Accumulation of toxic copper in soil and development of copper-resistant pests are emerging challenges currently faced by the agricultural community worldwide. As an alternative, we have developed a ternary zinc chelate solution (TSOL) pesticide where zinc ions are the primary active ingredient. The material is composed of zinc, urea, and hydrogen peroxide. Urea was chosen as it is widely used as a plant fertilizer and can also bind to both zinc and hydrogen peroxide. No phytotoxicity was observed with TSOL on Meyer lemon (Citrus × meyeri) seedlings at a field spray rate of 800 μg/mL Zn metal concentration. Antimicrobial studies showed that TSOL exhibited improved killing efficacy against Escherichia coli and Xanthomonas alfalfae compared to Zn ions alone. Citrus canker field trials in a grapefruit (Chrysopelea paradisi) grove over three years showed that TSOL provided comparable disease protection to copper products at an equivalent or lower metal content.
Keywords: antimicrobial; citrus canker; field trial; urea; zinc.