The efficacy of certain insecticides against whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Genn.) on tomato and their effects on fruit quality

The efficiency of sulfoxaflor, cyantraniliprole, imidacloprid and azadirachtin were evaluated against whitefly, Bemisia tabaci on tomato under field conditions. Two experiments in season 2021 showed that sulfoxaflor , cyantraniliprole and imidacloprid were the most effective insecticides compared to azadirachtin. Sulfoxaflor gave the highest reduction of B.tabaci one day after treatment (initial kill). The results also showed that the infestation of B.tabaci can be greatly reduced by spraying sulfoxaflor and cyantraniliprole. Tomato fruit yield was significantly increased after an application of all the tested insecticides when compared to untreated control. All the insecticides caused a slight but significant decrease in fruit quality attributes. Overall, our findings indicated that sulfoxflor and cyantraniliprole can suitably be included in IPM program of whitefly control in tomato. However, the potential side effects on tomato fruit should be considered.