Sweetpotato whitefly: host plant preference and repellent effect of plant-derived oils on cotton, squash, lettuce and cantaloupe

The sweetpotato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius), in choice tests under greenhouse conditions showed more preference for squash, Cucurbita maxima Dene, and cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., than for lettuce, Lactuca sativa L., and carrots, Daucus carota L. The number of eggs oviposited by sweetpotato whiteflies was highly correlated to the number of adults present, but numbers were not correlated to the leaf areas of the various plants tested. Cottonseed oil applied to cotton, squash, lettuce, and carrot seedlings repelled sweetpotato whitefly adults for up to 9 days.