Protection of straw cereals, sugar beet and oilseed rape against aphid-borne viruses using varietal and biocontrol solutions

Alternatives aux néonicotinoïdes Rendu des projets réunissant des contributions des projets scientifiques d'Ecophyto et du Plan National de Recherche et Innovation-betterave avec, selon les projets, les soutiens financiers de l'Office français de la biodiversité (OFB), l’Institut national de recherche pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (INRAE) et de l'Institut technique de la betterave (ITB).

International audience

anglais. Three viral diseases transmitted by aphids can cause significant yield losses in beet, straw cereal and oilseed rape production. For a long time, these crops were protected against yellows by targeting aphids using plant protection products that have recently been banned (neonicotinoid family) or are still authorised, but whose effectiveness may be inadequate following the appearance of aphid populations resistant to certain insecticide active substances. Academic researchers, technical institutes and companies have worked together as part of the ABCD_B research project, with the aim of evaluating new solutions for protecting these crops against viruses. Work was carried out on the three species, both in natural field conditions and under controlled conditions. The results highlighted and quantified differences in varietal sensitivity within each of the crop species (wheat, oilseed rape, sugar beet). At the same time, a major effort to evaluate biocontrol products has produced encouraging results for two active substances (azadirachtin and paraffin oil), even though their efficacy remains significantly lower than that of reference solutions.