Sustainable management of brinjal shoot and fruit borer (Leucinodes orbonalis Guen.)

Abstract

Insecticidal control of Brinjal shoot and fruit borer (Leucinodes orbonalis Guenn.) has become a cause of concern as this highly damaging pest of brinjal is wide spread and known to attack other crops and therefore is a reason for heavy insecticide use in brinjal crop leading to contamination of food chain and increased pesticide related health risk. To protect this popular crop a combination of intercrop with coriander and fennel and different spray schedules of crude and commercial neem formulation on main crop of brinjal was tested to evaluate the level of percent shoot damage and fruit damage (both by number) and per cent fruit damage (by weight). Minimum loss on all the three parameters (21.57%, 19.79% and 23.33 %, respectively) were found in brinjal + coriander with NSKE 5% spray followed by brinjal + fennel and 0.03% spray of commercial azadirachtin formulation (24.17%, 21.79% and 22.59%, respectively) whereas the maximum shoot damage (50.60%), fruit damage (61.67 %)and fruit weight loss (64.84 %) were observed in sole Brinjal + Water Spray followed by Brinjal + NSKE 5 % which recorded 35.60 % shoot damage and 47.50 % weight loss. Almost all the treatments were significantly superior to control i.e. sole crop of brinjal sprayed with water) though some of them were not significantly different to the other. In most cases, combinations of intercrop supplemented the need of application of neem formulations as combinations of intercrop or application of neem formulations on lone brinjal crop were found to be at par regarding difference in shoot damage, fruit damage and fruit weight loss.