Vo. Sadras et Lj. Wilson, GROWTH ANALYSIS OF COTTON CROPS INFESTED WITH SPIDER-MITES .1. LIGHT INTERCEPTION AND RADIATION-USE EFFICIENCY, Crop science, 37(2), 1997, pp. 481-491
Two-spotted spider mites (Tetranychus urticae Koch) are important pest
s of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.). The effects of mites on cotton ph
otosynthesis have been investigated at the leaf and cytological levels
but not at the canopy level. Our objective was to quantify the effect
s of timing and intensity of infestation by mites on cotton radiation-
use efficiency (RUE). Leaf area, light interception, RUE, canopy tempe
rature, and leaf nitrogen concentration (LNC) were assessed during two
growing seasons in crops artificially infested with mites between 59
and 127 d after sowing. Normal and okra-leaf cultivars were compared.
A mite index (MI = natural log of the area under the curve of mite num
ber vs thermal time) was used to quantify the cumulative effects of mi
tes on RUE, LNC, and canopy temperature. Crop growth reduction due to
mites was greater in early- than in late-infested crops. Growth reduct
ion was primarily due to reductions in RUE, but in the more severe tre
atments accelerated leaf senescence and, hence, reduced light intercep
tion also contributed to reductions in crop growth. At a given date, i
nfested okra-leaf crops usually had greater RUE than their normal-leaf
counterparts. Both plant types, however, responded similarly to a giv
en level of mite infestation. The ability of the okra-leaf cultivar to
maintain greater RUE levels can be attributed, therefore, to its rela
tive inhospitality for the development of mite colonies rather than to
an intrinsically greater capacity to maintain photosynthesis under mi
te damage. Canopy temperature, LNC, and RUE showed a similar, biphasic
pattern of response to MI. In the first phase, response variables wer
e almost unaffected by mites. In the second phase, there was a marked
decline in RUE and LNC and a marked increase in canopy temperature wit
h increasing MI. These results suggest (i) some degree of compensatory
photosynthesis at low to moderate levels of mite infestation, and (ii
) reductions in RUE of mite-infested cotton crops involved alterations
in both canopy gas diffusion and metabolic activity. Quantitative rel
ationships between RUE and MI were developed that could be used to lin
k mite and crop growth models.