Controlling tomato/potato psyllid in a home garden
A new insect pest is attacking tomatoes, potatoes and related crops in New Zealand gardens.
The tomato/potato psyllid from North America was first found in New Zealand in 2006, and is still spreading throughout the country. The psyllid can transmit a bacterium, Liberibacter, that is believed to cause the disease ‘psyllid yellows’ in tomatoes and potatoes, and to cause ‘zebra chip’ in cooked potato tubers. These diseases can drastically reduce the quality and yield of infected crops.
Plant & Food Research has produced a leaflet to help home gardeners recognise the pest and its associated diseases, including guidance on control methods. “There are several kinds of psyllid found in home gardens in New Zealand,” says entomologist Peter Workman of Plant &Food Research, “but only this newly arrived tomato/potato psyllid is known to carry the Liberibacter bacterium.
“Tomato/potato psyllid can be a problem for home gardeners, because it breeds on a range of garden crops from the Solonaceae and Convulvulaceae families. Aside from tomatoes and potatoes, this psyllid can also be found on capsicums, chillis, egg plant and tamarillos as well as on kumara, Apple of Peru and poroporo.
“Gardeners should be vigilant and treat any plants that have been infested with psyllids as quickly as possible to reduce the risk of spreading disease.”
An information leaflet about the tomato/potato psyllid, including:
• How to spot it
• What damage it can cause to garden crops
• How to manage it
is available at www.insectwatch.com.
what do you control this psyllid with
We were told about the potato/tomato psyllid at a local gardening business. We had a lot of trouble with what we thought was rust in our potatos and had very poor tomatos this season, which we put down to a very cold wet spring. However, after a further discussion with staff at Bateups I was told the adult of the above looked like a tiny cicada, and have discovered that not only are there pysillids on our tamarillo plant, but our neighbour also has an psyllid infestation on their still growing cherry tomatos! There are no psyllids on their pepinos- is that likely to also be a host?
Hi
There is an article on this subject on our web site at
wallyjr@gardenews.co.nz
Regards
Wally Richards
The insect are very harmful for growing tomato or any planting process. So precaution measure may be adopted
glasshouse