Abstract
The production of maize is constrained by various biotic stresses particularly insect pests. Infestation of insect pests on standing crop and stored grains not only reduces yield but also affects the quality of grains. The strategy for enhancing host plant resistance (HPR) is one of the cheapest, safe and sustainable methods for managing insect pests. Being a leading contributor to the world cereal basket, maize suffers from various insect pests. Maize has undergone various improvements through diverse breeding tools starting from selection to the present transgenic approaches to minimize the losses due to insect pests. This chapter provides an overview on major insect pests of maize, their distribution across the globe, methods of screening germplasm for resistance to insect pests, identification of sources of resistance, mechanisms of insect resistance, genetic nature of resistance and application of novel breeding methods for development of insect-resistant cultivars of maize.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
