Management Of Canola Aphid (Lipaphis Erysimi (Kalt); Hemiptera: Aphididae) Through Different Control Tactics.

Abstract

Mustard aphid, Lipaphis erysimi (Aphididae: Hemiptera) is one of the major constraints for mustard production in Pakistan. Sustainable management of mustard aphids is a serious issue due to their unusual life cycle and widespread habitats. Synthetic chemicals are a great threat to the environment and human health. In the present study, as an alternative different sowing dates and plant extract being ecofriendly approaches to manage insect pests. In this study two different experiments were performed to test the effect of sowing dates on the population trend of canola aphids (Lipaphis erysimi (Kalt) on four selected canola cultivars (Tara seed, Dalay, Abaseen and KS-75). The trials comprised three different sowing dates at a time interval of 10 days; (S₁) 26^th October 2021, (S₂) 6^th November 2020, (S₃) 16^th November 2020. In second experiment, the efficacy of insecticide (Fipronil) and botanical extract (Neem seed extract) against canola aphids on two tested canola cultivars (Abaseen and KS-75) regarding different parameters were studied. Data regarding the population trend of aphids on four tested cultivars at three various sowing dates show that significantly minimum aphids plant^-1 (S₁ (7.60), S₂ (6.79), S₃ (8.79) was obtained from canola cultivar KS-75, while, statistically maximum aphids plant^-1 (S₁ (77.91), S₂ (53.28), S₃ (62.40) was obtained from Abaseen variety on all three sowing dates. During second experiment, significantly maximum mean per cent population reduction (67.183), Sub-branches plant^-1 (29.360), Pods plant^-1 (377.58), and Yield (105.62) was obtained from Fipronil treated plots while statistically minimum mean per cent population reduction (2.467), Sub-branches plant^-1 (16.625), Pods plant^-1 (210.99), and Yield (48.39) was recorded from control. Our findings show that KS-75 is the most resistant canola variety among all tested cultivars and conventional pesticide Fipronil proved highly effective against L.erysimi.