Isopyrazam is a new broad-spectrum, foliar-absorbed and -translocated succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor fungicide. In this study, 159 Botrytis cinerea isolates collected from different geographical regions of Shandong Province of China were characterized for baseline sensitivity to isopyrazam. Furthermore, the protective and curative activity of isopyrazam on strawberry fruit and the control efficacy in the field were also determined. In contrast to its mycelial growth, the spore germination of B. cinerea was inhibited completely by lower concentrations of isopyrazam, about 1 μg ml⁻¹ on yeast-peptone-acetate medium. Frequency distributions of isopyrazam 50% effective concentration (EC₅₀) values were unimodal curves, with mean EC₅₀ values of 0.07 ± 0.04 (standard deviation) and 0.68 ± 0.36 μg ml⁻¹ for the inhibition of spore germination and mycelial growth, respectively. In addition, there was no positive multiple resistance between isopyrazam and other classes of botryticides such as diethofencarb, iprodione, pyrimethanil, or SYP-Z048. In field trials conducted during 2014 and 2015, isopyrazam used at a concentration of active ingredient at 150 and 200 g ha⁻¹ provided a control efficacy ranging from 76.7 to 87.8% on leaves and from 81.5 to 90.7% on fruit. These results suggest that isopyrazam has the potential to play an important role in the management of gray mold.

With the widespread adoption of no-tillage technology, outbreaks of thrips have caused serious damage to summer corn fields in China. Therefore, effective control of pest populations is often essential for cost-effective crop production. In this study, experiments were conducted in 2014 and 2015 to determine the control efficacy of seven neonicotinoid insecticide seed treatments against corn thrips and the effects of these treatments on natural enemy population densities and emergence rates, seedling characteristics, and yield of corn. The results showed that among the tested neonicotinoid seed treatments, thiamethoxam (1.0 and 2.0 g active ingredient (AI)/kg of seeds), clothianidin (1.0 and 2.0 g AI/kg of seeds), and imidacloprid (2.0 g AI/kg of seeds) showed the highest control efficacy against corn thrips throughout the corn growing season. Seed treatments with acetamiprid, nitenpyram, dinotefuran, and thiacloprid at rates of 1.0 and 2.0 g AI/kg of seeds were difficult to effectively control thrips on summer corn. Neonicotinoid seed treatments showed no adverse effects on the numbers of spiders and lady beetles. Furthermore, treatments did not negatively influence the seedling growth or development of corn but did prevent yield losses. Therefore, treating corn seeds with thiamethoxam, clothianidin, and imidacloprid can provide effective protection against early-season thrips and reduce yield losses under field conditions.

The tea green leafhopper Empoasca onukii Matsuda (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), the orange spiny whitefly, Aleurocanthus spiniferus (Quaintanca) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), and the green plant bugs Apolygus lucorum Meyer-Dür (Hemiptera: Miridae) are the important piercing–sucking herbivores in tea trees Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze (Theaceae). The goal of this study was to evaluate the laboratory toxicities and field control efficacies of botanical insecticides including matrine, azadirachtin, veratrine, and pyrethrin to three tea pests. Via leaf-dip bioassay, toxicity tests with botanical insecticides indicated that there were significant differences between the LC₅₀ values for botanical insecticides within the same insect species. Matrine had the highest toxicity to E. onukii, A. spiniferus, and A. lucorum with the LC₅₀ values of 2.35, 13.10, and 44.88 mg/liter, respectively. Field tests showed that, among four botanical insecticides, matrine at dose of 9 g a.i. ha⁻¹ can significantly reduce the numbers of E. onukii and A. spiniferus and the infestation of A. lucorum on the tea plants. Furthermore, botanical insecticides matrine and azadirachtin had no obvious influence on the coccinellids, spiders, and parasitoids densities in tea plantations. The results of this study indicated that use of botanical insecticides, such as matrine, has the potential to manipulate the population of E. onukii, A. spiniferus, and A. lucorum and will be an effective and environmentally compatible strategy for the control of tea pests.