What Is Stylet-Oil?
Stylet-Oil is a Technical Grade White Mineral Oil formulated
with its own emulsification system. The oil has a Federal Section 3 label for use
as a fungicide, insecticide and to control certain aphid-transmitted viruses.
This
special mineral oil formulation represents the most advanced attempt yet to provide growers with a
product capable of controlling 2 or 3 unrelated pests
simultaneously.
Stylet-Oil:
- is a Technical Grade White Mineral Oil
- exceeds standards set by the Food & Drug Administration for "Food Grade Quality" mineral oil (b&c)
- is colorless, tasteless and odorless
- has the highest purity level (UR = 99.1%) of any mineral oil sprayed on food crops
- is formulated with an industry-high 2.9% (v:v) emulsifier content
What Does Stylet-Oil Control?
Stylet-Oil is used to
control certain fungal diseases (such as powdery mildew and Botrytis bunch rot).
Stylet-Oil is an excellent eradicant and will kill powdery mildew on
contact as well as prevent devel- opment of mildew for 10
to 14 days depending on the use rate. The oil also controls insect pests (such
as mites, whitefly, and leafminer). In addition, the oil will control aphid-transmitted virus diseases (such as Potato Virus Y,
Tobacco Etch Virus and Cucumber Mosaic Virus).
How Does Stylet-Oil Work?
As
A Fungicide:
Stylet-Oil controls a number of ecto-parasitic fungi by destroying cell walls ("...in
as little as 3 seconds on grape powdery mildew." ―Dr. Doug Gubler, University
of California at Davis) or by interfering with attachment of the organism to its host. Recent research by Dr. John Northover and K. E. Schneider (Plant Management Research Centre,
Ontario, Canada) has shown Stylet-Oil to have at least four physical modes of
action against grape powdery mildew―
- protective [protectant]
- pre-lesion [eradicant]
- post-lesion [eradicant]
- antisporulant [protectant]
As An Insecticide: Mineral oil is generally recognized as having two modes of action against insects. These two modes of action are ―
- by suffocation
- by modifying insect feeding and egg laying behaviors
Plant feeding insects use tiny, hollow hairs (called sensillae)
to detect special chemicals in plants called secondary chemicals which identify the plant
as a host or non-host. Contact with
these plant
chemicals can trigger critical insect behaviors such as feeding and egg laying. Stylet-Oil
can plug the hollow pore on the end of these hairs thus shutting down the insect’s
ability to communicate with its environment. Beneficial insect behaviors are minimally
affected by Stylet-Oil application because they use different host sensing mechanisms than
plant feeding insects. However, if enough oil contacts a beneficial insect, mortality can
occur.
To Control Plant Virus
Disease:
For over 20 years
Stylet-Oil has been used to control aphid-transmitted poty viruses on vegetable
crops. Stylet-borne plant viruses
can be transmitted by winged aphids in probes of less
than 20 seconds which are made after landing on the
upper leaf surface of host
plants. The oil interferes with
the transmission process thus pre- venting aphids from
inoculating healthy plants
and acquiring virus from diseased ones. The oil also interferes with spread of
whitefly geminivirus by disruption of whitefly feeding.
For
Use in Pest
Resistance Management?
In the past 70 years,
tens of millions of gallons of mineral oil have been sprayed for insect and disease control
(mostly on citrus and banana). In this time
frame not a single insect pest or plant disease has
developed resistance to mineral oil. This is be- cause
mineral oil works at the physical level, not the biochemical level. For this reason Stylet-Oil can be used
with confidence in a resistance management program in alternation with chemicals
prone to resistance.
Is special application
equipment necessary?
Stylet-Oil is a protectant chemical which works on the basis of physical
contact with an insect pest, disease pathogen or host plant spray target. As such, quality
spray coverage is essential for maximum performance.
For Insect And Virus Control on Vegetables:
- hydraulic boom sprayer
- 400 psi spray pressure using ceramic hollow cone nozzles (Albuz ATR lilac color or HCA green color or their equivalent)
For Fungus Disease Control:
reduced spray pressure using a wider selection of
nozzle choices which result in thorough, uniform spray coverage to disease locations
within the canopy
Purpose of the
Stylet-Oil Web Site
The Stylet-Oil Web site should be used as an abbreviated reference ― not as a substitute for the actual label. As
with any crop protection product, always read and follow label directions before using the
product. If you plan to use Stylet-Oil in a tank mix, be sure to only use
products which are chemically compatible with the oil and are registered for use on crops
which Stylet-Oil is registered on.
Please read all mixing instructions.
