http://www.plantstress.net/Posters en The fruit fly Ceratitis capitata is one of the most damaging and difficult pest to control for citrus fruit production and other fruit crops since it is, among other factors, highly polyphagous and widely spread. The traditional control method of this pest, based mainly on insecticide treatments close to harvest time, is currently not well thought of because of its toxicological and environmental concerns. CeraTrap is an attractant formulation of natural origin, free of pesticides and based on a liquid protein obtained by an exclusive method of enzymatic hydrolysis, with a strong attraction capacity for medfly and with a higher ratio of attraction for young females than males. Furthermore, through the field development, CeraTrap has been assayed not only against C. capitata but against other species such as Bactrocera dorsalis, B. zonata, Rhagoletis cerasi and Anastrepha sp. among others. The system functions thanks to regular emissions of volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds. Due to this, the flies are strongly attracted to enter into the trap, and being unable to escape, drown in the liquid and die. The main compounds isolated and identified in CeraTrap were heterocyclic amines which appear to play an important role as fly attractants. Many field trials were carried out over the last four years in different countries such as Spain, Morocco, Italy, Portugal, Egypt, Malaysia, Australia, and so on, with results indicating effectiveness and successful control of the medfly pest. Here we describe some field trials conducted in Spain and Morocco with early citrus varieties comparing the efficacy of this system against the local standard practices. 2010-03-01 http://www.plantstress.net/plantstressdocument.php?cat=2&doc=73 The olive fruit fly Bactrocera oleae is the most destructive pest for olive production in the Mediterranean basin where the majority of the olives grown. The traditional control of this pest in Spain has been based mostly on bait sprays with organophosphate insecticides through aerial and terrestrial treatments. With the aim of searching for an efficient, economical and ecological method for fly control, BIOIBERICA, S.A has developed Dacus Trap®, an attractant formulation of natural origin, free from pesticides and based on a liquid protein obtained by an exclusive method of enzymatic hydrolysis, with a strong attraction capacity for olive fly adults in a ready-to-use mass trapping system which is quick and easy to handle. Several field trials were carried out in order to assess the effectiveness of Dacus Trap®. Here we describe three of the field trials conducted in Granada, Girona and Jaén. The field trial results suggest that the Dacus Trap® system is an effective system against Bactrocera oleae. It successfully controls the pest population due to its capture capacity, decreases olive fly damage and therefore provides a good option for current IPM strategies and organic. 2009-06-08 http://www.plantstress.net/plantstressdocument.php?cat=2&doc=69 The flag leaf is the most important source of carbohydrate during wheat kernel filling. Around a 75% of all sugars stored in the kernel come from carbon fixed by this leaf. Terra-Sorb® foliar is an L-α-amino acid-based product from enzymatic hydrolysis for foliar application with a high ratio of free to total amino acids. Previous agronomical studies carried out on grassy, horticultural and tree crops have shown that application of Terra-Sorb ® increases plant photosynthetic activity and chlorophyll content, promotes rapid recovery from stress and improves fruit set. In this work we have undertaken a proteomic approach in order to explore molecular mechanisms potentially involved in the stimulating effect of Terra-Sorb® foliar on wheat yield when applied in commercial fields. A DIGE approach was used to compare the proteomes of treated vs control plants in four biological replicates. 2009-02-10 http://www.plantstress.net/plantstressdocument.php?cat=2&doc=71 Powdery mildew type fungi are one of the most persistent and common diseases limiting production of a wide range of crops worldwide. Besides the direct damage of the pathogen to the plant, fungi disease also weakens the plant’s resistance to any biotic or abiotic stress factors. With this in mind, the R & D Department of Bioiberica, S.A., focused on the line of Plant Stress Management, has developed a new foliar sprayed product containing peptidic organic compounds plus soluble active Silicon. This approach combines the well-known beneficial properties of both components: the biostimulant effect of peptidic compounds (PC) which helps plants to rapidly overcome physiological stress and the effects of Silicon on the plant’s resistance to fungal infections. Alternative plant disease protection treatments have recently raised more interest due to restrictions on the use of pesticides and environmental concerns. The objective of this study was to verify the new product’s effect on different plant-pathogen systems of agricultural interest and to check its ability to enhance plant resistance against powdery mildew attack in the field. 2008-10-26 http://www.plantstress.net/plantstressdocument.php?cat=2&doc=80 Nursery experiments were carried out in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, to determine the effect of increasing rates of a kelp extract (StimplexTM), a commercial formulation of amino acids (Macro-Sorb RadicularTM) and a fertilizer (PhotogroTM = 2% N, 0.9% Zn and 0.9% B) on the in-nursery growth of ‘Orlando’ tangelo budded on ‘Cleopatra’ rootstock. Every two weeks, Stimplex and Macro-Sorb were applied to the soil and PhotogroTM was sprayed on the tangelo canopy. Untreated plants reached the adequate transplanting stage significantly later than biostimulant-treated plants. Tangelo responded in a similar fashion to StimplexTM and Macro-Sorb, and the time to reach adequate transplanting size was reduced as the biostimulant rates increased. Applications of StimplexTM and PhotogroTM or of Macro-Sorb and PhotogroTM accelerated the growth of tangelo more than the separate application of either StimplexTM or Macro-Sorb. 2008-08-02 http://www.plantstress.net/plantstressdocument.php?cat=2&doc=66