Poplar clones differ in their resistance against insects feeding.

Schroeder, Hilke; Fladung, Matthias

Short rotation coppices of poplars are often ecologically and genetically restricted because of the cultivation of only one or few clones. This leads to a suboptimal relation between the plants and the associated insects. This is true for beneficial insects but in particular also for the insect pest species damaging the poplars. In the case of an insect attack in such plantations, the damage is often higher than in forests at ecological equilibrium or in plantations with higher plantbased biodiversity because of different plant species and clones. In the years 2012 to 2016, on that background an assessment of insect pest species and leaf area loss was performed to identify the resistance of different poplar (genus Populus: Malpighiales, Salicaceae) clones against insect pests. Due to an assessment once a year in June, only a low number of sawfly and butterfly caterpillars were found. In the first line, beetles belonging to different families have been found on the poplar clones. The main defoliator in the years 2012 to 2015 has been Chrysomela populi (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae). Furthermore, beetles belonging to the genus Phratora sp. have been found. In the years 2012 to 2015, the abundance of the willow leaf beetles Phratora sp. was low whereas in the year 2016 this beetle was the main defoliator and present in a remarkable higher amount than the poplar leaf beetle C. populi. The leaf area loss and the presence of the main defoliating insects have been used to create a ranking of the 20 investigated poplar clones due to their susceptibility or resistance to insects feeding, respectively.

INSECT pests; BEETLES; CHRYSOMELIDAE; MALPIGHIALES; SALICACEAE

Landbauforschung, 2018, Vol 68, Issue 1/2, p19

2194-3605

Academic Journal

10.3220/LBF1534394196000