Efficacy of entomo-pathogenic fungus and botanical pesticides against mustard aphid (Lipaphis erysimi Kalt.) at field condition Rupandehi Nepal

Abstract

Mustard aphid is the most concerning pest of rapeseed in warm and humid areas of Nepal because of its widespread prevalence and increasing severity. There is increasing use of chemicals, as the only resort, to manage this pest. The experiment was carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of different bio-friendly management techniques against Mustard aphid, at the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science, Paklihawa campus. Treatments like “Jholmal” (250 ml/L), Beauveria bassiana (4gm/L) Abamectin @ 1 ml/L of water, Metarhizium anisopliae (2 gm/L), Verticillium lecanii 2% A.S (5 ml/L) and Neem oil (5 ml/L) were used at post-infestation condition. Results revealed that the overall performance of Abamectin was found to be remarkably effective as compared to others. However, the performance of “Jholmal” and Neem was also found similar for both adult and nymph management. Also, the yield and yield attributing characters in “Jholmal”, Neem, and Abamectin treated plots were similar. However, Abamectin was not found to be convincing considering its impact on natural enemies and thus “Jholmal” and Neem are suggested from the experimental results for the management of mustard aphids at the farmer's level.