USE OF ENTOMOPATHOGENIC MICRO-ORGANISMS IN THE CONTROL OF HARMFUL INSECTS IN AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY

The insect micro-organisms, like most pathogens of other vertebrates, are the integral part of the ecosystem and play in the nature an important part in the regulation of their host\u27s numbers. However, their mass rearing and use as an active agent in the control of harmful insects is of recent date. For the time being, the industrial production of preparations is based on entomopathogenic organisms belonging only to few groups: a) Entomopathogenic fungi There exists, for the present, but a single semi-industrial preparation of Soviet production „Boverin“ which is used for the control of harmful insects in the soil, such as: B. punctiventris Germ., cockshafer (M. melolontha L.) and some others. b) Entomopathogenic bacteria For industrial production is used chiefly B. thuringiensis Berliner. The best known are Thuricide and Dipel TM in USA, Bactospein in France and Entobakterin 3 in USSR. All these preparations are used chiefly for control of harmful Lepidoptera. According to the results of investigations made in our country, Dipel TM can used againt the Gypsy Moth (L. dispar L.) under field conditions before the abundance. Against the Fall Webworm (H. cunea Drury) Dipel TM and Bactospein reach a high efficiency ,in the concentration of o. 01% (tab. 1). Under conditions in practice Dipel TM has been used with satisfactory results since 1972. The same preparation reaches a high efficiency under field conditions agains the European cabbage worm (P. brassicae and rapae) in the concentration of 0.1% (tab.2). Againt the European corn borer (O. nubilalis Hbn) Diept - G reaches the efficiency equal to that of chemical insecticides (tab. 3 and 4). c) Entomopathogenic viruses For the time being, there exists but a single registered virus preparation „Biotrol VH2“, which is produced in USA and used for the control of Heliothis in tobacco and in corn. According to the existing projects in USA, by the end of 1980 there ought to be realized the production of about ten virus preparations