Arthropod Pest Management in Strawberry

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Strawberry is a commercially important crop which is produced and consumed globally. As there is an increase in economic significance of strawberry production, growers across the globe face challenges in protecting the crop against insect and mite pests. The damage from insect pests results in significant yield loss which adversely affects the strawberry industry. To overcome this situation, management of pests is warranted with reduced impact on the environment and beneficial organisms. Even though insecticide-driven management practices predominate in the strawberry production system, the use of non-chemical alternatives is also gaining importance. The current review is aimed at discussing the important pests of strawberry and various integrated pest management practices adopted worldwide to reduce the damage impact and improve production. ABSTRACT: The strawberry crop endures economic losses due to feeding injury from a number of phytophagous arthropod pests. A number of invasive pests have posed challenges to crop protection techniques in the strawberry cropping system recently. It is increasingly evident that sole reliance on chemical control options is not sustainable. In this review, current challenges and advances in integrated pest management of various strawberry pests are presented. Key pests discussed include thrips, mites, lygus bug, spotted wing drosophila, seed bug, weevils, aphids, whiteflies, and armyworms. Several integrated pest management techniques that include use of intercropping, resistant cultivars, irradiation with gamma rays, use of spectral sensitivity of pests, biological control agents and natural enemies, and biorational pesticides have recently been reported to be useful in managing the various strawberry pests. With the increase in world production of strawberry, several techniques will be necessary to manage the pest complex of strawberry.