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Strawberry fruit are subject to three different types of bronzing damage that cause discoloration of the fruit surface and loss of market quality. Type I and Type II bronzing both occur in localized areas of the fruit and are caused by arthropod feeding and chemical phytotoxicity, respectively. In contrast, Type III bronzing (T3B) covers the entire fruit and is associated with environmental and plant stress factors, although many growers and crop advisers believe that T3B is caused by thrips feeding. The purpose of our 3-year study was to investigate incidence of T3B as affected by crop management practices and thrips populations. Replicated field trials demonstrated that overhead cooling with sprinklers resulted in a significant reduction in T3B incidence. In addition, a series of foliar pesticide spray applications also resulted in reduced T3B damage to strawberry fruit. Foliar applications of Thiolux sulfur, other registered pesticides, and lignin products all resulted in reduced incidence of T3B in field trials. In contrast, T3B incidence was not associated with thrips populations; insecticide-treated plots had reduced thrips populations and comparable T3B incidence to nontreated plots that had greater thrips populations. Our study provides evidence that T3B occurrence is associated with exposure to elevated temperatures and solar radiation rather than thrips feeding and that growers can reduce T3B incidence by implementing production practices that reduce plant stress and protect fruit from radiation damage.

Reductions in strawberry yields were observed in association with infestations of the greenhouse whitefly, Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood). The magnitude of yield impact is estimated using data from a field experiment evaluating nine management approaches for the greenhouse whitefly on strawberries, var. Camarosa. A range of effectiveness and yields was found. Imidacloprid (Admire) applied at transplanting was found to provide the greatest effect on adult whitefly densities. Pyriproxyfen (Esteem) had no immediate effect on adult density but reduced nymphal densities over time. Pairing the use of these products at transplant (Admire) and early spring (Esteem) provided the greatest reduction in whitefly density observed relative to an untreated control. Reductions in strawberry yields were found to increase as whitefly densities grow or as populations persist over time. For example, the estimates from our analysis suggest that at 20 weeks after planting, an average whitefly population may reduce average weekly yields in an untreated field by ≈80 g/plant.

Eighteen strawberry genotypes from the University of California's breeding population were evaluated over two years for yield and fruit size with complete, partial, and no control of natural infestation by Tetranychus urticae Koch. The numbers of mites per leaf accumulated for the entire season or counted at peak infestation, and the number of mite-days accumulated for the season for partial control treatments were 31.7% to 44.0% of corresponding values realized for uncontrolled infestation, and values differed significantly between treatments for all three variables. Yields for the no-control and partial-control treatments averaged 81.6% and 85.0% of the yields obtained with complete spidermite suppression for the 2 trial years; fruit sizes were 95.1% and 92.0% for corresponding comparisons. Yield and fruit size differed significantly between the complete-control treatment and any level of infestation, but statistically significant differences between partial and complete mite control treatments were detected only for fruit size in a single year. Analysis of variance demonstrated significant or highly significant variation due to control level, genotype, and their interactions for both yield and fruit size, but resolution of variance components demonstrated that genetic × treatment interactions explained just 0% to 8% of the phenotypic variance for yield and fruit size in a 2-year evaluation. Genotypic variances, those reflecting genetic effects that were stable across treatments, were at least 9.3 times as large as interaction variances for these traits. There appears to be no evidence for partial resistance that might be expressed at intermediate levels of spidermite infestation.

Strawberry plants (`Commander') were grown with different polyethylene bed mulches in the 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 production seasons to determine the effect of mulch on plant growth, yield performance and incidence of Type III strawberry fruit bronzing (T3B), a fruit disorder of unknown origin. In 1999-2000, T3B incidence ranged from 1.8% to 3.7% of total yield, and use of clear, full-bed (CFB) mulch resulted in significantly less T3B incidence than either clear center-strip mulch (CS), or yellow-on-black full-bed mulch. Plant canopy vegetative growth and shoot to root dry mass ratios were greatest for CFB compared to other mulch treatments, but there was no effect of mulch treatment on yield or fruit size. Winter temperatures in 2000-2001 were colder than in 1999-2000, with reduced vegetative growth and increased T3B incidence in spring for all mulch treatments. Use of CFB mulch resulted in greater vegetative growth, greater yield, increased fruit size and reduced T3B incidence compared to CS or green full-bed mulch, but there was no difference among mulch treatments for number of T3B fruit per plot for any single fruit harvest interval. In 2000-2001, the onset of severe T3B symptoms on 7 May was preceded by a brief period of ambient temperatures >31 °C. For all treatments, peak T3B incidence occurred from late May to mid-June, a period characterized by high ambient temperatures and high irradiance conditions. Results indicate that temperature and radiation are significant factors in the development of T3B, and that increased plant vegetative growth in winter results in greater yields and a lower percentage of T3B-affected fruit, particularly in years with cold winters. Managing strawberry plantations to optimize plant growth and development in winter appears to be an effective strategy for reducing the severity of this disorder.

Temperatures recorded by weather stations and within the canopy of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) crops were compared in fields near Davis, Calif., during Summer 1983 (60 days) and 1987 (50 days). For both years, the average maximum and minimum temperatures, daily temperature ranges, degree days per day, and total accumulated degree days were compared. In 1983, the mean maximum temperature at the weather station did not differ significantly from that in the canopy, but the mean minimum temperature at the weather station was significantly lower than that in the canopy. In 1987, the mean maximum temperature at the weather station was significantly higher than that in the canopy, but mean minimum temperatures did not differ significantly. Temperature ranges were significantly narrower for the weather station toward the end of the 1983 season, and significantly wider for the weather station at midseason 1987. Comparisons of degree days per day showed significant differences between means at the weather station and in the canopy in 1983, and among those at the weather station and the two degree day calculation methods used for temperatures recorded in the canopy. Total accumulated degree days based on temperature records at the weather station were lower than those in the canopy in 1983 but higher in 1987. In 1987, the single sine degree day calculation method overestimated degree days compared to the 2-hr triangulation method. The phenology of the tomato crop as predicted by weather station temperatures indicated that tomato maturation was underestimated in 1983 and overestimated in 1987. The rate of development for hypothetical populations of Heliothis zea (Boddie) and Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) within the tomato crop was again underestimated in 1983 and overestimated in 1987, as based on temperature data of the weather station.

Forty-eight strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa Duchesne) or (Fragaria L. sp.) genotypes from the University of California advanced-cycle breeding population were evaluated over 7 years for susceptibility to and tolerance of infestation by two-spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae Koch). In pairwise tests, 23 photoperiodically short-day genotypes were compared with the short-day cultivar Chandler, and 23 day-neutral genotypes to the day-neutral cultivar Selva. Feeding by T. urticae resulted in substantial yield reductions regardless of genotype. Yield reduction from feeding by T. urticae averaged 29.9% for short-day and 23% for day-neutral genotypes. Calculation of variance components for day-neutral genotypes determined that none of the variation in yield was explained by the interaction of genotype and T. urticae infestation, whereas 24.4% of the variation in yield for short-day genotypes was explained by the interaction of genotype and T. urticae infestation. Under current strawberry production practices in California there appears to be little potential for breeding direct resistance to T. urticae for day-neutral genotypes. However, some gains in breeding direct T. urticae resistance may be achieved within short-day genotypes. Phenotypic path-coefficient analysis for direct and indirect effects, and simple correlation coefficients of T. urticae feeding determined there were substantial differences between short-day and day-neutral genotypes in their yield responses to T. urticae feeding. For short-day genotypes, the greatest direct effect on yield resulted from T. urticae feeding in June. For day-neutral genotypes, the greatest direct effects resulted from T. urticae feeding in April and May and were probably due to the day-neutral genotype's more complex flowering responses. Several high-yielding cultivars have been developed and released over the 7 years of this study. It appears the new cultivars that were bred for current cultural practices exhibited a consistent plant response for greater yield both in the presence and absence of T. urticae feeding.