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Selecting volatiles to protect brassicaceous crops against the cabbage root fly, Delia radicum

Volatiles resulting from plant–herbivore interactions play an important role in the behavioral decisions of phytophagous, predatory, and parasitoid insects and could be used for managing pest insects. However, to date and after about 40 years of research, documented studies on applications in the field remain extremely scarce. Delia radicum L. (Diptera: Anthomyiidae), the cabbage root fly, is a major pest of brassicaceous crops for which classical control strategies are currently lacking. Our previous studies showed that dimethyl disulfide (DMDS), a compound emitted by roots heavily infested by D. radicum larvae, was attractive for the fly’s main natural enemies and could lead to a reduction of 60% in number of eggs laid on treated plants in the field. As a follow‐up of this work, we conducted another field study to select additional volatiles that could be used in a push–pull approach. Several synthetic herbivore‐induced plant volatiles, selected on the basis of their potential action on the behavior of both the fly and its natural enemies, were placed in odor dispensers in experimental broccoli plots and their influence on oviposition by D. radicum and egg predation by ground‐dwelling predators was assessed. Our results confirmed the role of DMDS in reducing D. radicum egg numbers on broccoli plants and revealed that (Z)‐3‐hexenyl acetate, a green leaf volatile released by recently damaged plants, strongly stimulated fly oviposition. Also, two of the compounds tested slightly modified predation activity of ground‐dwelling predators: acetophenone decreased the proportion of predated patches, whereas methyl salicylate increased it. This study is a first step in designing a push–pull strategy to control the cabbage root fly.