Developing a perennial living mulch system to manage insect pests in mid-Atlantic cantaloupe

Drawbacks of excessive pesticide usage in cantaloupe have created a demand for alternative pest control strategies that can reduce producers’ reliance on chemical inputs. The economic burden of growing cucurbits such as cantaloupe can be considerable due to the cost of frequently applied chemicals to protect cucurbits with low pest tolerance. Further, chemical sprays can have a negative impact on natural enemies inhabiting cucurbit fields and consequently cause secondary pest outbreaks. Interplanting cash crops with cover crops, also known as companion planting, has been used for centuries to improve soil quality and suppress weeds. However, interplanting a live cover crop (living mulch) into a cucurbit crop can be used to also help manage insect pests and diseases that they vector. Recent research has shown that interplanting a red clover living mulch into cucumber plantings can be an effective strategy to reduce insect pest and increase natural enemy populations without negatively impacting crop yield. This is a promising finding for other crops in the Cucurbitaceae family that share similar insect pests. This study will determine if similar benefits can be conferred to a cantaloupe system. Specifically, the objective is to determine whether interplanting cantaloupe into two perennial living mulch (i.e., alsike clover or Virginia wildrye) systems that are structurally dissimilar can be used to reduce insect pests and increase natural enemy populations in cantaloupe. Additional objectives are to compare the ability of these living mulches to enhance cantaloupe yield and serve as overwintering refuge for natural enemies.