Managing cotton whitefly
COTTON IS attacked by a large number of insect pests in different stages of its growth.
Major pests include sucking pests, foliage pests and bollworms. Among the sucking pests, cotton whitefly(Bemisia tabaci), a polyphagus pest, has gained major status.
Both adults and nymphs cause severe damage. The nymphs and adults suck the cell sap and lower the vitality of the plant. Normal photosynthetic activity gets affected due to the growth of sooty mould on the honeydew excreted by the insect.
Disease symptoms
— Attacked crop exhibits a sickly, black appearance.
— Stunted growth, produced lesser number of monopodial and sympodial branches.
— Blackening of leaf and lint.
— The diseased plant shows upward curling of leaves, which turn brittle. If it is in seedling stage, twisting of petioles, shortening of internodes, abortive flowering are exhibited.
Disease management
— Cultivation of susceptible varieties in the established endemic areas should be immediately discouraged.
— Removal of weeds, which are alternative hosts of B. tabaci from the fields.
— Excessive use of nitrogenous fertilizers should be avoided.
— Use of yellow traps for monitoring whitefly population.
— Avoiding growing cotton crops in citrus orchards.
— Spraying of Trizophos 40EC at 1.5 ml/lit to manage the whitefly population effectively.
A. M. Nadaf,
S. S. Deshmukh,
& S.G.S. Guruprasad
Department of Entomology
University of Agricultural
Sciences
Dharwad
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