Susceptibility of different cultivars of pepper to pepper weevil

Pepper Capsicum annum L. is an essential crop in the United States. The key pest of Pepper is the pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii Cano (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). It is distributed in tropical and sub-tropical parts of the United States. Adult females oviposit on flowers, buds, and fruits. Larva causes significant damage by feeding inside the fruit, thus render the produce unmarketable. Farmers use insecticides to kill the adults. Insecticides are ineffective on hidden immature stages that cause significant damage. There is a need to develop a sustainable approach that can reduce the damage inflicted by PW larvae. In this study, we evaluated the infestation level of pepper weevil among different cultivars of pepper. This will give an idea if there is any difference in the infestation and will help to develop the resistant varieties in the future. Cultivars evaluated in the study are bell pepper, Jalapeño, Habanero, ghost, and scorpion pepper. Cultivars are chosen according to the heat units that include the ones from minimum to maximum heat units. Factors evaluated will be the number of fallen fruits, pepper weevil density, and the number of adults on the plant in fall 2020, spring 2021, and summer 2021. Results from the study show that habanero is the least susceptible and jalapeno is the most susceptible cultivar to pepper weevil infestation.