Standardization of number of pheromone traps for sugarcane internode borer
Research Type
Departmental Research
Experiment Background
Sugarcane is an important cash crop for earning foreign exchange. It is the second most important industrial crop of India and Gujarat and more specifically in the South Gujarat region. It is estimated that insect pests cause about 20 to 40% yield losses. In South Gujarat, borers are one of the most significant insect pests that attack sugarcane, thus reducing crop production and productivity. Among all the borers, sugarcane internode borer, Chilo sacchariphagus indicus (Kapur) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) damage noticed regularly and reported yield loss about 10-35% (Yalawar et al., 2010 & Srikanth et al., 2022). Sugarcane internode borer (INB) attacks both commercial varieties (David, 1986) and germplasm (Mahesh et al., 2018) in the grand growth phase reducing length and thickness of affected internodes. Although the borer generally attacks formative internodes, it also destroys the apical meristem in young and weak shoots leading to dead heart production. Further, larvae enter from the top and feed on the spindle above the meristem or reach and injure the meristem resulting in dead heart production. Internode borer and other major borers management options through chemical insecticides are available but with costlier insecticides to the farmers. Further, many farmers face the issue during maturity and ripening phase for spraying operation due to crop height and dense nature of the crop. In context to non-chemical and low-cost management strategies for sugarcane internode borer, sex pheromone-based strategy could play a vital role in internode borer management.
In the light of the response of number of traps and borer incidence, in fact the number of traps for the internode borer were established for very old varieties and long time ago, there perhaps is a urgent need to determine/standardize the number of traps as per current situation and assess the number of traps to be installed in present weather conditions. In view of the above observations, it becomes imperative to have a relook at the precise number of sex pheromone traps to be installed against INB.
To fill up the lacuna and give the immediate remedy to the farmer regarding number of traps to be installed for the mass trapping of sugarcane internode borer, the present investigation is proposed with following objective under south Gujarat condition
Experiment Group
Agricultural Entomology
Unit Type
(02)EDUCATION UNIT
Unit
(12)NAVINCHANDRA MAFATLAL COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE (NAVSARI)
Department
(259)Entomology Department, NMCA, Navsari
BudgetHead
(303/12939/00)303/01/REG/00046
Objective
To quantify the number of pheromone traps for management of sugarcane internode borer