According to the South Florida Pest and Disease Hotline, whitefly populations vary across southern Florida.
Population levels in vegetables in Southwest Florida are currently moderate to high and continue to go up every year. High populations are reported in squash, eggplant and some cucurbit crops. Scouts are also reporting moderate to high population numbers in tomato, tomatillo, beans and newly planted watermelon. There are reports of up to 10 adults per leaf on day-old watermelon.
Along the Everglades Agricultural Area and east coast, scouts are reporting moderate and stable whitefly levels in beans, and low, stable levels in broccoli.
Whitefly infestations are significant because of their potential impact throughout the year. They typically migrate from winter vegetables to spring vegetables to agronomic crops, like cotton, to fall vegetables and back to winter vegetables. The buildup of whiteflies is concerning since their feeding injuries in vegetables can lead to virus transmission, including cucurbit leaf crumple virus, cucurbit yellow stunting disorder virus, cucurbit chlorotic yellow virus, squash vein yellowing virus and tomato yellow leaf curl virus.