Environmental Entomology (1989) 18, 494-498

Alison G. Power (1989)
Influence of plant spacing and nitrogen fertilization in maize on Dalbulus maidis (Homoptera: Cicadellidae), vector of corn stunt
Environmental Entomology 18 (3), 494-498
Abstract: The incidence of the corn stunt pathogen transmitted to maize by the corn leafhopper, Dalbulus maidis (belong and Wolcott), was reduced in high-density plantings of maize (Zea mays mays L.) in Nicaragua. Density was manipulated by modifying the distance between rows or between plants within a row. Although leafhopper populations were not strongly influenced by planting density in this study, the planting arrangement significantly affected leafhopper abundance. At equivalent planting densities, leafhoppers were more abundant in treatments with reduced between-row spacing. This difference was not reflected in the incidence of corn stunt, which tended to be lower in treatments with reduced row spacing. This result can be explained by the effects of planting arrangement on leafhopper movement. In contrast to a previous study, nitrogen fertilization affected maize growth early in the season, but did not significantly influence vector abundance or disease incidence.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
environment - cropping system/rotation
transmission/dispersal of plant diseases

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Spiroplasma kunkelii	Maize/corn (Zea mays)	Nicaragua
	Dalbulus maidis	Maize/corn (Zea mays)	Nicaragua