of the same species, such as broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower.
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