The Effects of Several Minerals on Pistachio Psylla Agonoscena pistaciae Burckhardt and Lauterer (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) Control in Orchard Conditions

Common pistachio psylla (Agonoscena pistaciae) is the key pest of pistachio orchards in Iran. To control this pest, the Iranian gardeners are thus forced to use large amounts of chemical pesticides; this results in environmental pollution, the destruction of natural enemies of the pests, and the outbreak of pistachio pests. Given the low risk of mineral insecticides for both humans and the environment as well as the superiority of mineral substances to chemical compounds in terms of the pest’s resistance to insecticides, the present study has investigated the insecticide effects of some mineral compounds including lime sulfur (4000 ppm), boric acid (1000 ppm), kaolin + nonionic surfactant (NIS) (10000 ppm+ 1000 ppm) and potassium silicate+ nonionic surfactant (3000 ppm+ 1000ppm) on pistachio psylla nymphs. This study was conducted in a completely randomized block design in orchard conditions. Based on the results of the present study, in comparison to the other treatments, the compound of potassium silicate+ non-ionic surfactant reduced the population of nymphs in 5, 10, and 25 days for 854.14± 78.32, 804.23± 70.05, and 554.23± 57.75 percent respectively; it had the greatest effect on the controlling the population of pistachio psylla nymphs. Thus, these mineral compounds can be used to control pistachio psylla in pistachio orchards.