Performance of sulfoxaflor on aphids in western vegetables

Sulfoxaflor is the first insecticide from the new sulfoximine chemical class. This novel insecticide was discovered by Dow AgroSciences scientists and is active against a wide range of sap-feeding insects. It is effective at low rates and provides fast-acting and extended residual control of target pests. Field studies were conducted in Arizona and California to test sulfoxaflor against aphids in lettuce and cole crops. In 2008 and 2009, it provided excellent control of Myzus persicae (Sulzer), Nasonovia ribisnigri (Mosley), and Aulacorthum solani (Kaltenbach) on lettuce in Yuma, AZ, and compared favorably to imidacloprid, acetamiprid, spirotetramat and pyrifluquinazon. In Fresno, CA, sulfoxaflor showed excellent activity on Myzus persicae in broccoli and Macrosiphum euphorbiae (Thomas) in lettuce in 2010. Results from field studies demonstrate that this product will be an important new tool for aphid control in vegetables in western growing areas.