Technical Plan for the Prevention and Control of Major Tea Plant Pests and Diseases (2019 Edition)

The pests and diseases occurring in tea gardens nationwide mainly include the tea green leafhopper (small green leafhopper), the black citrus whitefly, the grey tea looper, the tea looper, the tea tussock moth, the pink tea rust mite, the coffee red mite, the horned leaf beetle, the tea lace bug, the tea black tussock moth, the tea yellow thrips, the tea stick thrips, as well as tea blister blight and anthracnose. In 2019, in order to effectively control the major pests and diseases of tea plants, minimize losses, and ensure the safety of tea production and quality, this plan is hereby formulated.

I. Prevention and Control Objectives

The treatment rate for major pests and diseases shall reach over 90%, the overall control effect on pests shall reach over 85%, and the loss rate caused by tea plant pests and diseases shall be kept within 10%. Tea quality shall meet the requirements of China's tea hygiene quality standards, and the coverage rate of green prevention and control technology shall reach over 50%.

II. Prevention and Control Strategy

Take ecological regulation as the foundation, physical and chemical trapping and biological control as the focus, and scientific pesticide application as emergency measures. Adhere to measures suited to local conditions and zoned management, give priority to green prevention and control technologies such as health cultivation, immune induction, light trapping, colored board trapping, biological pesticides, and the protection and utilization of natural enemies; use high-efficiency, low-toxicity, low-residue pesticides scientifically, safely and rationally; minimize the use of chemical pesticides; and promote the integration of regional unified prevention and control with green prevention and control, so as to ensure the safety of tea quality and the ecological environment of tea gardens.

III. Prevention and Control Measures

(1) Key Prevention and Control by Region

1. South China tea region: mainly including Hainan Province, southern Yunnan, central and southern Guangdong, southern Guangxi, and southeastern Fujian. The main pests and diseases are the tea green leafhopper, coffee red mite, grey tea looper, tea tussock moth, tea green weevil, horned leaf beetle, tea black tussock moth, tea leaf roller moths, tea yellow thrips, pink tea rust mite, black citrus whitefly, tea blister blight and tea anthracnose, etc.

2. Southwest tea region: mainly including central and northern Yunnan, southeastern Tibet, Sichuan Province, Guizhou Province and Chongqing Municipality. The main pests and diseases are the tea green leafhopper, grey tea looper, tea tussock moth, tea stick thrips, tea lace bug, tea yellow thrips, tea black tussock moth, black citrus whitefly, tea tarsonemid mite, tea blister blight, tea anthracnose, white star disease, etc.

3. Jiangnan tea region: mainly including northern Guangdong, northern Guangxi, northern Fujian, Zhejiang Province, Jiangxi Province, Hunan Province, southeastern and western Hubei, Anhui Province and southern Jiangsu. The main pests and diseases are the tea green leafhopper, grey tea looper (or tea looper), black citrus whitefly, tea tussock moth, tea aphid, tea green weevil, horned leaf beetle, tea small leaf roller moth, tea white star disease, tea anthracnose and tea blister blight, etc.

4. Jiangbei tea region: mainly including northern Hubei, northern Anhui, northern Jiangsu, southeastern Shandong, southern Henan, southern Shaanxi and Longnan in Gansu. The main pests and diseases are the tea green leafhopper, grey tea looper, tea tussock moth, black citrus whitefly, tea aphid, tea leaf miner and tea anthracnose, etc.

(2) Main Technical Measures

1. Tea green leafhopper. Maintain the natural vegetation around tea gardens, interplant with flowering herbaceous and woody plants, and appropriately retain weeds at the edges of the garden in autumn and winter, so as to provide shelter for spiders and parasitic wasps and enhance the potential for ecological control. During the production season, pick frequently in batches at the right time, remove weeds between tea rows, and control the pest population base. For plots that reach the control threshold, the following pesticides may be selected for spraying: azadirachtin, veratrine, tea saponin, dinotefuran, indoxacarb, bifenthrin, chlorfenapyr, tolfenpyrad, etc.

2. Grey tea looper (tea looper). In combination with autumn cultivation and fertilization in tea gardens, plow the soil to reduce the survival rate of overwintering pupae in the soil. Install insect-attracting lamps in tea gardens where the grey tea looper frequently occurs, and turn on the lamps during the peak emergence period to trap and kill adults. Protect and utilize important natural enemies such as the tea looper braconid wasp, the single-white-striped braconid wasp, and spiders. During the adult emergence period of the grey tea looper, place 2-3 sets of grey tea looper sex pheromone traps per mu to trap and kill male moths. Use tea looper virus preparations for biological control; the appropriate control period should be grasped during the young larval stage of the 1st and 2nd generations or the 5th and 6th generations. When the pest population base reaches or exceeds the control threshold, the following pesticides may be selected: tea nuclear polyhedrosis virus · Bacillus thuringiensis, matrine, Brevibacillus laterosporus, deltamethrin, beta-cypermethrin, bifenthrin · emamectin benzoate, etc.

2. Tea tussock moth. Make use of the clustering habit of the tea tussock moth for manual capture and killing. During the adult emergence period of the tea tussock moth, install insect-attracting lamps to trap and kill adults, and place 2-3 sets of tea tussock moth sex pheromone traps per mu to trap male moths. Use tea tussock moth virus preparations for biological control; the appropriate control period should be grasped during the young larval stage. When the pest population base reaches or exceeds the control threshold, the following pesticides may be selected: matrine, Brevibacillus laterosporus, beta-cypermethrin, bifenthrin · emamectin benzoate, etc.

4. Pink tea rust mite. Pick frequently in batches at the right time to remove some adult mites, eggs, nymphs and protonymphs. At the end of autumn, use lime sulfur mixture or mineral oil to close the garden. In the early stage of the peak occurrence of the pink tea rust mite, veratrine or mineral oil may be selected for control.

5. Black citrus whitefly. Strengthen tea garden management, thin branches and clear the garden, and promote ventilation and light penetration in the tea garden to suppress its occurrence. At the beginning of the peak emergence of overwintering adults, use pheromone + yellow boards to trap and kill adults, hanging 15-20 insect-attracting boards per mu. At the peak hatching stage of the 1st generation larvae, pesticides such as thiamethoxam · bifenthrin and deltamethrin may be sprayed. In autumn, for plots with a relatively high overwintering population, lime sulfur mixture, mineral oil, etc. may be used to close the garden.

6. Tea yellow thrips. Pick frequently in batches at the right time to worsen its nutritional conditions and shelter, and remove some eggs, nymphs and adults. Use pheromone + blue, or pheromone + yellow-green insect-attracting boards to trap and kill adults. Conduct concurrent control when controlling major pests such as the tea green leafhopper and grey tea looper.

7. Tea tarsonemid mite. Pick frequently in batches, especially in combination with mechanical picking of summer tea. Emulsifiable concentrate mineral oil may be used as a control pesticide. For non-picking tea gardens or garden closure after autumn, spray lime sulfur mixture, mineral oil, etc.

8. Tea blister blight. Pick frequently in batches at the right time, and in combination with tea garden renovation, choose an appropriate time for pruning and collar pruning to remove diseased leaves. Clear dead branches, improve ventilation and light penetration in the tea garden, increase the application of phosphorus and potassium fertilizers, and enhance the disease resistance of tea plants. In tea gardens where the disease has been severe over the years, pesticides such as difenoconazole or pyraclostrobin may be sprayed twice consecutively at the early stage of the disease, with an interval of 7-10 days.

9. Tea anthracnose. When planting new tea gardens, select resistant and robust seedlings. Balance fertilization to improve the disease resistance of tea plants, and promptly prune diseased branches. Pick at the right time. For severely affected tea gardens, difenoconazole, pyraclostrobin, etc. may be selected for control.

Note: The pesticides listed in this technical plan are for reference only for tea gardens whose tea is sold domestically. Tea gardens for export must carefully select pesticides according to the testing requirements of the exporting country when preventing and controlling pests and diseases. The specific application concentration, method of use and pre-harvest interval must be carefully read in the pesticide label and product instructions.

National Agricultural Technology Extension Service Center

Executive Editor: Wang Wei