Abstract:

Passion fruit is a vigorous perennial vine included in the Passifloraceae family. The most popular cultivated varieties are Yellow, Purple and Giant granadilla. The flowers are single and fragrant, 5-7.5 cm wide and borne at a node on the new growth. Fruits are dark-purple or yellow, rounded or egg shaped and contain numerous small, black wedge-shaped seeds that are individually surrounded by deep orange-colored sacs that contain the juice, the edible part of the fruit. Passion fruit develops well in tropical and subtropical regions, where the climate is hot and humid. Temperature, relative humidity, light intensity and precipitation have important influence on the longevity and the yield of the plants, but also favour the incidence of pests and diseases. Passion fruit is attacked by several pest species of insects and mites that feed upon all parts of the plant. A limited number of species are clearly of major economic importance. Few have key pest status, while some species are secondary pests because they are sporadic or occur at low population levels and therefore do not require control strategies. Insect and mite pests that are frequently associated with passion fruit are described below, including their description, behavior, hosts, damage and control. (Santo, 1931; Lordello, 1952b; Correa et al., 1977; ICA, 1987; Dominguez-Gil et al., 1989; Figueiro, 1995; Lima and Veiga, 1995).