Seasonal Dynamics and Management of Whiteflies on Melons and Vegetables in the Desert Southwest

For the past 5 years, Arizona growers have been faced with the challenge of managing whiteflies populations to prevent yield reduction and loss of quality of their vegetable and melon crops. A large cooperative research effort was directed statewide to better understand how whiteflies develop on the numerous host -crops available and the environmental factors that influence their survival throughout the year. This information was used to develop short and long term management approaches for controlling whitefly populations. We quickly discovered that preventing whiteflies from colonizing plants was the key to successful management of whitefly populations in vegetable and melon crops. This report attempts to summarize what we presently understand about factors that influence the seasonal abundance of whiteflies in southern Arizona cropping systems. Non-chemical and chemical management approaches that have been developed by researchers and implemented by the agricultural communities are discussed