Chemical and microbial control options for managing strawberry and lettuce pests

Strawberries and lettuce are important crops grown in the Central Coast area of California throughout the year.  Various arthropod pests on these crops are mainly managed by chemical pesticides.  Entomopathogenic fungus, Beauveria bassiana is pathogenic to various arthropod pests such as lygus bug, thrips, and whiteflies that are a major problem on one or more crops.  Although formulations of B. bassiana are commercially available, its potential for pest management was not thoroughly investigated in the California Central Coast agriculture.  Mild climate in this region is ideal for microbial control agents and preliminary studies indicated the potential of B. bassiana for managing certain pests on strawberries.  There is always a need for generating data on new pesticides to help the grower community make appropriate treatment decisions.  Field studies were conducted to evaluate new and registered chemical pesticides, along with B. bassiana, and the botanical insect growth regulator azadirachtin, for managing various arthropod pests in strawberries and thrips in lettuce.