1. Insect
  2. Vegetable Crops
  3. Vegetable Crops
  4. Hosts and Pests of Vegetable Crops

Tomato-Flea beetle

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Includes tuber flea beetle (Epitrix tuberis)

Pest description, crop damage and life history

See:

Common Pests of Vegetable Crops

Pest monitoring Monitor fields for flea beetles soon after transplanting or after the seedlings emerge. Treat for flea beetles when small holes show on transplants or on plants from seeded fields. Young plants often withstand flea beetle injury, but they may be killed if the weather is dry and windy. The percentage of plants affected and forecasted weather conditions will indicate the need to treat.

When flea beetles on seedlings are migrating from hosts outside of the field, most of the infestation will be localized within 200 ft of borders. Check the distribution of leaf feeding to see if this is the case, and consider border treatments only. If high populations exist 1 to 2 weeks before harvest and foliage is declining as a food source for the beetles, spot treat according to the distribution of the flea beetle.

Management-cultural control

Research in California has shown that seedling damage is significantly higher in fields previously planted to tomatoes. If possible, rotate tomatoes with a nonhost crop. In fields not previously planted to tomatoes, flea beetle infestations are usually located at field borders.

"Trap crops" such as radish or daikon may help lure flea beetles away from the main crop, but this has not been tested in the Pacific Northwest. Floating row covers or other screening can be used to exclude the beetles during seedling establishment of high-value crops. Flea beetles can be vacuumed off foliage, but this must be repeated frequently. Reinvasion of plants can be rapid.

Management-chemical control: HOME USE

  • acetamiprid
  • azadirachtin (neem oil)-Some formulations are OMRI-listed for organic use.
  • bifenthrin (often as a mix with zeta-cypermethrin).
  • carbaryl
  • cyfluthrin
  • deltamethrin
  • esfenvalerate
  • gamma-cyhalothrin
  • imidacloprid
  • lambda-cyhalothrin
  • malathion
  • permethrin
  • plant essential oils (rosemary, etc.)-Some formulations are OMRI-listed for organic use.
  • pyrethrins-Some formulations are OMRI-listed for organic use.
  • spinosad
  • zeta-cypermethrin

Management-chemical control: COMMERCIAL USE

  • azadirachtin (Neemix 4.5)- See label for rates. REI 4 hr. Acts slowly; apply early. Thorough coverage and repeat applications are necessary. Some formulations are OMRI-listed for organic use.
  • alpha-cypermethrin (Fastac EC) at 0.014 to 0.025 lb ai/a. PHI 1 day. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 7 days. Do not exceed 0.075 lb ai/a per season.
  • beta-cyfluthrin (Baythroid XL) at 0.022 lb ai/a. PHI 0 days. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 7 days. Do not exceed 0.132 lb ai/a per season.
  • beta-cyfluthrin/imidacloprid (Leverage 360) at 0.096 lb ai/a. PHI 0 days. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 7 days. Do not exceed 0.12 lb ai/a beta-cyfluthrin or 0.24 lb ai/a imidacloprid per season.
  • bifenthrin (Brigade WSB) at 0.033 to 0.08 lb ai/a. PHI 1 day. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 10 days. Limit 4 treatments. Do not exceed 0.32 lb ai/a per season.
  • bifenthrin/avermectin (Athena) at 0.05 to 0.12 lb ai/a. PHI 7 days. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 10 days. Do not exceed 0.056 lb ai/a avermectin or 0.2 lb ai/a bifenthrin per season.
  • bifenthrin/imidacloprid (Brigadier) at 0.06 to 0.15 lb ai/a. PHI 1 day. REI 12 hr. Do not exceed 0.24 lb ai/a imidacloprid and 0.4 lb ai/a bifenthrin. Retreatment interval 10 days. Do not graze livestock in treated areas or cut for feed.
  • bifenthrin/zeta-cypermethrin (Hero EW) at 0.04 to 0.1 lb ai/a. PHI 1 day. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 10 days. Do not exceed 0.42 lb ai/a per season. Limit 4 treatments.
  • carbaryl (Sevin 4F) at 0.5 to 1 lb ai/a. PHI 3 days. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 7 days. Do not exceed 8 lb ai/a per season.
  • chlorantraniliprole/lambda-cyhalothrin (Voliam Xpress) at 0.059 to 0.088 lb ai/a. PHI 5 days. REI 24 hr. Retreatment interval 5 days. Do not exceed or 0.36 lb ai of lambda-cyhalothrin or 0.2 lb ai of chlorantraniliprole per acre per growing season.
  • chlorantraniliprole/thiamethoxam (Voliam Flexi) at 0.1 to 0.172 lb ai/a. PHI 1 day. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 5 days. Do not exceed 0.172 lb ai of thiamethoxam or 0.2 lb ai of chlorantraniliprole per acre per growing season.
  • clothianidin (Belay) at 0.05 to 0.067 lb ai/a foliar, 0.15 to 0.2 lb ai/a soil. PHI 7 days foliar, 21 days soil.REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 10 days. Do not exceed 0.2 lb ai/a per season.
  • cryolite (Kryocide) at 7.7 to 15.4 lb ai/a. PHI 14 days. REI 12 hr. Some formulations are OMRI-listed for organic use.
  • cyfluthrin (Tombstone) at 0.044 lb ai/a. PHI 0 days. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 7 days. Do not exceed 0.263 lb ai/a per season.
  • cyfluthrin/imidacloprid (Leverage 2.7) at 0.11 lb ai/a. PHI 0 days. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 7 days. Do not exceed 0.17 lb ai/a cyfluthrin or 0.24 lb ai/a imidacloprid per year.
  • deltamethrin (Delta Gold) at 0.018 to 0.028 lb ai/a. PHI 3 days. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 3 days. Do not exceed 0.168 lb ai/a per season.
  • dinotefuran (Scorpion 35SL) at 0.05 to 0.18 lb ai/a foliar or 0.23 to 0.27 lb ai/a for soil. PHI 1 day foliar, 21 days for soil. REI 12 hr. Do not exceed, per season, 0.266 lb ai/a foliar or 0.532 lb ai/a for soil.
  • esfenvalerate (Asana XL) at 0.03 to 0.05 lb ai/a. PHI 1 day. REI 12 hr. Do not exceed 0.5 lb ai/a season. Do not feed or graze livestock on treated vines.
  • gamma-cyhalothrin (Declare) at 0.01 to 0.015 lb ai/a. PHI 5 days. REI 24 hr. Retreatment interval 5 days. Do not exceed 0.18 lb ai/a per season.
  • imidacloprid (Admire Pro) at 0.25 to 0.38 lb ai/a. Soil application only. PHI 21 days. REI 12 hr. Do not exceed 0.38 lb ai/a per year.
  • lambda-cyhalothrin (Warrior II) at 0.02 to 0.03 lb ai/a. PHI 5 days. REI 24 hr. Retreatment interval 5 days. Do not exceed 0.36 lb ai/a per season.
  • lambda-cyhalothrin/thiamethoxam (Endigo ZC) at 0.064 to 0.072 lb ai/a. PHI 5 days. REI 24 hr. Retreatment interval 5 days. Do not exceed 0.36 lb ai/a of lambda-cyhalothrin or 0.172 lb ai/a of thiamethoxam per season.
  • thiamethoxam (Actara) at 0.031 to 0.047 lb ai/a. Apply high rates for heavy infestations. PHI 0 days. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 5 days. Do not exceed 0.172 lb ai/a per season.
  • thiamethoxam (Platinum) at 0.078 to 0.172 lb ai/a soil applied. PHI 30 days. REI 12 hr. Do not exceed 0.172 lb ai/a per season.
  • thiamethoxam/chlorantraniliprole (Durivo) at 0.195 to 0.257 lb ai/a applied to the soil. PHI 30 days. REI 12 hr. Do not exceed or 0.172 lb ai of thiamethoxam or 0.2 lb ai of chlorantraniliprole per acre per growing season.
  • tolfenpyrad (Torac) at 0.14 to 0.21 lb ai/a. PHI 1 day. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 14 days. Limit 4 treatments per year. Do not exceed 0.42 lb ai/a per year.
  • zeta-cypermethrin (Mustang) at 0.028 to 0.05 lb ai/a. REI 12 hr. Retreatment interval 7 days. Do not exceed 0.3 lb ai/a per season.