Eco-friendly management of Fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) on maize ecosystem in Meghalaya

Abstract

Maize (Zea mays L.) is the most versatile crop among cereals which belongs to the family Poaceae. Fall armyworm (FAW) is an important and destructive pest causing heavy damage to maize crops throughout the India and world. The extensive and indiscriminate use of conventional insecticides for pest management has led to several problem like resurgence of pests, reducing of beneficial organism, pesticides residues in corn. Hence, the present experiments were taken on “Eco-friendly management of Fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) on Maize ecosystem in Meghalaya” was conducted at CPGS-AS experimental Farm at CoA, Kyrdemkulai, CAU (I), Meghalaya during Kharif 2023. The experiment was carried out in randomized block design with seven treatments viz. Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurustaki @ 10ml/lit, Beauveria bassiana @ 5ml/lit, Metarhizium anisopliae @ 5ml/lit, Lecinicilium lecenii @ 5ml/lit, Neem oil 0.03%, Emamectin benzoate 5 SG @ 0.4g/lit and control replicated thrice. The evaluation of different biopesticides and chemical insecticide show that Emamectin benzoate 5% SG was found most effective against the S. frugiperda with highest yield (6.62 t/ha). Among the evaluated biopesticides, Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurustaki was found to be superior in reducing percent infestation of Fall armyworm and had significantly higher yield (5.20 t/ha) followed by Neem oil 0.03% (4.88 t/ha) and Metarhizium robertsii (4.71 t/ha) which can be safely used for management of fall armyworm in Maize ecosystem.