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PROJECT TITLE Improving lygus management for current canola and faba bean cultivars PROJECT LEAD Hector Carcamo, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada TOTAL VALUE OF PROJECT $192,000 FUNDING PARTNERS Alberta Crop Industry Development Fund Alberta Canola Producers Commission Many prairie farmers will associate the insect pest lygus bug with canola. In canola, long-established economic thresholds put growers in a solid position of knowing whether or not to spray. The growth of faba bean acres in Alberta in recent years resulted in more lygus feeding on this valuable crop. Growers have asked for management strategies to help them fight back, and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's Hector Carcamo took on the challenge. "Lygus can be significant in some years," said Carcamo, Lethbridge- based Research Scientist, Insect Pest Management. "Depending on the year, if conditions are right for them, you can have a large population that can be a concern." In faba beans, lygus damage tends to be more cosmetic than material. The crop may weigh the same in terms of yield, but lygus feeding produces a dark spot on the faba bean that causes quality and price downgrading in crop for export. Between 2013 and 2016, with funding support from Alberta Pulse Growers and others, Carcamo conducted research designed to give growers some much-needed information around lygus bug in faba bean. SURVEY QUANTIFIES LYGUS IN FABA As Carcamo explains, this project attacked the lygus issue from a few directions. "The first thing to do is make sure the damage or the symptoms are caused by the organism you suspect," he said. "So we dissected the pods and seeds and did a survey in the field." Canola growers are accustomed to dealing with one species of lygus. The ones feeding on faba beans could be from a different species and might, therefore, need somewhat different management approaches. A survey conducted by Scott Meers and Shelley Barkley of Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, however, found that the same species of lygus bug that feeds on canola also feeds on faba beans. "We did a sweep for lygus at 10 spots in each field," he said. "We found that lygus are most abundant at the pod through flowering stage. The best time to control them could be at early pod, just like with canola." This finding suggests that planting faba beans early could help avoid some lygus feeding that occurs later in the season. Carcamo's three-year study was intended to build up some basic information on lygus bug in faba beans. Before settling on a formal economic threshold for insecticide application, he believes that more research is needed. Regardless of when an application takes place, Carcamo stresses that growers should take care not to harm pollinators and the natural enemies of lygus. This is important for the ecosystem and for the health of the faba bean crop. "We are making a preliminary recommendation that if you find fewer than two lygus per sweep, don't worry," Carcamo said. "But if you do spray insecticide, keep the bees in mind because their pollination is important for the yield of the faba beans." Over a three-year period, AAFC scientist Hector Carcamo advanced knowledge around how to protect faba beans from this quality- reducing insect. Managing Lygus Bug in Faba Beans As faba bean markets are developed abroad, importers are placing more restrictions on quality. Understanding and managing this pest is critical for maintaining and expanding the market for faba beans targeted to human consumption markets. 21 | Pulse Research Report GROW YIELD

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