Sex pheromone trap for monitoring blackberry leaf midge

Blackberry leaf midge is a serious pest of blackberry and has spread to raspberry affecting yield in both crops. Growers currently have no method of predicting or monitoring the severity of attacks or of timing application of control measures. This project aims to complete work on identification of the female sex pheromone of D. plicatrix started under HDC studentship CP38. The two components of the pheromone will be fully identified and synthesised. The pheromone blend will be optimised for attraction of male midges in field tests and the resulting traps and lures made available to growers for evaluation.