Silicate fertilizer for pest control in black bean crops

Abstract

Several pests attack the bean plant and cause damage from sowing to the pod harvesting stage, or even during grain storage. In this context, the objective was to evaluate the influence of different dosages of silicon on the control of black bean pests (Phaseulus vulgaris L.). The experiment was conducted using the cultivar BRS Esteio and as treatments, dosages of 0, 100, 200, 300, 400 and 500 kg ha^-1 of SiO₂, applied via soil. The incidence of the main bean pests was evaluated using the cloth-of-beating method. The results obtained made it possible to observe that the infestation of kitty, leafminer, tripods, green leafhopper and whitefly occurred in the aerial part of the bean plants. The cowbird, leafminer and whitefly occurring from the beginning of germination until flowering. Leafhoppers and thrips occur only in pre-flowering. Analyzing the influence of the application of SiO₂ on pest control throughout the crop cycle, it was found that the treatments pro moted different levels of pest control on the bean plant, and it was not possible to determine the real influence of silicon on the control of the main bean pests.