Susceptibility of the Asiatic garden beetle to locally isolated entomopathogenic nematodes

The Asiatic garden beetle, Maladera castanea Arrow (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), was introduced to the United States in 1921 in New Jersey and has since spread to 24 states and 2 Canadian provinces. Maladera castanea is a generalist that causes sporadic problems in turf grass, ornamentals, and vegetables. In Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio it has recently emerged as an early-season pest of field corn grown in sandy soils. In the spring overwintering grubs feed on roots of corn seedlings which causes plants to discolor, stunt, wilt, and ultimately die; yield losses can exceed 40% and extensive stand loss causes farmers to replant at great expense. Other white grub management tools are either ineffective against M. castanea or have not yet been evaluated for use in field crops. One successful approach against M. castanea in turf grass systems is the use of entomopathogenic nematodes. The application of entomopathogenic nematodes endemic to fields historically infested by M. castanea could provide long term and sustainable biological control. Recent advances in nematode rearing techniques and formulations have lowered production costs and increased overall usage. The goal of this research is to assess M. castanea susceptibility to locally isolated entomopathogenic nematodes in Ohio field corn. The following objectives will be addressed: 1) Screen local soils for the presence of naturally occurring entomopathogenic nematodes and rear isolated species using in-vivo techniques, and 2) evaluate M. castanea susceptibility to local entomopathogenic nematodes in greenhouse studies. The results of this study will be used for future evaluations in the field.