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COI[\Y\ 

5 
H3 


Management  of 

Balsam  Twig  Aphids 
in  Christmas  Trees 


BY  RICHARD  S.  COWLES 


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Management  of  Balsam  Twig  Aphids  in  Christmas  Trees 


By  Richard  S.  Cowles 


The  balsam  twig  aphid,  Mindarus  abietinus  Koch,  can  be 
a  serious  pest  of  true  firs  {Abies  spp.)  grown  for  use  as 
Christmas  trees.  The  feeding  of  these  aphids  causes  rapidly 
expanding  shoots  and  their  associated  needles  to  curl. 
Besides  the  unsightliness  of  twisted  foliage,  large  colonies  of 
aphids  developing  in  late  spring  and  early  summer  excrete 
copious  honeydew,  which  drips  over  the  foliage  and 
supports  the  growth  of  sooty  mold  fijngi.  Sooty  mold  is  not  a 
plant  pathogen,  but  is  an  unsightly  black  coating,  and  can 
physically  block  sunlight  and  thereby  interfere  with  plant 
functions  such  as  photosynthesis.  The  current  practice  of 
Christmas  tree  growers  is  to  spray  true  firs  one  or  two  times 
with  insecticide,  typically  chlorpyrifos  (Lorsban),  each 
growing  season  to  prevent  this  injury.  These  sprays,  in  turn, 
can  adversely  impact  naturally  occurring  beneficial 
organisms  that  help  to  maintain  low  populations  of  other 
pests,  such  as  spruce  spider  mites.  Therefore,  effective 
management  of  balsam  twig  aphid  needs  to  take  into  account 
the  effectiveness  of  insecticide  treatments  and  the  side 
effects  of  these  sprays  on  non-target  beneficial  arthropods. 

Life  cycle.  Small  black  eggs  clothed  in  rods  of  a  white 
wax  overwinter  on  the  bark  of  branches.  Stem  mothers,  also 
called  the  fundatrices  (fundatrix  is  the  singular),  hatch  firom 
these  eggs  and  develop  into  wingless  adults.  The  adult  is 
pear-shaped  and  about  as  long  as  a  fir  needle  is  wide.  The 
bluish-gray  body  has  four  indistinct  longitudinal  stripes  of 
powdery  white  material,  which  is  especially  prominent  on 
the  head  and  thorax.  The  stem  mother  gives  live  birth  to  her 
young,  which  develop  into  either  wingless  ftindagenae  or 
winged  sexuparae,  which  are  all  parthenogenic  clones  of  the 
mother.  The  feeding  of  the  stem  mother  and  her  offspring  on 
succulent  new  growth  causes  the  young  needles  to  curl  as 
they  expand.  This  twisted  growth  forms  a  pseudogall  in 
which  the  inwardly  curving  needles  protect  the  rapidly 
reproducing  colony  of  aphids  from  being  dislodged  by  rain 
or  wind.  Sexuparae,  which  are  all  females,  complete  three 
molts  and  are  winged  as  adults,  allowing  them  to  disperse 


from  the  tree  on  which  they  developed.  Sexuparae  have  a 
distinctive  arrangement  of  five  dark  spots  on  the  thorax  and 
four  hardened  sections  of  cuticle  (sclerites)  on  the  upper 
surface  of  their  abdomens.  Fundagenae  and  sexuparae 
produce  the  third  generation,  called  sexuales,  which  consist 
of  females  and  males.  The  sexuales  physically  resemble  the 
sexuparae.  This  last  generation  of  aphids,  produced  in  the 
first  half  of  June,  mates  and  lays  the  overwintering  eggs  on 
the  trees  (Johnson  and  Lyon  1988). 

Injury  to  Christmas  trees  principally  is  due  to  the 
distortion  of  needles  resulting  from  the  feeding  of  stem 
mothers  and  their  offspring  on  rapidly  expanding  terminal 
growth.  Development  of  overwintered  balsam  twig  aphid 
eggs  is  closely  synchronized  with  the  growth  of  their 
principal  host:  nearly  all  of  these  eggs  hatch  by  the  time  that 
50%  of  balsam  fir  trees  have  broken  new  growth.  So, 
although  balsam  twig  aphids  can  develop  on  other  hosts  (all 
firs,  white  and  Colorado  spruce,  and  juniper),  the  close 
synchrony  of  this  aphid's  development  with  balsam  fir  bud 
break  makes  it  especially  damaging  to  this  species. 
However,  poor  confrol  of  aphid  stem  mothers  on  balsam  fir 
can  lead  to  damage  on  nearby  Fraser  and  Canaan  firs.  In  this 
scenario,  the  rapid  dispersal  of  the  winged  sexuparae  from 
balsam  fir  can  coincide  with  bud  break  on  Fraser  or  Canaan 
firs,  leading  to  aphid  colony  establishment  and  damage. 

The  economic  loss  to  Christmas  tree  growers  from 
balsam  twig  aphids  arises  from  several  factors.  First, 
aesthetic  damage,  both  from  twisting  of  terminals  and  from 
sooty  mold,  may  reduce  the  value  of  trees.  This  is 
particularly  true  for  trees  being  produced  for  wholesale 
marketing,  where  purchasers  are  wary  of  aesthetic  injury. 
Surprisingly,  choose-and-cut  customers  do  not  usually  object 
to  (or  even  notice)  balsam  twig  aphid  injury,  and  therefore 
insecticide  treatments  may  not  be  warranted  for  this  clientele 
(Kleintjes  et  al.  1999).  Secondly,  economic  loss  can  result 
from  the  expenses  of  applying  insecticides  to  confrol  this 
pest  and  all  the  additional  costs  associated  with  secondary 


Connecticut  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


Bulletin  988 


pest  outbreaks.  These  pest  outbreaks  happen  when  the 
insecticides  used  to  control  balsam  twig  aphids  kill 
beneficial  insects  or  mites,  which  may  have  been  keeping 
other  pests  in  check.  Outbreaks  of  spruce  spider  mite  can  be 
especially  costly  to  control. 

MANAGEMENT  OPTIONS 

Cultural  control.  One  approach  to  minimize  damage  by 
this  insect  is  to  grow  other  species  of  fir,  such  as  Fraser  fir  or 
the  balsam-Fraser  hybrid,  the  Canaan  fir.  It  is  unknown 
whether  balsam  twig  aphids  avoid  laying  eggs  on  these 
species,  or  whether  the  long  time  between  aphid  hatch  and 
availability  of  new  growth  on  these  late-breaking  firs  causes 
high  mortality  in  stem  mothers.  In  any  case,  there  is 
generally  much  less  damage  to  firs  with  late  bud  break 
characteristics  than  to  balsam  fir.  However,  as  mentioned 
previously,  winged  aphids  can  migrate  from  balsam  fir  to 
cause  severe  infestations  on  nearby  plantings  of  other  firs. 

Biological  control.  Many  arthropods  are  avid  predators 
of  balsam  twig  aphids.  For  example,  surveys  of  balsam  twig 
aphid  populations  in  2000-2002  revealed  very  high 
populations  of  the  muhicolored  Asian  ladybeetle  {Harmonia 
axyridis),  lacewing  larvae,  syrphid  larvae,  whirlygig  mites 
{Anystis  spp.),  and  parasitic  wasps  feeding  on  these  aphids. 
Although  these  predators  and  parasites  may  not  build  up  fast 
enough  to  prevent  twisting  of  foliage,  their  activity  reduces 
the  overall  aphid  population  and  decreases  the  number  of 
overwintering  eggs  laid  later  in  the  summer.  Therefore,  an 
important  objective  for  managing  balsam  twig  aphid  should 
be  to  conserve  predators  and  parasites.  Healthy  populations 
of  beneficial  arthropods  provide  a  natural  mechanism  for 
aphid  population  reduction,  which  is  especially  needed 
where  chemical  control  has  been  inadequate. 

Chemical  control.  Use  of  insecticides,  especially 
chlorpyrifos  (Lorsban),  has  been  the  mainstay  for  managing 
balsam  twig  aphid  populations  in  Christmas  trees  for  several 
years.  Chlorpyrifos  has  the  unusual  property  of  converting 
directly  from  a  solid  to  a  gas,  allowing  it  to  fumigate  the 
plantation  (Fritt  1993).  Its  ability  to  penetrate  areas  not 
covered  by  spray  deposit  has  made  it  the  material  of  choice 
for  use  with  mist  blower  sprayers,  permitting  rapid  spraying 
of  plantings.  However,  chlorpyrifos  is  an  organophosphate 
insecticide  and  is  moderately  to  highly  toxic  to  humans, 
birds,  fish,  and  beneficial  arthropods  (ace.orst.edu).  As  an 
organophosphate  insecticide,  it  continues  to  undergo  review 
by  the  U.S.  Environmental  Protection  Agency  and  has 
already  had  some  uses  removed  from  its  label.  Growers  in 
the  South  Windsor  area  experienced  poor  control  of  balsam 
twig  aphid  following  two  applications  of  chlorpyrifos  to 
plantings  in  2002,  suggesting  that  local  populations  of  these 
aphids  may  be  resistant  to  this  insecticide.  Therefore, 
alternatives  to  the  use  of  chlorpyrifos  need  to  be  tested  to 
determine  how  well  they  can  perform  in  suppressing  balsam 


twig  aphid  populations  in  Christmas  tree  plantations. 

Aphid  control  field  experiments.  These  studies  were 
conducted  at  cooperating  growers'  fields  to  determine  the 
most  effective  insecticides  for  control  of  balsam  twig  aphid. 
High  and  low  volume  spray  application  was  used  to 
determine  which  insecticides  are  appropriate  for  different 
kinds  of  spray  equipment.  Because  there  were  many  aphid 
predators  observed  during  the  test  in  2000,  the  predator 
populations  were  measured  along  with  the  twig  aphids  in  the 
second  year  to  determine  which  insecticides  selectively 
killed  the  aphids  rather  than  their  predators. 

High-volume  spray  and  soil-applied  systemic 
experiment  This  experiment  was  conducted  at  a  cooperating 
grower's  field  in  Somers,  with  balsam  fir  planted  in  a  5  x  6 
foot  pattern.  Plots  consisted  of  a  4  x  4  array  of  trees,  plus  a 
buffer  row  along  all  sides.  There  were  four  replicates  in  a 
randomized  complete  block  design.  Materials  used  in  foliar 
sprays  included  pymefrozine  (Endeavor  SOW,  Syngenta, 
Greensboro,  NC),  thiamethoxam  (Flagship  25W,  Syngenta), 
horticultural  oil  (Lesco  Horticultural  Oil,  Lesco, 
Sfrongsville,  OH),  chlorpyrifos  (Lorsban  4E,  Dow 
AgroSciences,  Indianapolis,  IN),  insecticidal  soap  (Olympic, 
Bradenton,  FL),  acephate  (Orthene  70S,  Valent,  Walnut 
Creek,  CA),  and  endosulfan  (Thiodan  3E,  FMC, 
Philadelphia,  PA).  For  products  needing  a  surfactant,  Silwet 
L-77  (Helena,  Memphis,  TN)  was  added,  and  it  was  also 
included  by  itself  as  a  control.  Imidacloprid  (Provado  1.6F, 
Bayer,  St.  Louis,  MO)  was  applied  in  the  fall  or  spring  to  the 
soil  for  systemic  uptake,  or  in  the  spring  as  a  foliar  spray.  A 
backpack  sprayer  equipped  with  a  TK-2  floodjet  nozzle 
(Spraying  Systems,  Wheaton,  IL)  was  used  on  October  20, 

1999,  for  the  liquid  broadcast  application  in  a  spray  volume 
of  40  gallons  per  acre.  To  guarantee  soil  incorporafion,  this 
application  was  made  during  a  rain  event  of  0.5  inches.  Due 
to  dry  spring  conditions,  a  Kioritz  injector  was  used  for  the 
March  31,  2000,  soil  incorporation.  Six  5-ml  injections  were 
placed  along  the  dripline  for  each  tree  at  a  depth  of  2  inches. 
Foliar  sprays  were  applied  on  two  days,  April  25  and  26, 

2000,  when  balsam  fir  had  reached  50%  bud  break.  A 
hydraulic  sprayer  applied  435  gallons  per  acre.  Conditions 
on  April  25  were  60  F,  sunny  and  dry.  Conditions  on  April 
26  were  40  F,  with  wet  snow  changing  to  rain.  Populations 
of  stem  mothers  were  assessed  on  May  3,  with  four  beating 
samples  from  each  of  four  trees  in  each  plot.  The  beating 
tray  was  a  pad  (8.5  x  1 1  inches)  of  white  paper  on  a 
clipboard.  At  this  date,  stem  mothers  had  begun  producing 
young,  which  were  too  small  to  count.  Plots  were  evaluated 
again  on  June  13-14  by  counting  alate  (winged)  aphids  with 
beating  samples  and  counting  the  percent  of  damaged 
terminals  (from  a  sample  of  50  terminals  on  each  of  four 
trees  per  plot).  Data  were  subjected  to  analysis  of  variance. 

Chlorpyrifos,  insecticidal  soap,  thiamethoxam,  the 
imidacloprid  foliar  spray,  oil,  and  acephate  all  gave  excellent 
early-season  control  (>  95%  mortality)  of  fundatrix  aphids 


Management  of  Balsam  Twig  Aphids  in  Christmas  Trees 


Table  I .  Control  of  balsam  twig  aphid  with  a  high-volume  spray  (435  gallons  per  acre)  and  soil  applied  systemic  insecticide 
application,  n  =  4. 


Aphid 

count 

Control  % 

Damaged 

Product 

Chemical  name 

Use  rate 

Application  type 

5/3 

6/13-14 

5/3 

terminals  % 

Endeavor  SOW 

pymetrozine 

0.1  Iba.  i. /Ac 

spring  foliar  spray 

6.3d 

20ab 

89 

15bc 

Flagship  25W 

thiamethoxam 

0.1  Iba.  i. /Ac 

spring  foliar  spray 

l.Od 

3.8ab 

98.3 

3.1c 

+  Silwet  L-77 

Lesco  Oil 

oil 

2% 

spring  foliar  spray 

1.3d 

21a 

98 

llbc 

Lorsban  4E 

chlorpyrifos 

8floz/100gal 

spring  foliar  spray 

0.3d 

21a 

99.6 

6.3c 

Olympic  Insecticidal 

Soap 

insecticidal  soap 

2% 

spring  foliar  spray 

0.3d 

21a 

99.6 

7.4c 

Orthene  75  S 

acephate 

1  lb  a.i./Ac 

spring  foliar  spray 

3.0d 

lOab 

95 

21bc 

Provado  I.6F 

imidacloprid 

0.4  lb  a.  i./Ac 

fall  broadcast 

45ab 

4.8ab 

23 

3Ibc 

Provado  1.6F 

imidacloprid 

0.4  lb  a.  i./Ac 

spring  soil  injection 

30bc 

0.8b 

50 

21bc 

Provado  1.6F 

imidacloprid 

8  fl  oz/Ac 

spring  foliar  spray 

l.Od 

llab 

98.3 

2.4c 

+  Silwet  L-77 

Thiodan  3E 

endosulfan 

21  floz/lOOgal 

spring  foliar  spray 

24b 

9.3ab 

59 

37b 

Silwet  L-77 

surfactant 

4floz/100gal 

spring  foliar  spray 

27bc 

5.5ab 

54 

37b 

Untreated  check 

59a 

3.5  ab 

_ 

57a 

'  Means  in  each  column  followed  by  the  same  letter  are  not  significantly  different,  P  =  0.05,  Newman-Keul's  test  applied  to  square  root 
(.x+0.5)  transformed  counts  of  aphids. 


(Table  1).  The  later  evaluation  of  aphid  populations  and 
percent  terminal  curling  revealed  some  interesting 
phenomena.  First,  curling  and  twisting  of  foliage  occurs  only 
in  response  to  feeding  from  the  early-season  aphid 
populations.  This  is  evident  from  the  strongly  correlated 
(r  =  0.74)  May  3  aphid  counts  and  percent  shoot  damage. 
Secondly,  the  population  of  the  aphids  in  June  was 
approximately  inversely  proportional  to  the  populations 
observed  in  early  May.  In  other  words,  treatments  with  high 
counts  in  May  tended  to  have  low  counts  in  June  and  vice 
versa.  This  is  probably  explained  by  (I)  the  exploitation  of 
aphids  by  predators  and  parasites,  and  (2)  migration  of 
winged  aphids  from  heavily  infested  trees.  It  is  striking  that 
trees  did  not  maintain  high  populations  of  aphids  throughout 
the  trial.  Predators  and  parasites  can  be  credited  with 
responding  to  aphid  colonies  efficiently  enough  to  prevent 
trees  from  remaining  heavily  infested  for  more  than  a  few 
weeks.  For  example,  on  the  untreated  check  trees,  the 
population  fell  from  averages  of  59  to  3.5  aphids  over 
40  days.  Unfortunately,  predators  did  not  reduce  aphid 
populations  quickly  enough  to  prevent  damage  during  the 
critical  few  weeks  while  shoots  were  rapidly  growing. 
Treatments  resulting  in  a  shift  from  low  counts  in  May  to 
high  counts  in  June  (Endeavor,  oil,  Lorsban,  and  insecticidal 
soap),  demonstrate  the  ability  of  colonizing  winged 
sexuparae  to  generate  new  colonies  on  trees  from  which 


aphids  had  previously  been  virtually  eliminated  (because  of 
the  earlier  insecticide  spray).  In  these  instances,  predators 
hadn't  yet  had  time  to  find  these  colonies  and  reduce  the 
aphid  population. 

Thiamethoxam  was  exceptional  in  its  residual  protection 
of  trees.  Besides  providing  early  season  control  and 
protection  from  shoot  distortion,  thiamethoxam  also 
generally  prevented  sexuparae  from  establishing  new 
colonies.  The  excellent  overall  control  results  with 
thiamethoxam  and  imidacloprid  suggest  that  other  highly 
systemic  and  selective  experimental  aphicides,  such  as 
acetamiprid  (Assail)  and  flonicamid,  may  be  of  value  for 
balsam  twig  aphid  management. 

Preventing  colony  development  after  the  period  of  shoot 
elongation  may  be  indirectly  beneficial  by  reducing  the 
numbers  of  overwintering  eggs  being  laid,  which  would 
influence  the  pest  pressure  in  the  following  year.  Endeavor, 
oil,  Lorsban,  and  insecticidal  soap  permitted  resurgence  in 
the  pest  population.  Pest  resurgence  in  June  could  actually 
lead  to  worsening  aphid  populations  from  one  year  to  the 
next.  This  scenario  would  only  be  likely  where  there  are 
insecticide  resistant  aphids,  populations  are  left  untreated  in 
the  Christmas  tree  plantation,  or  populations  on  wild  trees 
surrounding  the  farm  re-infest  the  planting  soon  after 
spraying.  In  this  experiment,  use  of  small  plots  in  a 
randomized  complete  block  design  virtually  guaranteed 


Connecticut  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


Bulletin  988 


rapid  recolonization  of  trees  by  winged  aphids  emigrating 
from  the  untreated  checks  and  ineffective  treatments. 

Imidacloprid  applied  to  the  soil  in  the  spring  was  initially 
ineffective  at  reducing  fundatrix  populations,  but  was  the 
only  treatment  that  appeared  to  reduce  the  numbers  of 
sexuparae  and  their  progeny  on  Christmas  trees  in  June 
relative  to  the  untreated  check.  Therefore,  imidacloprid 
applied  as  a  soil  treatment  to  control  white  grubs  or  balsam 
woolly  adelgids  might  provide  partial  protection  from  the 
next  year's  population  of  fundatrices  by  limiting  the  late- 
season  population  growth  of  aphids  and  by  preventing  egg 
laying  on  treated  trees.  This  strategy,  however,  would  have 
little  value  in  providing  reduction  in  shoot  distortion  during 
the  year  of  application. 

Low  volume  spray  experiment.  The  most  effective 
materials  from  the  2000  trials  were  included  in  a  further 
low-volume  application  test  using  a  backpack  mist  blower 
sprayer.  Insecticidal  soap  and  oil  were  not  included  because 
these  materials  are  known  to  require  a  high  spray  volume. 
There  were  six  treatments  in  a  randomized  complete  block 
design  with  six  replicates.  The  block  of  balsam  firs  in 
Somers  had  not  been  sprayed  with  experimental  insecticides 
in  2000,  but  had  been  sprayed  with  chlorpyrifos.  An 
additional  insecticide,  triazamate  (Aphistar  SOW,  Dow 
AgroSciences),  was  included  in  the  test  because  it  was  being 
investigated  for  use  on  true  firs  for  control  of  conifer  root 
aphids,  and  was  expected  to  have  some  activity  against 
balsam  twig  aphids.  Insecticides  were  applied  in  20  gallons 
per  acre  of  spray  with  a  Solo  backpack  mist  blower  on 
May  3,  2001,  under  sunny  90  F  conditions,  and  0-10  mph 
wind.  Aphid  counts  were  taken  with  beating  samples 
conducted  on  May  10  and  June  7,  using  the  same  method  as 
in  2000.  Populations  of  syrphid  larvae,  lacewing  larvae, 
ladybeetle  larvae  and  adults,  and  whirlygig  mites  (Anystis 
spp.)  were  counted  from  additional  June  7  beating  samples, 
using  a  28  inch  square  canvas  beating  sheet  (BioQuip 
Products,  Gardena,  CA).  The  beating  sample  was  a 
composite  from  four  trees,  and  four  subsamples  per  free. 
Damage  ratings  were  taken  on  June  7  by  visually  rating  the 
percent  of  terminal  shoots  that  were  damaged  as  category  0 
(no  damage),  1  (1-25%  curled),  2  (26-50%  curied), 
3  (51-75%  curled)  or  4  (76-100%  curied).  Four  samples  of 
20  shoots  were  evaluated  and  averaged  for  each  plot. 

Materials  tested  with  low-volume  spray  application  were 
not  as  effective  as  when  they  had  been  applied  with  the 
hydraulic  sprayer.  For  example,  Lorsban,  Provado,  Flagship 
and  Endeavor  provided  80,  85,  85  and  27%  control 
(Table  2),  respectively,  compared  with  99.6,  98,  98  and  89% 
control  in  the  previous  year.  The  poorer  efficacy  with  the 
low-volume  spray  may  also  have  been  affected  by  the  later 
spray  timing.  Trees  and  aphids  grew  very  rapidly  in  2001  in 
response  to  unseasonably  hot  weather,  and  the  optimal 
timing  for  balsam  twig  aphid  control  had  passed  before  these 


sprays  were  applied.  Therefore,  the  spray  in  2001  was 
directed  at  controlling  colonies  of  stem  mothers  with  young, 
rather  than  just  the  stem  mothers.  Surprisingly,  this  later 
timing  was  very  effective  in  reducing  foliar  distortion, 
suggesting  that  spraying  later  than  50%  bud  break  on  balsam 
firs  may  be  acceptable  for  managing  these  aphids.  The  most 
impressive  result  was  the  protection  of  Christmas  trees  from 
shoot  damage  with  Aphistar,  which  gave  significantly  better 
control  (95%  reduction  on  May  10)  than  the  other 
treatments.  On  the  other  hand.  Endeavor  did  not  provide  any 
significant  benefit  with  the  low  volume  spray. 

Aphistar  had  the  greatest  impact  on  predator  populations. 
Use  of  Aphistar  significantly  reduced  the  numbers  of 
ladybeetles,  lacewings  and  syrphid  larvae  (Table  3).  As 
these  are  all  aphid  predators  and  there  were  few  aphids 
remaining  following  use  of  this  product,  the  predators  may 
simply  have  starved  or  left  due  to  the  lack  of  food.  Overall, 
the  total  numbers  of  predators  did  not  differ  among  any  of 
the  treatments,  because  the  increased  numbers  of  Anystis 
(whirlygig  mites)  compensated  for  the  reduction  in  the  aphid 
specialist  complex  (Table  3).  While  not  significantly 
different,  there  were  numerically  the  most  predators  in  the 
Aphistar-treated  plots  and  the  fewest  in  the  Lorsban  plots. 

Balsam  twig  aphid  management  guidelines.  Alternatives 
to  chlorpyrifos  with  excellent  activity  against  balsam  twig 
aphid  include  insecticidal  soap,  horticultural  oil,  Aphistar, 
and  Provado.  The  optimal  choice  of  an  insecticide  will 
depend  to  a  large  extent  on  each  grower's  spraying 
equipment.  Horticultural  oil  and  insecticidal  soap  both 
require  high  volume  application,  so  these  materials  are  only 
compatible  with  hydraulic  sprayers  or  small  airblast  sprayers 
that  can  fit  between  rows  of  Christmas  trees.  Insecticidal 
soap  may  be  a  less  desirable  choice  because  it  is  more  costly 
than  horticultural  oil  (1.15-3  times  the  price)  and  controls 
fewer  pests  and  fewer  stages.  For  example,  fewer  spider  mite 
eggs  are  killed  by  soap  than  by  oil  (Osborne  and  Pettit  1985, 
Cowles  and  Abbey  1999).  Some  growers  have  been  satisfied 
with  horticultural  oil,  but  this  material  can  cause  injury  to 
balsam  firs,  characterized  by  browning  and  needle  drop  from 
the  previous  years'  growth.  Additional  research  will  be 
necessary  to  determine  whether  oil's  phytotoxicity  to  balsam 
firs  can  be  avoided  by  adjusting  the  use  rate,  application 
timing,  or  by  including  adjuvants  that  will  encourage  better 
spreading  of  spray  droplets  and  faster  drying.  Horticultural 
oil  is  especially  valuable  for  use  on  Eraser  firs,  because  they 
are  more  tolerant  of  oil  and  are  also  more  susceptible  to 
other  pests  (spruce  spider  mites  and  elongate  hemlock  scale) 
that  can  be  controlled  with  oil.  Horticultural  oil  can  damage 
any  plant  material  if  it  comes  out  of  suspension  in  the  spray 
tank,  which  can  result  in  spraying  undiluted  oil.  Mechanical 
agitation  or  addition  of  surfactants  may  be  necessary  to 
prevent  separation. 

The  remaining  insecticides,  Aphistar  and  Provado,  are 


Management  of  Balsam  Twig  Aphids  in  Christmas  Trees 


Table  2.  Control  of  balsam  twig  aphid  with  a  low-volume  spray  applied  with  a  backpack  mist  blower  (20  gallons  per  acre), 
«  =  6. 


Aphid 

count" 

Control 

(%) 

Damagi 

Product 

Chemical  name 

Rate/Acre 

May  10 

June  7 

May 

10" 

Rating' 

Lorsban  4E 

chlorpyrifos 

16fl.  oz. 

21b 

49a 

80 

1.0b 

Provado  1.6F 

imidacloprid 

8  fl.  oz. 

16b 

40ab 

85 

1.2b 

+  Silwet  L-77 

4  fl.  oz. 

Flagship  25W 

thiamethoxam 

3oz. 

16b 

34ab 

85 

1.5b 

+  Silwet  L-77 

4  fl.  oz. 

Aphistar  50W 

triazamate 

8oz. 

5c 

lie 

95 

0.0c 

+  Silwet  L-77 

4fl.  oz 

Endeavor  SOW 

pymetrozine 

10  oz. 

77a 

22bc 

27 

3.2a 

+  Silwet  L-77 

4  fl.  oz. 

Untreated  check 

106a 

25bc 

_ 

3.2a 

'  Means  in  each  column  followed  by  the  same  letter  are  not  significantly  different,  P  =  0.05,  Newman-Keul's  test  applied  to 
square  root  (x+0.5)  transformed  counts  of  aphids. 

"  Percent  control  is  relative  to  the  population  in  the  untreated  check. 

'  Damage  rating  is  based  on  the  percent  damaged  terminals:  0,  0%;  1,1-  25%;  2,  26  -  50%;  3,51-  75%;  4,  76  -  100%. 


Table  3.  Survival  in  percent  of  balsam  twig  aphid  pregators  with  a  low-volume  spray  applied  with  a  backpack  mist  blower 
(20  gallons  per  acre),  «  =  6. 


Lady 

Lace- 

Whirlygig 

Product 

Chemical  name 

Rate/Acre 

beetle 

wing 

Syrphids 

mites 

Lorsban  4E 

chlorpyrifos 

16fl.  Oz. 

31a 

1.5bc 

12  ab 

6.3a 

Provado  1.6F 

imidacloprid 

8  fl.  Oz. 

13b 

4.3ab 

10  ab 

17a 

+  Silwet  L-77 

4  fl.  Oz. 

Flagship  25W 

thiamethoxam 

3  0z    . 

25a 

1.8bc 

8.2  b 

23a 

+  Silwet  L-77 

4  fl.  Oz. 

Aphistar  50W 

triazamate 

8oz. 

4.5c 

0.2c 

3.0  c 

28a 

+  Silwet  L-77 

4  fl.  Oz. 

Endeavor  50W 

pymetrozine 

10  fl.  Oz. 

6.7a 

15a 

7.5a 

+  Silwet  L-77 

4  fl.  Oz. 

Untreated  check 

26  a 

2.8ab 

13ab 

18a 

"Means  in  each  column  followed  by  the  same  letter  are  not  significantly  different,  P  =  0.05,  Newman-Keul's  test  applied  to 
square  root  (jc+0.5)  transformed  counts  of  predators. 


appropriate  for  use  with  either  low  or  high-volume  spray 
equipment.  Research  in  2001  demonstrated  that  Provado  + 
Silwet  and  Aphistar  were  effective  with  a  low  volume  spray 
volumes  (20  gallons  per  acre).  Aphistar  is  only  available 


under  a  Section  1 8,  or  Emergency  Exemption,  registration. 
Although  this  product  is  systemic,  thorough  spray  coverage 
is  still  required  to  be  effective.  I  have  observed  conspicuous 
failure  of  aphid  control  with  Aphistar  on  the  side  of  trees 


Connecticut  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


Bulletin  988 


opposite  the  mist  blower  sprayer,  a  phenomenon  called  a 
"spray  shadow."  Combining  Provado  with  an  organosilicone 
surfactant  (Silwet  L-77,  Kinetic,  or  CapSil  30)  improves  its 
effectiveness.  For  large  Christmas  tree  plantations,  the  only 
practical  way  to  quickly  apply  an  even  distribution  of  spray 
may  be  to  use  Aphistar  or  Provado  +  surfactant  with  a  boom 
sprayer,  with  the  spray  boom  passing  over  the  tops  of  the 
trees.  Other  alternatives  for  improving  spray  distribution 
may  be  to  remove  the  trees  from  the  center  row  in  each 
block  to  provide  another  drive  row,  to  use  a  small  sprayer 
that  can  fit  between  every  row,  or  to  adjust  the  space 
between  rows  at  the  time  of  planting  to  give  additional  drive 
rows  for  sprayers.  A  backpack  mistblower  could  also  be 
used  to  walk  through  and  spot  spray  just  those  areas  where 
coverage  with  the  tractor-driven  mistblower  is  inadequate. 

Two  areas  need  further  research  for  improving 
management  of  balsam  twig  aphids:  investigation  into 
management  of  the  egg  laying  sexuales  and  improved 
integration  of  chemical,  cultural  and  biological  control. 
Interfering  with  the  egg  laying  activity  of  sexuales,  either 
with  insecticides  or  repellents,  could  provide  a  new  control 
strategy.  Until  recently,  the  residual  activity  of  most 
systemic  insecticides  was  too  short  to  affect  multiple 
generations  of  aphids.  Neonicotinyl  compounds,  however, 
can  control  sucking  insect  pests  over  several  months  when 
used  as  a  soil-applied  systemic  (Varela  et  al.  1996,  Cowles 
and  Cheah  2002).  It  is  especially  intriguing  that  spring 
application  of  imidacloprid  reduced  the  populations  of 
sexuparae  on  trees  (Table  1).  Application  of  this  systemic 
insecticide  (or  similar  materials,  like  thiamethoxam)  to  the 
soil  for  control  of  white  grubs  or  balsam  woolly  adelgid  may 
control  the  sexuparae  and  sexuales  generations,  and  may 
prevent  balsam  twig  aphid  injury  in  the  following  year  by 
reducing  the  numbers  of  overwintering  eggs  (Kleintjes 
1997).  Dramatic  reduction  in  egg  laying  could  lead  to  a 
reduced  need  for  a  spring  application  of  insecticides  and 
improved  chances  that  biological  control  would  be  sufficient 
for  springtime  aphid  population  suppression. 

The  common  practice  of  yearly  application  of 
insecticides  to  manage  balsam  twig  aphids  in  all  true  fir 
plantings  is  not  warranted  by  customer  preferences  and 
economic  risk.  Scouting  and  threshold-based  treatment 
guidelines  could  go  far  toward  reducing  unnecessary 
spraying  for  this  pest  (Kleintjes  et  al.  1999).  The  percent  of 
damaged  shoots  can  sometimes  be  correlated  with  counts  of 
stem  mothers  determined  from  beating  samples  taken  at  bud 
break  (Kleintjes  et  al.  1999).  If  the  estimated  population  of 
stem  mothers  can  be  used  to  predict  the  percent  shoot 
damage,  then  treatment  decisions  can  be  based  on  this 
information,  whether  the  threshold  used  is  relatively  low  (for 
wholesale-marketed  trees)  or  higher  (for  choose-and-cut 
marketing). 


Further  advances  in  balsam  twig  aphid  management  will 
require  integration  of  biological,  cultural,  and  chemical 
control  to  stabilize  aphid  populations  at  non-economic 
population  levels.  Key  to  this  effort  will  be  clarification  of 
the  seasonal  population  dynamics  of  the  aphid  predators  and 
parasitoids,  with  a  special  focus  on  improving  the 
establishment  and  success  of  the  beneficial  species  active  at 
the  same  time  as  the  fundatrix  generation.  Hannonia 
axyridis,  the  multicolored  Asian  ladybeetle,  and  Anystis 
mites  were  especially  common  and  active,  and  would  be 
good  prospects.  The  balsam  twig  aphids  have  a  short  season 
of  activity,  so  ground  covers  that  support  other  species  of 
aphids  could  in  turn  support  these  predators  further  through 
the  growing  season  and  increase  their  overwintering 
populations.  Further  investigations  should  optimize  the  use 
of  selective  aphicides  so  that  they  would  only  be  used  at 
times  when  there  is  a  risk  that  aphid  populations  are  great 
enough  relative  to  predator  populations  to  risk  economic 
damage. 

REFERENCES 

Cowles,  R.S.  and  T.M.  Abbey.  1999.  Of  mites  and  men. 
Amer.  Nurseryman  190(4):  68-77. 

Cowles,  R.S.  and  CAS-J  Cheah.  2002.  Systemic  control 
of  hemlock  woolly  adelgid,  1999.  Arthropod  Management 

Tests  27-  G47. 

Fritt,  J.R.  1993.  The  benefit  of  fumigant  action  of 
chloropyrifos  for  control  of  cotton  aphid.  Down  to  Earth 
48(2):  8-12. 

Johnson,  W.T.  and  H.H.  Lyon.  1988.  Insects  that  feed  on 
trees  and  shrubs.  Cornell  University  Press.  Ithaca,  NY. 

Kleintjes,  P.K.  1997.  Midseason  insecticide  treatment  of 
balsam  twig  aphids  (Homoptera:  Aphididae)  and  their 
aphidophagous  predators  in  a  Wisconsin  Christmas  tree 
plantation.  Environ.  Entomol.  26:  1393-1397. 

Kleintjes,  P.K.,  E.E.  LeMoine,  J.  Schroeder,  and  M.J. 
Solensky.  1999.  Comparison  of  methods  for  monitoring 
Mindarus  abietinus  (Homoptera:  Aphididae)  and  their 
potential  damage  in  Christmas  tree  plantations.  J.  Econ. 
Entomol.  92:  638-643. 

Osborne,  L.S.  and  F.L.  Petitt.  1985.  Insecticidal  soap  and 
the  predatory  mite,  Phytoseiulus  persimilis  (Acari: 
Phytoseiidae),  used  in  management  of  the  twospotted  spider 
mite  (Acari:  Tetranychidae)  on  greenhouse  grown  foliage 
plants.  J.  Econ.  Entomol.  78:  687-691. 

Varela,  L.G.,  R.S.  Cowles,  and  D.R.  Donaldson.  1996. 
Spring  insecticide  treatments  control  adelgids  on  Douglas- 
fir.  California  Agriculture  50  (5):  34-37. 


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