Recommendations for managing banana weevils

Recommendation for integrated weevil management for plantain production
Management of weevils for plantain production

Thematic area:
Sanitary and phytosanitary management
Productive system:
Plantain
Geographic coverage:
Andean, Amazon, and Caribbean regions

Recommendation for integrated weevil management for plantain production

Description

The technological recommendation makes available to the producer the integrated management practices of weevils in plantain cultivation by installing traps made from pseudostems of harvested plants and/or taking advantage of low-vigor plants. The recommended traps are the wedge type, the disc type or the simple strain, and the hinge type or the modified strain type.

The recommendation is to monitor, capture, and destroy insects every two or three days from their installation and subsequently every week for no more than one month. Suppose an average of more than five adults are captured per trap during monitoring; in this case, the recommendation is to treat the traps with the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana and, in extreme cases, treat the traps with contact and ingestion insecticides of a low toxicological category registered nationally for its use in plantain cultivation.

With the implementation of this technology, it is possible to reduce populations and damage in Musaceae plantations, and the expected productivity of the crop is guaranteed since it reduces the loss of productive sites and also contributes to the reduction of the environmental impact through the more rational utilization and efficient use of agrochemicals to control these pest insects.

The management of weevils through the implementation of this technology allows a better quality of the racemes, ensures the expected yield due to the reduction of losses of productive sites, and increases production compared to plantations without integrated management of pest insects (an increase of 1.3 tons/hectare). Additionally, it is possible to reduce the application of chemical molecules by up to 100 % with the implementation of traps treated with Beauveria bassiana.

Its use is recommended for the departments of Antioquia, Arauca, Caldas, Cundinamarca, Quindío, and Risaralda.