16—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, ApHI 28,1979
Japanese beetle repellant discovered
WASHINGTON, D.C. -
Japanese beetles will starve
before they will eat some
plants treated with extracts
of the seed from the East
Indian neem tree. Three
years of research at
Wooster, Ohio, has shown
good protection of soybean
plants by spraying 'with
neem seed extracts.
“Seeds of the tree have
long been reputed to repel
insects and deter them from
feeding,” says Thyril L.
Ladd, entomologist and
research leader of SEA’s
Japanese Beetle Research
Laboratory at Wooster. “So,
we decided to examine
extracts of the seeds to
determine whether they
affect feeding of Japanese
beetles.”
Japanese beetles are
known to feed on about 300
different plants including
Hallowell
township
supervisors
HERSHEY Secretary of
Agriculture Penrose
Hallowell announced the
appointment of John M.
Drake, Blair County, as a
regional director in the
Department’s Allentown
office. Drake serves as the'
president of the Penn
sylvania State Association of
Township Supervisors.
HalloweUl addressed the
Pennsylvania State
Association of Township
Supervisors at their 57th
Annual Convention held in
Hershey, April 25.
HaUowell stated that so
far, farmland has tax wise
supported land develop
ment “If we are going to see
more farm land preserved”
be said, “we are going to
have to plan for development
as well.”
Hallowell told the
supervisors that he and the
Department of Agriculture
were anxious to help them
with problems they might
incur.
In the area of sewage
sludge, HaUowell said that
his department has done
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grapes, roses, birch, elm,
rhubarb, and even poison
ivy. The grub stagelives in
the soil and loves good turf,
where it consumes the roots,
reducing growth and even
killing the grass in severe
cases. Turf is especially
susceptible to beetle damage
in dry weather. Dr. Ladd
says.
The beetles are slowly
spreading from their
present range which runs
from southeastern Canada to
Georgia and from Delaware
to Missouri.
Using sassafras foliage as
the test material, SEA
scientists tried” three dif
ferent extracts from the
neem seed in 1975. They
tested five concentrations of
each extract, ranging from
0.25 to 10 per cent, which
were applied to one-half of
the leaf. The leaves were
addresses
some research in this area.
If the process is done right,
“it can prove to be an asset
to farmland.”
Rural roads and bridges
that pose a severe problem
need to be identified he said.
Also bridges with weight
I’xnits whidi pose a problem
for heavy feed trucks and
farm equipment-should be
identified. He told the
supervisors be would help to
get more tax dollars to
better these roads.
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then placed in containers
with 25 beetles. In an ad
ditional test, entire leaves
were treated and placed in
pots without a supply of
untreated leaves for the
beetles.
“When leaves were
checked 24 to 48 hours later,
the treatment showed ex
cellent, results, “Dr. Ladd
said. Untreated leaf halves
were completely consumed
except for veins. Treated
leaf halves were practically
untouched. Only the leaves
receiving the lowest con
centrations showed slight
indications of feeding.
“When beetles were of
fered only treated leaves, we
found occasional small scars
on the leaf surfaces,” Dr.
Ladd said. “Some beetles
died rather than consume
the treated sassafras
leaves.”
Because of the successful
results, both laboratory and
field tests were conducted in
1976 using soybeans. The
tests were designed to
evaluate the residual effects
of the neem seed extracts on
beetle feeding.
Beeson variety soybeans
were sprayed in die field and
leaves were picked and
placed in pots in the
laboratory with 40 beetles at
various intervals over a 17-
day period. The leaves were
checked for damage after 24
hours.
Beetles rapidly destroyed
untreated foliage, Dr. Ladd
said, while neem-treated
leaflets collected 3 days
after treatment remained
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undamaged. Those collected
12 days after treatment
suffered only slight damage,
and those tested at 17 days
showed only moderate
feeding.
Other treated plants were
left in the field and checked
for damage. Repellency
was still protecting the
plants 14 days after treat
ment in the midst of heavily
damaged, untreated
soybean plants, Dr. Ladd
said.
In 1977, the third year of
tests, randomly selected
plants were treated in the
field on a 3- or 7-day
schedule. Baits were used to
attract beetles to the area.
Beetle counts were made on
the plants each day and
feeding damage , was
evaluated at the end of the
test.
The differences in feeding
on neem-treated plants and
untreated plants were
striking,' Dr. Ladd said.
Thirty-six times as many
beetles were counted on
untreated plants as were
found on those sprayed on
the 3-day schedule with
neem extract. Part of the
test had to be terminated
after 9 days even though
plants treated on the 3-day
schedule were relatively
untouched because the
untreated plants were
destroyed.
“Our studies show that
extracts of neem seeds are
uniquely effective as a
deterrent to Japanese beetle
feeding,” Dr. Ladd said.
“Since other research has
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shown these extracts to
deter other insect pests, they
may be useful in a number of
pest management systems.”
“We are looking at a
variety of approaches to the
Japanese beetle problem,”
Dr. Ladd said. “The neem
seed extract looks good so
far. It is a natural material
and, hopefully, should not be
a hazard x to the en
vironment.”
Research chemist Martin
Jacobson, chief of USDA’s
Biologically Active Natural
Products Laboratory,
Beltsville, Md., cooperated
with Dr. Ladd on the project
Research technician Charles
R. Buriff also worked with
Dr. Ladd at Wooster. The
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Beltsvxlle laboratory is
continuing its cooperation by
isolating the active com
pounds and providing these
to Dr. Ladd for evaluation.
Jacobson says the neem
tree is a commercially
grown crop in India where
the seed oil is used in
medications and as fuel in
lamps, as well as for
repelling insects. For
example, in India, the seeds
are commonly mixed with
grain in storage to keep
insects out -
Dr. Thyril L. Ladd, Jr., is
with the Japanese Beetle
Laboratory, Ohio
.Agricultural Research and
Development Center,
Wooster, Ohio 44691.