Impact of greenhouse whitefly management on strawberry fruit quality

The greenhouse whitefly, Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood), is an important pest of strawberries in California, USA. The adults and nymphs feed on phloem sap of leaves to remove the photo‐assimilates. The objective of this study is to test the impact of whitefly management with insecticides on strawberry fruit quality. Applications of imidacloprid, thiamethoxam, buprofezin and pyriproxyfen decreased the mean adult white‐fly numbers by 2.80‐, 2.17‐, 1.69‐ and 1.39‐fold, respectively, compared to the untreated control. Similarly, the mean numbers of first and second instar whiteflies were reduced 4.36‐, 2.20‐, 1.90‐ and 2.02‐fold, respectively, while the mean numbers of third and fourth instars were reduced 5.48‐, 2.28‐, 2.71‐ and 1.43‐fold, respectively, in plants treated with imidacloprid, thiamethoxam, buprofezin and pyriproxyfen. The mean soluble solids content in imidacloprid, thiamethoxam, buprofezin and pyriproxyfen treatments was 1.04‐, 1.06‐, 1.03‐ and 1.04‐fold greater, respectively, than that in the control. The whitefly reduction enhanced the mean fruit titratable acidity by 4%‐6%. Mean glucose levels in imidacloprid and thiamethoxam treatments were significantly higher than in other treatments. However, the whitefly management did not affect the mean fructose levels. Imidacloprid, thiamethoxam and pyriproxyfen treatments boosted the ascorbic acid levels by up to 4%. The impact of whitefly management on strawberry fruit nutrition and antioxidant capacity is discussed.