Abstract

Systematic and long-term use of pesticides in fruit plantations leads to the formation of resistant pest populations. The formation of resistance in pests and the general trend towards a decrease in chemical treatments require the search for alternative methods of plant protection, as well as the validation of traditional means of protection to minimize the pesticide load on cenoses. This paper studies the violation of normal reproductive functions in the codling moth population using pheromones in conjunction with the baculovirus preparation Fermo-Virin/Cp. The method of disorientation does not guarantee a sufficient effect with a high codling moth population. Therefore, additional treatments with highly toxic chemical insecticides are used. A significant novelty of the research is the integration of the disorientation method with the use of an effective bioinsecticide - the codling moth's granulosis virus. The studies were carried out in 2015-2020 in organic apple orchards of the Kuban Uchkhoz of the Kuban State Agricultural University, Kolt Technologies LLC, and the ZIGsad LLC farm, as well as in several industrial gardens in Krasnodar Krai (Viktoria CJSC, Sadovod OJSC of the Yeisk College). The effect of disorientation was determined by the number of males caught in the experimental plots in comparison with the control. The biological efficiency was calculated by the number of fruits damaged by the codling moth in the experimental plots in comparison with the control and the reference. It was found that the complementary methods of disrupting the sexual chemical communication of the pest and the use of the AM granulosa virus allow to keep the yield at the level of the chemical standard. Extensive field trials of the baculovirus preparation Fermo-Virin/ CpGv (titer 3x1012, at least 1x1012 granules per gram of granulosis virus) have shown its high efficacy and prospects for biological control of the apple moth in Russian industrial gardens, farms and individual households. The biological effectiveness of the product was 88.3%. When used regularly, the tested system of biological control of the codling moth will lead to the restoration of the mechanisms of natural biocenotic regulation. Providing a prolonged effect, it can be recommended for organic gardening.