Elluru Sireesha and Ruchira Tiwari
Abstract
Pigeon pea, a significant pulse crop, is vulnerable to a diverse array of insect pests at different stages of its growth, leading to direct yield losses. Frequent and injudicious use of chemical insecticides for pest management has led to the development of resistance and resurgence of less significant pests. Consequently, there is avital need to explore more environmentally friendly and narrow spectrum pesticides that do not pose long-term health risks to mammals. Additionally, alternative techniques must be developed to minimalize the use of broad-spectrum pesticides while ensuring optimal crop productivity. The present studies were performed on the eco-friendly management of pod borers by integrating 5% botanical extracts of plants viz., Neem, Madar, Datura, Moringa, Murayya, Congress grass and Lantana and a Chemical insecticide, Chlorantraniliprole 18.5 SC @30 gm a.i. / ha during Kharif seasons 2021-22 and 2022-23 in pigeonpea at NBCRC, Pantnagar, Uttarakhand. The aqueous botanical leaf extracts were found active in reducing the mean percent infestation over untreated control against the target pests like H. armigera and M. vitrata recording lowest in Neem (60.85 % and 54.65%, respectively) and highest in Congress grass (35.10% and 31.20%, respectively). The use of leaf extracts against pod borers resulted in a decrease in their larval populations, which was evident from the significantly lower levels of pod damage observed in treated plots. The lowest damage was recorded in neem-treated plots (3.50%) while the highest was in Lantanatreated plots (8.78%), in comparison to the untreated control (10.61%). As a result, the reduction in pod damage caused by pod borer larvae had a proportional effect on the grain yield of pigeonpea. Treated plots had a significantly higher yield, ranging from 825 kg/ ha to 933 kg/ ha, in comparison to the untreated control (732 kg/ ha). Neem-treated plots had the highest incremental cost-benefit ratio (ICBR) of 1:7.64, while Lantana-treated plots had the lowest ICBR of 1:3.01.