TECHNICAL REPORT FINAL PROJECT Management of Hypsipyla grandella in Swietenia macrophylla King plantations in Par and So Paulo States, Brazil BELM, JUNE 2011 Project Technical and scientific staff: Project coordinator: Dr Orlando Shigueo Ohashi, Federal Rural University of the Amazon Deputy coordinator: Dr. Wilson Jos de Melo Silva Maia, Federal Rural University of the Amazon Plant Nutritionist: Dr. Mario Lopes da Silva Junior, Federal Rural University of the Amazon Agrarian Engineer: Guilherme Guiducci, Nelcindo Gonsalez Technician: Demstenes de A. Silva Filho, Federal Rural University of the Amazon Technician: Guilherme Augusto de Miranda Neves, Tramontina Belm Student of Masters Degree: Augusto Jos Silva Pedroso, Federal Rural University of the Amazon Student of Graduation: Ellison Rosario de Oliveira, Federal Rural University of the Amazon Student of Graduation: Marcia Barroso Estumano, Federal Rural University of the Amazon Implementing Institution: FOUNDATION FOR SUPPORTING RESEARCH EXTENSION AND TEACHING IN AGRARIAN SCIENCES (FUNPEA) Carlos Albino Figueiredo Magalhes, Director President, FUNPEA Av. President Tancredo Neves, 2501-Montese 66.077-530 Belm, Par, Braziliii TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................ 5 1.INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................... 6 2.MATERIALS AND METHODS......................................................................... 8 2.1.Comparison of mahogany shoot borer control systems in the state of Par................................................................................................................ 8 2.2.Evaluation of Colacid formulation for application to mahogany 3 m high 9 2.3.Comparison of mahogany shoot borer control systems in So Paulo....... 11 2.4.Effects of applying different levels of calcium and boron on the resistance ofmahoganycultivatedinsoilandhydroponytothecaterpillar Hypsipyla grandella............................................................................. 12 2.4.1.Effectsofdifferentlevelsofcalciumandboronappliedinthe soil for the resistance to mahogany shoot borer ....................... 12 2.4.2.Effectsofdifferentlevelsofcalciumandborononthe resistanceofmahoganyinhydroponiccultivationtoHypsipyla grandella..................................................................................... 13 3.PROJECT RESULTS........................................................................................ 15 3.1.Comparison of mahogany shoot borer control systems in the state of Par.............................................................................................................. 15 3.1.1. Effectsofthemanagementsystemsinmahoganyshootborer control ........................................................................................ 15 3.1.2. Effectsofmanagementsystemsinthemahoganygrowthin height.......................................................................................... 19 3.1.3. Weathereffects(rain)inmahoganyshootborercontrol.................................................................................................... 21 3.2.Colacid formula evaluation for the application in mahogany over 3 m high.............................................................................................................. 22 3.2.1.Mahoganyshootborercontrolusingtractorassupportinthe period June 2009 to May 2010 .................................................. 22 3.2.2. Shootborercontrolusingapantographtypeliftingplatform as platform from June to November 2010 ................................ 24 3.2.3. Effects of 4 Colacid formulations on mahogany height growth ..................................................................................................... 25 3.3.Comparison of mahogany shoot borer control system in So Paulo ........ 26 3.3.1.Effectsofmanagementsystemsinthecontrolofmahogany shoot borer................................................................................. 26 iv 3.3.2. Effects of management systemsinmahoganygrowth in height in So Jose do Rio Preto............................................................ 28 3.4.Effectsofdifferentlevelsofcalciumandboronontheresistanceof mahogany cultivated in soil and hydropony to caterpillar Hypsipyla grandella .............................................................................................. 29 3.4.1. Effectsofdifferentlevelsofcalciumandboronappliedtothe soil in resistance to mahogany shoot borer............................... 29 3.4.2.Effectsofdifferentlevelsofcalciumandborononresistanceof mahoganycultivatedinhydroponytoHypsipylagrandella caterpillar ............................................................................................ 31 3.5 - Dissemination of results ........................................................................................... 32 4.CONCLUSIONS................................................................................................ 33 4.1.Comparisonofmanagementsystemsofmahoganyshootborercontrolin the state of Par .................................................................................. 33 4.2.Evaluation of Colacid formulation for the application to mahogany plants over 3 m high....................................................................................... 33 4.3.Comparison of mahogany shoot borer management systems in So Paulo.............................................................................................................. 34 4.3.1. Effectsofdifferentlevelsofcalciumandboronappliedinthe soilintheresistanceofmahoganytotheshootborerH. grandella..................................................................................... 34 5.BIBLIOGRAPHY.............................................................................................. 35 ANNEX 1 PHOTOSOFAPPLICATIONOFCOLACIDFORMULATIONSON MAHOGANY SHOOTS ......................................................................... 37 5 ABSTRACT Mahogany, Swietenia macrophylla King is one of the most valuable tropical timber speciesintheworld.IntheBrazilianAmazon,particularlyinthestateofPara,ithas beenloggedinadisorderlymannerinnaturalforests,sothatitwasconsideredas endangeredspeciesandthereforeincludedinCITESAppendixII.Thus,mahogany reforestationisanalternativetoreduceloggingpressureonnaturalforests.Forthat reason,severalmahoganyreforestationprojectswereimplementedinLatinAmerica, buttheywereunsuccessfulduetotheattackbymahoganyshootborerHypsipyla grandella. Therefore,thisprojectaimsatselectingHypsipylagrandellamanagement/control systemstostimulatemahoganyreforestationinthestatesofParandSoPauloin Brazil. Several research activities were developed, whose main results were as follows: 1)twomahoganyshootborermanagementsystemsinthestateofPara-mahogany plantation intercropped with Toona ciliata + Colacid application and plantantion system mahogany intercropped with T. ciliata + fertilization with calcium and boron + Colacid application,becausetheywerethemostefficientonHypsipylagrandellacontrol,with efficienciesofupto94.02%and100%,respectively;2)ashootborermanagement systeminthestateofSoPaulo-mahoganyplantationintercroppedwithT.ciliata+ Colacid application presenting 99.4% control of the borer; 3) Selecting a Colacid spray formulationthatwasusedintheexperimentsinAuroradoParandSoJosdoRio Preto,becauseofthepracticalityofitsapplication,andduetoanefficiencypresented similartoColacidsolutionindropsapplication;4)Buildingofliftingplatformsanda pantograph type platform has facilitated silvicultural practices (pruning and application of treatments) of mahogany with 3m to 9m of height. Withtheresultsachievedinthisresearch,mahoganyplantationownerswillhave more trust and confidence in the success of its mahogany reforestation projects, and this will be an incentive for future reforestation projects in this sector. 6 1.INTRODUCTION The Amazon region holds the largest biodiversity of the world. Its forest plays a vitalroleincarboncycling,aswellasfortheenvironmentalstabilityoftheplanet. However, logging activities, cattle ranching and shifting cultivation have had extensive negativeimpacttotheenvironment.Currently,17%oftheAmazonregionhasbeen deforested.Deforestationanduncontrolledloggingarethemaincausestoreducethe habitats of animal and plants in the region.As a consequence, many species have been considered as threatened of extinction, such as mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla). Due to its high commercial value, mahogany is also called "green gold" that has beenexploitedinaselectiveanduncontrolledmanner(Castroetal,2002).This resulted in its inclusion in CITES Appendix II, so that in Brazil mahogany exploitation in natural forests through Sustainable Forest Management Plans (SFMP). Due to this situation, reforestation with S. macrophylla is a viable alternative for commercialmahoganyproduction.However,theestablishmentofcommercial mahogany plantations has as a limiting factor that is the attack of Hypsipyla grandella Zeller, commonly known as "mahogany shoot borer". 835,000 plants of S. macrophylla and 1,000,000 of Cedrela sp. were affected and abandonedin the period 1935 to 1943 inPuertoRico(Newtonetal.,1993).Thehighinfestationofthepestwasthemain reasonforthefailureoftheestablishmentofmahoganyplantationsinsouthernPar (Grogan et al., 2002). BertiFilho(1973),Rodanetal.(1992),Verssimoetal.(1992),Newtonetal. (1993), Costa (2000), Gallo et al. (2002) and Ohashi et al. (2002), argue that mahogany shootborerH.grandellaisthemajorpestofS.macrophyllaandisresponsiblefor successivefailuresofreforestationprojectsinNorth,CentralandSouthAmerica. According to Hilje and Cornelius (2001), this insect is considered a major forest pest in LatinAmericaandtheCaribbeanforthefollowingcharacteristics:lowlevelof tolerance,sinceonlyonecaterpillarpertreeresultsinseveredamage,specificityto attackthemembersofsubfamilySwietenoideaeofMeliaceae;widegeographical distribution; the insect can attack several structures of the plant (leaves, stem and fruits), howeverthegreatestdamageisthedrillingofnewshootsprouts,andespeciallythe mainsproutsthatcausestheramificationofthestem.Consideringthatthefirstthree years of plantation are the critical period for the following reasons: a) lower part of log (basal area) is the most valuable; b) a tree with low bifurcation will not produce wood ofcommercialvalue;c)theattackofH.grandellaretardsthegrowth,increasingthe maintenance costs, which are very high in the first years; d) the evidences indicate that when the trees reach about 6 m in height, the damage is less because the plants presents high regenerative capacity. Duetohighcommercialvalueof mahogany,thelevelofthe economicdamage ofshootborerisonlyoneplantperhectare,andthereforepreventivemeasuresto controltheshootborerattackshouldbetaken(Ohashietal.2002).Thus,Allanetal. (1976),YamazakiandVasques(1991)andNewtonetal.(1993),citeseveralefficient 7 insecticides for controlling mahogany shoot borer, but call attention to the high cost, as wellasforenvironmentalcontaminationbyrepeatedapplicationsoftheproducts,and the product is washed away by rains. Theuseofshadingandnaturalbarriershaspresentedcontradictoryresultsas Campbell(1966)reportedthat50%ofshadecanreducetheshootborerattack. However, Newton et al. (1993) pointed out that shaded seedlings were attacked by the shoot borer. Ohashi et al. (2002) recommend for the management of H. grandella, the use of resistantplantsandtheapplicationofColacid.Theauthorssuggestthatplanting mahoganywithToonaciliata,reducedby50%theshootborerattack,becausethis exotic Meliaceae plant acts as a trap, attracting the moths that lay around 85% of eggs in T. ciliata and after two hours that caterpilar H. grandella eat the leaves of this plant die by the antibiosis effect. According to Agostinho et al (1994), the dry limonoids A-B are thebasisofresistanceofT.ciliatatoH.grandella.Basedonthebehaviorofnewly hatched caterpillar egg, the use of Colacid only on new mahogany sprouts reduced from 80 to 100% the shoot borer attack during the two years of study. Ohashietal.(2005)reportedthatthecombinationofmahoganywithT.ciliata andKhayaivorensispresentedtheefficienciesoftheshootborercontrolof48%and 46%,respectively,andtheeggparasitismofH.grandellabyTrichogrammatomyia tortriciswasupto45%.Theauthorsalsopointoutthatfertilizationbycalciumand boron,inducedtheresistanceofmahoganytotheshootborerattackforthreemonths. Silva et al. (2009) concluded that the application of doses of calcium in nutrient solution reduced the length of gallery bored into the tree stem, as well as it has been effective on pests control of mahogany plants. Theinformationabove,mainlycitedbyOhashietal.(2002and2005),isthe scientificbasisforthedevelopmentofresearchandisdirectlyrelatedtotheproject objective. 8 2.MATERIALS AND METHODS Thissectionoutlinestheexperimentswithrespectivetreatments,evaluation methodsandplaceswheretherespectiveexperimentswereconducted.Inorderto achieve the objectives, the following research was carried out: 2.1.Comparison of mahogany shoot borer control systems in the state of Par ThisexperimentwasestablishedinthemunicipalityofAuroradoParatthe Tramontinafarm,about220kmfromBelm(sateofPar),whichconsistedofthe following treatments (T): T1MahoganyplantationintercroppedwithT.ciliata-thisintercroppingplantation wasconsideredasstandardtreatmentforthefollowingreasons:itwasconsidered the mostefficient(Ohashiet al2002=52%;Ohashi etal2005=48%)amongthe alternatives, which presented thehighest rate of parasitism of eggs of H. grandella by T. tortricis (Ohashi et al 2005 = 45%), attracting 80% of H. grandella eggs, that is,forevery10eggslaidbythismoth8areplacedonT.ciliataandonly2are placed on mahogany (Ohashi et al 2002). Caterpillars originating from eggs laid on T. ciliata eats the leaves of T. ciliata and die moments later (Alves 2002), T. ciliata is a tree species of rapid growth, with wood quality similar to Cedrela gender and so far no pest problems limiting its cultivation has been presented (Ohashi et al 2005); T2IntercroppingplantationofmahoganyxT.ciliata+fertilizerwithcalciumand boron (Ohashi et al, 2004 = fertilization controlled the shoot borer attack for the first three months); T3IntercroppingplantationmahoganyxT.ciliata+Colacid(Ohashietal2002= 83% control efficiency); T4 Intercropping plantation mahogany x T. ciliata + fertilization + Colacid T5 Control: only mahogany plantations. Itisworthnotingthatthebiologicalcontrolintheregionwasnotevaluated becauseitisnotpossibletoisolateportionsoftheparasitoidaction,andtherefore,it was considered that parasitism occurred evenly across the experimental area.Thedesignwasrandomizedblockswithfivetreatmentsandfiverepetitions. Each experimental parcel consisted of52 plants (24 mahogany + 28T. ciliata)planted at 3 m x 3 m spacing, interspersed cultivation in an area of about 1.5 ha of experimental area at the Tramontina farm in Aurora do ParBeforeplantingintheseexperimentalparcels,thefollowingactivitieswere carriedout:soilfertilityanalysis,soilpreparation,includingplowingandharrowing, preparation of seedlings of mahogany and T. ciliata. TheseedlingsplantingofthesespecieswascarriedoutrespectivelyinMarch andApril2009.InJuly2009,duetolowlevels ofnutrientsinthesoil,soilcorrection 9 was carried out at a dosage of 650 kg of dolomite limestone with 100% PRNT, as well asapplicationofsuperphosphatefertilizer75gperplant,45gofpotassiumchloride, 40g of urea, 5g of zinc sulfate and 10g of borax. DuetothefirstattacksoftheshootborerthatstartedfromJanuary2010,an analysisofthisinitialattackwasconductedtoshowthispestoccurrenceinthe experimental area, and soon after that, allthe attacked/damaged shoots were prunedto start on the same conditions in all experimental parcels. From that moment, the application of Colacid began inT2 and T4, whichwere conducted monthly in new mahogany sprouts. Colacid was applied in two formulations and in two distinct periods: a-FromJanuarytoJune2010,Colacidindropswasused,applyingtwodrops using a plastic tube (Figure 1), placing a drop in the new sprout and another drop in the middle of new sprout; b-Duetotheheightofsomemahoganyplantsreachingmorethan3mofheight, fromJuly2010toJanuary2011Colacidspraywasused,whosesprayingwas carried out through manual backpack sprayer with flat fan spray nozzle (110 SF white) (Figure 2). FromFebruary2010,monthlyassessmentsofvarioustreatmentsbegan,taking notesofmahoganyplantsattackedandnotattackedbytheshootborerintheuseful parcel,thatis,eightcentralplantsofmahoganyofeachparcel.Themeasurementof height and diameter of these eight mahogany plants were also made. Inordertocarryoutstatisticalanalysis,thenumberofattackedplantswere transformed into attack percentage, which in turn was transformed into Arcsen x + C, whosevalueswereanalyzedbyrandomizedblockdesignwithparcelssubdividedin time.Twoanalyseswerecarriedout forthetwo studyperiods(FebruarytoJune2010 and July 2010 to January 2011). The average of treatments was compared using the Tukey test. The heights were also examinedbythesame experimentaldesignwithouttransformingthevaluesnoted in centimeters. StatisticalanalysiswascarriedoutusingthesoftwareAssistat7.5beta(2010) (INPI registration 0004051-2) from the Federal University of Campo Grande in the state of Paraiba, Brazil. The control efficiency was calculated by the Abbots formula cited by Nakano et al. (1981). 2.2.Evaluation of Colacid formulation for application to mahogany 3 m high Duetothedifficultyandthetimeconsumedintheapplicationoftwodropsof Colacid(itisdifficulttoseeandplacethedropsontopoftheplantsincethewind shakes the plant) in the mahogany shoots over 3 m in height. This study was carried out toselectamorepracticalformulationtoachievethebiologicaltarget.Thus,this 10 experimentwasestablishedattheUFRAfarminthemunicipalityofIgarap-Au, located about 130 km from Belm in an area of mahogany (S. macrophylla) plantation intercroppedwithAfricanmahogany(Khayaivorensis),whichwereplantedon30 March 2006 in a 3 m x 3 m spacing. Therefore, it was a three years old plantation that wasattackedbythemahoganyshootborer.Thus,inApril2009,itwasnecessaryto prune all branches and twigs attacked by shoot borer to start the treatments in mahogany plants already about 4 m high. Due to this height, the use of equipment to help in the application of treatments wasnecessary.Initially(fromJune2009toMay2010),anadaptedtractor(3min height)withliftingplatform(Figure3)wasusedfortheapplicationofColacid treatment in new shoot sprouts of mahogany until the arrival (June 2010) of pantograph type lifting platform (Figure 4), which was custom made in Minas Gerais by the MVR industryspecificallyforthisproject.Thisplatformallowedraisingupto7mhigh,as wellasrotatingplatform45degreesonbothsides.Theoperationswiththisnew platformfacilitatedpruningactivitiesandapplicationoftreatmentinmahoganyplants up to 9 m high (Figure 5). With thesenew equipments, the following treatments were tested on mahogany with more than 4 m in height: T1 Polyisobutylene 10% spray: spray 35ml / new sprout; T2 Polyisobutylene 10% spray + insecticide to 0.00375% i.a./35ml / sprout; T3 Colacid spray (Polybutene 3.2% + insecticide 0.005% i.a.) / 35ml / sprout; T4 Colacid drops (Polybutene 80% + insecticide 1.25% i.a.) / 2 drops / sprout; T5 Control (mahogany without shoot borer control) Theproductspolybuteneandpolyisobutyleneareliquidoligomers,colorless, nontoxic, sticky and widely used in plastic manufacturing. TheColaciddropsformulationandthethreesprayformulationwereprepared duringtheimplementationofresearchandremainsecretuntilthefilingofthepatent, which is the right of UFRA, ITTO and the researcher who invented the formulations. Theexperimentwasinrandomizedblockswithfivetreatmentsandfour repetitionswithparcelsdividedinmonths.Eachparcelconsistedoffourmahogany plantsthatweretreatedandevaluatedmonthlyfromJune2009toNovember2010.In theevaluations,thenumberofplantsattackedbytheshootborerH.grandellawas considered, as well as the height and DBH (diameter at 1.30 m high) were measured. StatisticalanalysiswascarriedoutsimilartothatdescribedinSection2.1.Two analyseswerecarriedoutforthetwoperiods:i)June2009toMay2010whenthe tractor was used for the Colacid application; and ii) June 2010 to November 2010 when the pantograph type lifting platform was used. 11 2.3.Comparison of mahogany shoot borer control systems in So Paulo Duetohighdemandfrommahoganyplantationownersforthecontrolofmahogany shootborerinthestatesofSoPauloandMinasGerais,itwasdecidedtoselecta controlsystemwhere mahoganyplantationisdevelopingwell.Mr.NelcindoGonsalez was selected and agreed to participate as one of the contributors to this project. He has dedicatedtothecultivationof12,000mahoganyintercroppedwithT.ciliata,inSo JosdoRioPretointhestateofSaoPaulo,wherehealsohasbeenusingtheColacid dropswithgreatsuccess.Otheradvantagesseeninthisplantationinthebeginningof the treatments were: i) mahogany plantation with 22 months of age without the attack of theshootborerduetotheuseofColacid;ii)mahoganywith3.35mhigh,thus presentingdifficultiestoapply2dropsofColacidwithouttheuseofaplatform.Mr. Gonsalez had ordered to manufacture a pantograph type platform that was adapted to a tractor, in which a worker could make the treatment application on a tree 5 m high. Thus,this experimentwasconductedatthefarmofMr.Gonsalez,locatedonkm5of the road for Talhado and about 12 km from So Jos do Rio Preto. Theexperimentwasconductedinrandomizedblockswithfourtreatmentsandfive repetitions with parcels in months (months of observation). Each parcel consisted of 24 mahogany and 28 T. Ciliata, planted in four rows with 3 m x 2 m spacing, a total of 20 parcels in an area of about 1ha. The main treatments were: T1 Intercropping mahogany x T. ciliata; T2 Intercropping mahogany x T. ciliata + fertilization with calcium and boron; T3 Intercropping mahogany x T. ciliata + Colacid; T4 Intercropping mahogany X T. ciliata + Colacid + fertilization with Ca and Bo. This experiment did not have treatment control (only Mahogany), because all mahogany plantation was intercropped with T. ciliata. The treatments started in September 2009, applying 8 kg of limestone per parcel and 10 gBoronperplantintheT2andT4treatments.Thislasttreatmentwasreappliedin November 2009. InthetreatmentsT3andT4,theColacidwasappliedintwoformulationsandtwo distinct periods, using the pantograph type platform (Figure 6): a-FromSeptember2009toApril2010,mahoganywastreatedwithtwodropsof Colacid; b-DuetogoodmahoganygrowthinMay2010,mahoganyplantationreacheda heightof8m,whichweretreatedwithColacidspray,thatwascarriedout throughmanualbackpacksprayerwithflatfanspraynozzle(110SFwhite) 12 (Figure .7). DataevaluationsandanalysiswereconductedsimilarlytothosedescribedinSection 2.1. 2.4.Effects of applying different levels of calcium and boron on the resistance of mahogany cultivated in soil and hydropony to the caterpillar Hypsipyla grandella 2.4.1.Effects of different levels of calcium and boron applied in the soil for the resistance to mahogany shoot borer Thepurposeofthisexperimentwastoevaluatethegrowth,drymatter production,nutrientcontentandcontrolofHypsipylagrandella(Zeller)(Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)inmahogany(SwieteniamacrophyllaKing,Meliaceae)seedlingsgrownin Yellow latosol under increasing doses of limestone and boron. TheexperimentwasconductedfromJune2009toNovember2010inthe greenhouse at the Department ofSoil Science, Institute of Agricultural Sciences (ICA) of the Federal Rural University of Amazonia (UFRA), whose geographic coordinates in UTMare22M784552.92and9839229.18(6.37mhigh).Thesoilusedasasubstrate wascollectedinthelayer0-0.2mdepthindystrophicyellowlatosol(EMBRAPA, 2006),mediumtexture,locatedinanareaofcommercialmahoganyplantationatthe FazendaTramontinaS.A.inthemunicipalityofAuroradoPar,whosegeographic coordinates in UTM are 38M 722460.636 and 221196.538. The soil was transported to UFRA,where7kgofsoilwasplacedperpot,plantingasaplingofmahoganyina greenhouse. Theexperimentwasinrandomizedblocks(DIC)withdifferentnumbersof replicationsinafactorialarrangement(4x4+1),withadditionaltreatment(absolute control),andfactorsare:a)fourcorrectivedoses(0.5,1.0,1.5and2.0t.ha-1);andb) four doses of boron (1, 2, 3, and 4 mg.kg-1 of substrate). To evaluate the percentage of H.grandellas attack,DICwasusedwiththreereplicationspertreatment.Toevaluate thelengthofthegalleryDICwasutilizedwithfourreplications.Theremaining variables were evaluated using DIC with five replications. Thesoilcorrectiveusedwasdolomiticlimestone(TotalRelativeNeutralizing Power -96%), and the doses were calculated based on the results of soil analysis, using thebasesaturationmethod(Raij,1991),toincreaseto44,53,62,and71%base saturation. The doses of boron were applied in a solution form, using boric acid reagent p.a.(H3BO3).The calculationofdoseswascarriedoutbytakingtherecommendation 1.0 mg of boron per kg of substrate (Novais et al., 1991) as the smallest dose and it was increased by one unit the remaining doses to check the responses of plants in relation to this element. H.grandellaeggsinoculationsweremadeonseedlingsof255-day-oldplants withnewsproutsbetween16:30hand17:00h,whichistheperiodundernatural conditionsthatthemothspreferforoviposition(Ramirez-Sanchez,1964).Eggs 13 producedattheUFRALaboratoryofEntomologyfollowingthemethodologyusedby Almeida(2005)wereplacedintheregionneartheapicalmeristem(twoeggs/plant), usinganentomologicalpin,therebytryingtosimulatethenaturalconditionof ovipositionofthemoth.After24hoursthattheeggshatchedfromthreetotendays, damageswereobservedinapicalmeristem,characterizedbygumexudationanddust release,indicatingtheeffectiveattackbytheshootborer.Nineplantswereinoculated pertreatmentandthepercentagewascalculatedfromthearithmeticmeanofthree plants,remainingthreepercentagereplicationsineachof17treatments. After20days of inoculation, harvesting of the plants and measurement of other variables were carried out. Formeasuringthelengthofgallery(comprimentodagalleria-CG),thecross-section of the stem was made, with a pocket knife for measuring using graduated ruler. It was considered as a gallery a part inside the stem near the top which was hollow due tothecaterpillarattack.Sincethereweredifferentnumbersofattackedplantsin different treatments and the lowest number was four plants per treatment, a selection of data was done based on arithmetic average of each treatment. The data were submitted to an analysis of variance (ANOVA) with differentiated factor, considering the additional treatment, and the significance level determined by F testandtheaveragescomparedbyTukeytestat5%probability.TheDunnettest(p