چكيده لاتين :
Abstract. Performance of melon aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover, was evaluated on two host plants; squash (var. Bianca Di Trieste) and cucumber (var. Beit Alpha), and on different levels of nitrogen fertilizer; 0 g, 1 g and 2 g under constant conditions. Plastic Petri dishes and plastic bags were used as cages for melon aphid during the observation. Detached leaf method was used as comparison to whole seedling of squash. Melon aphid preformed better in cucumber compared to squash, with significantly higher values of intrinsic rate of increase (rm), generation time and reproduction rate (Ro) on both cucumber and squash were 0.43±0.07 & 0.3±0.03; 6.00±0.31 & 6.57±0.30; and 39.25±12.05 & 16.00±3.30, respectively. The performance of melon aphid on detached squash leaf were better compared to whole squash seedling, with the value of intrinsic rate of increase (rm); 0.47±0.01 and 0.28±0.03, respectively (p-value: <0.0001). A positive correlation was recorded between levels of nitrogen and the total density of the aphid (Pearson correlation: 0.64; p-value: <0.0183). Nitrogen fertilizer significantly increased the melon aphid density on squash plant (LSD: α:0.05).
Key words: . , melon aphid, cucumber, squash,
