Integrated Pest Management

Defoliators

Bihar hairy caterpillar (Spilosoma obliqua)

Identification & Monitoring

• The adult is a brown moth with a 40-50 mm wing span and a red abdomen.
• Eggs are laid in clusters of 50-100, on the lower side of leaves.
• The larvae are covered with long yellowish to black hairs and are up to 5 cm long.
• Pupation takes place in the soil under dry.

Damage

• Young larvae feed gregariously mostly on the under surface of the leaves.
• Caterpillars feed on leaves and in severe infestation the whole crop is defoliated.
• Drying up of infected leaves is the main symptom.

Cultural Control

• Pre-monsoon deep ploughing (two/three times) will expose the hibernating pupae to sunlight and predatory birds.
• Removal and destruction of alternate wild hosts which harbour the hairy caterpillars.

Mechanical Control

• Collect and destroy egg masses and early instars larvae

Biological Control

• Conserve the natural bio control population of spiders, long horned grasshoppers, praying  mantid, robar fly, ants, green lace wing,damsel flies/dragon flies, flower bugs, shield bugs, lady bird beetles, ground beetle, predatory cricket, earwing, braconids, trichogrammatids, NPV, green muscular fungus.
• Use of NPV (nuclear polyhedrosis virus) on cloudy days at 500 LE/ha will be effective. Spraying of Bacillus thuringiensis is also advocated at 1 kg/ha where mulberry is not grown.
• Conserve the barconids parasites.

Chemical Control

• Apply safe chemical insecticides at recommended doses only if the insect population crosses the ETL.
• Dust Lindan 1.3% or Fanvalerate 0.4% 15.20 kg/ha, the early stage is easy to control.
• Form a deep furrow trench around the field and dust with two per cent methyl parathion to prevent the mass migration of hairy caterpillars.
• Spraying of quinalphos 25 EC (2 ml/lit), or chlorpyriphos 20 EC (2.5 ml/lit) or endosulfan 35 EC (2.0 ml/lit) recommended when the caterpillars are younger.

Cabbage Head Borer (Hellula undalis)

Identification & Monitoring

• Moths are pale greyish-brown, suffused with reddish colour.
• Forewings have grey weary lines, an apical spot and pale edged dark lunule, hind wings are pale dusky, darker in apical area.
• Larvae are pale whitish brown with 4 or 5 pinkish-brown longitudinal stripes.

Damage

• Caterpillars initially mine the leaves and make it white papery.
• Later they feed on leaves and bore into stems, entrance hole is covered with silk and excreta.

Mechanical Control

• Collection and careful destruction of the larvae at gregarious stage at leaf twice a week.

Chemical Control

• For control of grown up larvae apply 5% malathion dust @ 37.5 kg/ha.
  OR
  940 ml Trichlorfon in about 600 to 700 litres of water.
  OR
• Application of 375 g carbaryl 50 WP in 150 litre of water.

Diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella)

Identification & Monitoring

• Adult is a small greyish moth with three white triangular spots along the inner-margin of the forewings.
• When at rest the triangular markings of opposite wings appear as diamond shaped markings and hence the name.
• Larvae is pale green, body tapering slightly at both ends.
• Monitor the adult by installing pheromone trap.

Damage

• Caterpillars feed on the foliage. The leaves gives a withered appearance but in later stages larvae bore holes in the leaves may be eaten up completely.
• It also bores into pods and feeds developing seed.

Mechanical Control

• Installing pheromone trap to control the adult pest.
• Collection and careful destruction of the larvae at gregarious stage at least twice a week.

Biological Control

• Conserve Cotesia plutellae, as it is an important parasitoid for diamond back moth.
• Diadegma insulare is the most important parasitoid of the diamondback moth

Chemical Control

• For control of grown up larvae apply 5% malathion dust @ 37.5 kg/ha.
  OR
• 940 ml Trichlorfon in about 625 liter water.
  Or
• 925 ml Endoslfan 35 EC or 750ml Diazinon 20 EC in 600-700 liter water
• The insect shows high tolerance to a number of insecticides, however, triazophos is effective.

Larger moth (Leaf webber) (Crocidolomia binotalis)

Identification & Monitoring

• Adult moths are yellowish-brown, forewings in parts have reddish-brown distinct and in distinct wavy lines and prominent white spots.
• Near to the thorax forewing and black tuft of hair.
• Hind wings are white with dark brown apical area.
• Larvae are pale yellowish-brown, with a series of lateral and sub-lateral black spots and specks.

Damage

• Newly hatched larvae feed initially on the cholorophyll of young leaves and later on older leaves, buds and pods, make webbings and live within.
• Severely attacked plants are defoliated.
• Seeds in the pods are eaten away.

Mechanical Control

• Collection and careful destruction of the larvae at gregarious stage at least twice a week.

Chemical Control

• Carbaryl or monocrotophos sprays are effective.

Mustard saw fly  (Athalia lugens proxima)

Identification & Monitoring

• Adults are orange bodied with smoky transparent wings.
• Larva is greenish black with wrinkled body and eight pairs of pro-legs. On slightest touch the larva falls to round and feigns death.
• The pest is active during seedling stage of the crop i.e. October - November.

Damage

• Initially the larva nibbles leaves, later it feeds from the margins towards the midrib.
• The grubs cause numerous shot holes andeven riddled the entire leaves by voracious feeding.
• They devour the epidermis of the shoot, resulting in drying up of seedlings and failure to bear seeds in older plants.
• The yield losses up to 5 to 18 %. In severe case at the seedling stage, the crop have to be resown.

Cultural Control

• Summer ploughing to destroy the pupa.
• Early sowing should be done.
• Maintain clean cultivation.
• Apply irrigation in seedling stage is very crucial for sawfly management because most of the larvae die due to drowning effect.
• Severe cold reduce pest growth.

Mechanical Control

• Collection and destruction of grubs of saw fly in morning and evening

Biological Control

• Conserve Perilissus cingulator (parasites the grubs), and the bacterium Serratia marcescens Bizio infect the larvae of sawfly.
• Use of bitter gourd seed oil emulsion as on anti-feedent.

Chemical Control

• Spray the crop with 1000 ml/ha malathion 50 EC OR
  625 ml/ha Endosulphan 35 EC
  OR
  Quinolphos 25 EC 625ml/ha. All this should be applied in about
  600 to 700 litres of water per ha.
  OR
  Endosulfan 4% dust OR methyl parathion 2% @25 kg/ha.
• Methyl preparation or carbaryl dust or spray formulations are effective.

Sucking pest

Mustard aphid (Lipaphis erysimi)

Identification & Monitoring

• Aphids are small, soft-bodied, pearl-shaped insects that have a pair of cornicles (wax-secreting tubes) projecting out from the fifth
  or sixth abdominal segment.
• There are four nymphal stages (instars).
• Wingless, female, aphids are yellowish green, gray green or olive green with a white waxy bloom covering the body.
• The waxy coating is more dense under humid conditions.
• The winged, female, adult aphids have a dusky green abdomen with dark lateral stripes separating the body segments and dusky wing veins.
• Male aphids are olive-green to brown in color.
• The aphid attacks generally during 2nd and 3rd week of December and continues till March.
• The most favourable temperature is in between 8 to 24^o .
• Rainy and humid weather help in accelerating the growth of insects.
• Set up yellow stick trap to monitor aphid population.
• It is a serious pest of mustard.

Damage

• Plants are infested at all the stages.
• Both nymph and adults suck the sap from leaves, buds and pods.
• Curling may occur for infested leaves and at advanced stage plants may wither and die.
• Plants remain stunted and sooty molds grow on the honey dew excreted by the insects.
• The infected filed looks sickly and blighted in appearance.

Cultural Control

• Use tolerant varieties like JM-1 and RK-9501.
• The crop sown before 20th October escape the damage.
• 70 to 80 % humidity is favourable for faster multiplication of aphid.

Mechanical Control

• Destroy the affected parts along with aphid population in the initial stage.

Biological Control

• Ladybird beetles viz., Cocciniella septempunctata, Menochilus sexmaculata, Hippodamia variegata and cheilomones vicina are most effcient pradators of the mustard aphid. Adult beetle may feed an average of 10 to 15 adults/day.
• Several species of syrphid fly i.e., Sphaerophoria spp., Eristallis spp., Metasyrphis spp., Xanthogramma spp and Syrphus spp. are predating on aphids.
• The braconid parasitoid, Diaretiella rapae a very active bio control agent cause the mummification of aphids.
• The lacewing, Chrysoperla carnea predates on the mustard aphid colony.
• Predatory bird Motacilla cospica is actively feeding over aphids in February-March.
• A number of entomogenous fungi, Cephalosporium spp., Entomophthora and Verticillium lecanii infect aphids.

Chemical Control

• Spraying should be done only insect population is more than ETL level.
• Spraying should be done in evening.
• Spray the crop with one of the following in the flowering stage; Oxydemeton methyl, Dimethoate@ 625 - 1000 ml per ha.

Painted bug (Bargrada hilaris)

Identification & Monitoring

• Adult bug is black with orange spots and markings called painted bug.
• Period of activity of painted bug starts from September.
• It is serious pest of mustard

Damage

• Adults and nymphs suck sap from all parts of the plant.
• Young plants wilt and wither as a result of the attack.
• Adult bugs excrete a resinous substances which spoils the pods.
• Quality and quantity (31% losses) of yield is affected when grown up plants are infected.
• Harvested crop in threshing floor is also infested.

Cultural Control

• Deep ploughing so that the eggs of painted bug are destroyed.
• Early sowing is needed to avoid pest attack.
• Irrigate the crop in IV week after sowing to reduce pest attack
• Quick threshing of the harvested crop should be done.

Mechanical Control

• Burn the remains of mustard crop so that the stages of insect do not reach the next year crop.
• The bugs usually congregate on the leaves and stem which can be jerked to dislodge them and killed in kerosinised water.

Biological Control

• Conserve bio-control agents like Alophara spp.

Chemical Control

• Spray the crop with 1000 ml malathion 50 EC
  OR
• 1500 ml Endosulphan 35 EC
  OR
  Dimethothiate 30EC 625 ml in 600- 700 liter water.
• All this should be applied in about 600 to 700 litres of water per ha.
  OR
  Endosulfan 4% dust @25 kg/ ha