Greg Teske and Harrison Turner are horticultural agronomists with Elders Gatton in Queensland. From them, Sumitomo's XenTari biological insecticide has a valuable place in their pest control programs for brassica vegetable crops.
Greg has been helping growers manage pests in the Gatton area for over 20 years and has been using XenTari since it was launched. Greg previously used Dipel DF for quite some time.
XenTari and DiPel DF are similar insecticides from Sumitomo Agrosolutions, although XenTari is the world’s only biological insecticide containing the naturally potent Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) sub-species aizawai (ABTS-1857 strain), giving it superior control against certain caterpillar pests.
The key issues for controlling brassica pests according to Greg and Harrison are being able to check crops regularly and timing of applications to target the most vulnerable stages of caterpillar development. Spray coverage is also a key factor in maintaining insect control.
Greg said the focus has changed over time, where resistance management and preserving beneficial insects is now of highest priority.
“Group 28 resistance has elevated the importance of XenTari in our insect control programs, especially during the cooler months,” Greg said.
“There is less UV breakdown, insect lifecycles are longer and growth dilution in plants is slower, maximizing the benefit we get from a biological like XenTari.
“XenTari is very effective on target pests, highly compatible with IPM programs and has no WHP or MRL issues farmers need to worry about.”
Greg went on to say that XenTari is very trustworthy and has a great reputation, coming from the same factory that introduced DiPel over 50 years ago.
Greg is fanatical about utilising natural enemies in the crop and using XenTari is highly complementary, ensuring farmers can keep stronger chemistry on hand for when they might really need them.
According to Greg and Harrison, other things growers like about XenTari is that there are no restrictions to how many times in a season it can be used. It also has no crop re-entry periods, and not being a scheduled poison, is very safe to use.
XenTari also comes in convenient 5-kilogram buckets, with re-sealable lids.
In summary, XenTari remains a key tool in pest control programs for brassica vegetable crops. Anyone growing these crops could benefit,including for its soft IPM friendly profile and effectiveness against the key caterpillar pests.
This article was written by Sumitomo for Seasons magazine.
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