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Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur
The history of agricultural education in Kerala can be traced back to the year 1896 when a scheme was evolved in the erstwhile Travancore State to train a few young men in scientific agriculture at the Demonstration Farm, Karamana, Thiruvananthapuram, presently, the Cropping Systems Research Centre under Kerala Agricultural University. Agriculture was introduced as an optional subject in the middle school classes in the State in 1922 when an Agricultural Middle School was started at Aluva, Ernakulam District. The popularity and usefulness of this school led to the starting of similar institutions at Kottarakkara and Konni in 1928 and 1931 respectively.
Agriculture was later introduced as an optional subject for Intermediate Course in 1953. In 1955, the erstwhile Government of Travancore-Cochin started the Agricultural College and Research Institute at Vellayani, Thiruvananthapuram and the College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences at Mannuthy, Thrissur for imparting higher education in agricultural and veterinary sciences, respectively. These institutions were brought under the direct administrative control of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Animal Husbandry, respectively. With the formation of Kerala State in 1956, these two colleges were affiliated to the University of Kerala. The post-graduate programmes leading to M.Sc. (Ag), M.V.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees were started in 1961, 1962 and 1965 respectively.
On the recommendation of the Second National Education Commission (1964-66) headed by Dr. D.S. Kothari, the then Chairman of the University Grants Commission, one Agricultural University in each State was established. The State Agricultural Universities (SAUs) were established in India as an integral part of the National Agricultural Research System to give the much needed impetus to Agriculture Education and Research in the Country. As a result the Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) was established on 24th February 1971 by virtue of the Act 33 of 1971 and started functioning on 1st February 1972. The Kerala Agricultural University is the 15th in the series of the SAUs.
In accordance with the provisions of KAU Act of 1971, the Agricultural College and Research Institute at Vellayani, and the College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Mannuthy, were brought under the Kerala Agricultural University. In addition, twenty one agricultural and animal husbandry research stations were also transferred to the KAU for taking up research and extension programmes on various crops, animals, birds, etc.
During 2011, Kerala Agricultural University was trifurcated into Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU), Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) and Kerala Agricultural University (KAU).
Now the University has seven colleges (four Agriculture, one Agricultural Engineering, one Forestry, one Co-operation Banking & Management), six RARSs, seven KVKs, 15 Research Stations and 16 Research and Extension Units under the faculties of Agriculture, Agricultural Engineering and Forestry. In addition, one Academy on Climate Change Adaptation and one Institute of Agricultural Technology offering M.Sc. (Integrated) Climate Change Adaptation and Diploma in Agricultural Sciences respectively are also functioning in Kerala Agricultural University.
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ThesisItem Open Access Major spiders in vegetable ecosystem and their predatory potential(Department of Agricultural Entomology, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, 2005) Manu Mani, P; KAU; Hebsi BaiSpider faunistic survey conducted in okra, brinjal, cowpea, bittergourd and amaranthus fields in Kalliyoor panchayat of Thiruvananthapuram district during the summer of 2004, revealed the prevalence of high density and diversity of spiders in the vegetable ecosystem. Hunting spiders were dominant in all the vegetable plots. Thirty species of spiders distributed in nine families were recorded with the number of species in each vegetable field ranging from 10 to17. Among the thirty species, 16 species were commonly seen in the different vegetable fields while 14 species were seen exclusively associated with a particular vegetable. Araneidae with ten species was the most represented family in the vegetable fields followed by Oxyopidae and Salticidae. The other families observed were Miturgidae, Thomisidae, Tetragnathidae, Corinnidae, Lycosidae and Clubionidae. Most of the spiders appeared during the vegetative and flowering stages of the crop. Few spiders were recorded in the early stage of the crops. Four spiders viz., O. javanus, C. danieli, N. mukerjei and T. mandibulata were dominant in all the vegetable plots among which O. javanus and C. danieli predominated. Studies on the seasonal influence showed no significant difference in the abundance of the spiders during summer and rainy seasons. Rather, the growth stages of the crops significantly influenced the build up of the spider population with higher population being observed during the reproductive phase. In general, the spiders preferred soft bodied insects like the hemipterans, lepidopterans, dipterans and coleopterans (eggs and grubs) for predation. While the spiders did not show any significant preference for the different hemipteran prey in a mixed diet, significant difference was shown for the different lepidopteran pests. O. javanus had the maximum preference for the lepidopteran pests Chemical insecticides were more toxic to the spiders than botanicals when tested at their recommended doses. Among the chemical insecticides, dimethoate 0.05 per cent, carbaryl 0.2 per cent and malathion 0.1 per cent were highly toxic. Even at different doses the insecticides were toxic to the spiders. Quinalphos 0.05 per cent and imidacloprid were less toxic. Between the two methods of application, topical application of insecticides was more detrimental to the spiders than release on treated plants. Among the spiders, T. mandibulata was more susceptible to the insecticides followed by C. danieli. O. javanus and N. mukerjei were less sensitive. While the fungal pathogens, M. anisopliae, P. lilacinus and Bt were safe to the spiders. F. pallidoroseum, Fusarium sp. and B. bassiana were pathogenic. Based on the results of the study, conservation of the spiders characteristic of the vegetable ecosystem would be a practical and ecologically and economically viable approach for pest suppression in vegetables. When there is a spurt in pest ravage, the protection afforded by the predator could be supplemented with judicious use of “spider friendly” insecticides.ThesisItem Open Access Major spiders in vegetable ecosystem and their predatory potential(Department of Agricultural Entomology, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, 2005) Manu Mani, P; KAU; Hebsi, BaiSpider faunistic survey conducted in okra, brinjal, cowpea, bittergourd and amaranthus fields in Kalliyoor panchayat of Thiruvananthapuram district during the summer of 2004, revealed the prevalence of high density and diversity of spiders in the vegetable ecosystem. Hunting spiders were dominant in all the vegetable plots. Thirty species of spiders distributed in nine families were recorded with the number of species in each vegetable field ranging from 10 to17. Among the thirty species, 16 species were commonly seen in the different vegetable fields while 14 species were seen exclusively associated with a particular vegetable. Araneidae with ten species was the most represented family in the vegetable fields followed by Oxyopidae and Salticidae. The other families observed were Miturgidae, Thomisidae, Tetragnathidae, Corinnidae, Lycosidae and Clubionidae. Most of the spiders appeared during the vegetative and flowering stages of the crop. Few spiders were recorded in the early stage of the crops. Four spiders viz., O. javanus, C. danieli, N. mukerjei and T. mandibulata were dominant in all the vegetable plots among which O. javanus and C. danieli predominated. Studies on the seasonal influence showed no significant difference in the abundance of the spiders during summer and rainy seasons. Rather, the growth stages of the crops significantly influenced the build up of the spider population with higher population being observed during the reproductive phase. In general, the spiders preferred soft bodied insects like the hemipterans, lepidopterans, dipterans and coleopterans (eggs and grubs) for predation. While the spiders did not show any significant preference for the different hemipteran prey in a mixed diet, significant difference was shown for the different lepidopteran pests. O. javanus had the maximum preference for the lepidopteran pests Chemical insecticides were more toxic to the spiders than botanicals when tested at their recommended doses. Among the chemical insecticides, dimethoate 0.05 per cent, carbaryl 0.2 per cent and malathion 0.1 per cent were highly toxic. Even at different doses the insecticides were toxic to the spiders. Quinalphos 0.05 per cent and imidacloprid were less toxic. Between the two methods of application, topical application of insecticides was more detrimental to the spiders than release on treated plants. Among the spiders, T. mandibulata was more susceptible to the insecticides followed by C. danieli. O. javanus and N. mukerjei were less sensitive. While the fungal pathogens, M. anisopliae, P. lilacinus and Bt were safe to the spiders. F. pallidoroseum, Fusarium sp. and B. bassiana were pathogenic. Based on the results of the study, conservation of the spiders characteristic of the vegetable ecosystem would be a practical and ecologically and economically viable approach for pest suppression in vegetables. When there is a spurt in pest ravage, the protection afforded by the predator could be supplemented with judicious use of “spider friendly” insecticides.ThesisItem Open Access Evaluation of bait application technique for the management of fruit flies infesting cucurbits(Department of Agricultural Entomology, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, 2005) Vidya L; Jiji TA survey conducted in Kalliyoor and Nedinjil areas and Instructional farm, Vellayani for the assessment of pest incidence in the field revealed that among the five cucurbits viz., snakegourd, bittergourd, pumpkin, cucumber and coccinia, bittergourd had the maximum percentage incidence and coccinia the minimum. Two spiders viz., Oxyopes shweta and Oxyopes sp. and a larval pupal parasite of fruit flies viz., Opius sp. were observed in the field. From the infested fruits of these cucurbits the maximum number of flies emerged from snakegourd and the minimum from coccinia. B. cucurbitae was the only species that emerged from these infested fruits. The survey conducted in Kalliyoor and Nedinjil areas for documenting farmers’ practices showed that majority of the vegetable growing farmers cultivated cucurbits. The farmers were not following Package of Practices recommendations for spacing and fertilizer and pesticide dosages. All the farmers adopted the use of fruit fly traps, especially Palayankodan + carbofuran trap. In the screening experiment in the field, Rasakadali + jaggery + water + carbofuran, Palayankodan + boiled jaggery + water + carbofuran, Palayankodan + jaggery + water + carbofuran and Palayankodan + carbofuran were found to be significantly superior food baits with respect to total fly catch and duration of effective trap catch. In the cage experiment for selecting two superior baits out of the four baits selected from the field screening trial, Rasakadali + jaggery + water + carbofuran and Palayankodan + boiled jaggery + water + carbofuran were found significantly superior. Heating jaggery to 80oC increased the duration of effective trap catch and keeping quality of food baits. Plastic bottles of 350ml capacity provided with windows of size 6cm x 3cm was found to be the most efficient bait dispenser. In the field experiment for standardization of spacing Rasakadali + jaggery + water + carbofuran at 3.5m x 3.5m had the maximum fly catch, compared to all the other treatments. However there was no significant difference in fly catch when the same food bait was used at different spacing. The significantly lower percentage of incidence was noted when Rasakadali + jaggery + water + carbofuran was used at 2.5m x 2.5m and 3m x 3m and Palayankodan + boiled jaggery + water + carbofuran at 2.5m x 2.5m. The yield was maximum when Rasakadali + jaggery + water + carbofuran was used at 2.5m x 2.5m. The population of foliage pests in the snakegourd field was maximum during peak vegetative stage. The peak population of spiders did not coincide with peak fruit fly population. But the population of Opius sp increased with the population of fruit flies. In correlation with weather parameters it was found that female and total fruit fly population had significant negative correlation with morning relative humidity and number of rainy days. The results of the present study clearly revealed that by the adoption of improved Bait Application Technique profitable production of cucurbits without pesticide contamination is possible.ThesisItem Open Access Seasonal occurance and ecofriendly management of pests of amaranthus(Department of Agricultural Entomology, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, 2005) Asha, J S; KAU; Nandakumar, CSeasonal occurrence of pests, their natural enemies and leaf blight disease of amaranthus were studied in the Instructional Farm, College of Agriculture, Vellayani from April 2004 to April 2005. Leaf webbers Psara basalis F. and Hymenia recurvalis (F.) were the major pests of amaranthus and leaf blight disease caused by Rhizoctonia solani Kuhn. was the major disease. The leaf webber P. basalis was present in the field throughout the year. However the highest population and infestation was observed during the summer months. Maximum population of larvae was observed during the month of April 2004. The population and extent of damage by the pest exhibited significant positive correlation with maximum and minimum temperature. The leaf webber H. recurvalis was also present in the field throughout the year. The population and extent of damage by the pest was maximum during June, July and November 2004 and minimum during the summer months (April and May 2004). The population of the pest showed significant positive correlation with minimum temperature. The green grasshopper Atractomorpha crenulata F. was observed in the field throughout the year. Highest population was observed during the first fortnight of October 2004. The percentage of plants and leaves damaged by the grasshopper was maximum during the second fortnight of November 2004. The population and extent of damage of the grasshopper showed significant negative correlation with minimum temperature. The percentage of plants damaged by the tobacco caterpillar Spodoptera litura (F.) was maximum during the second fortnight of June 2004 and the leaves damaged was the highest during the first fortnight of June 2004. The leaf damage showed significant positive correlation with rainfall. A solitary braconid endoparasitoid Apanteles opacus (Ashmead) was found infesting the second instar larvae of H.recurvalis. The population of pupae of the parasitoid was maximum during the first fortnight of July 2004. Spider predators viz., Oxyopes spp., Cheiracanthium sp., Phidippus sp. and Tetragnatha sp. were found in the field throughout the year. Maximum population of spiders was observed during the second fortnight of September 2004. The population showed significant positive correlation with maximum temperature. The leaf blight disease caused by R. solani was observed throughout the year. The percentage disease index (PDI) was maximum during the second fortnight of December 2004. Studies on antifeedant effect of botanicals on major pests of amaranthus revealed that azadirachtin 0.0025 per cent was the best phagodeterrent followed by cow’s urine 10 per cent + NSKE five per cent and NSKE five per cent. Six botanical pesticides were evaluated with malathion as check in a field experiment. The treatments included neem seed kernel extract five per cent (NSKE), neem cake (NC) soil application @ 250 kg.ha-1 at planting + neem cake extract (NCE) 10 per cent spray, azadirachtin 0.0025 per cent, cow’s urine 10 per cent + NSKE five per cent, Pongamia oil soap emulsion two per cent and annona seed extract two per cent. Three sprays of the treatments were applied on the crop during the experiment. The results revealed that all the treatments were significantly superior to control in reducing the population of pests and their damage. Azadirachtin 0.0025 per cent was the most effective treatment against leaf webbers and grasshopper. This was followed by cow’s urine 10 per cent + NSKE five per cent and NSKE five per cent. The extent of damage caused by these pests in azadirachtin treated plots was statistically similar to that of malathion treated plots. . The extent of damage by the tobacco caterpillar was the lowest in NC soil application @ 250 kg ha-1 + NCE 10 per cent spray treatment. Higher population of spiders was found in botanical treated plots and control plots compared to malathion treated plots. The botanical treatments were not effective in containing the leaf blight disease. Maximum yield of marketable produce was recorded from malathion treated plots. However the B : C ratio was the highest (3.20) in botanical treatment, azadirachtin 0.0025 per cent (NeemAzal 1% TS @ 2.5 ml/litre) followed by cow’s urine 10 percent + NSKE five per cent (2.12) and NSKE five per cent (2.08). Three sprays of any of these botanicals at fortnightly intervals starting from two weeks after transplanting could manage the pests of amaranthus.ThesisItem Open Access Bioecology and management of mulberry leaf roller diaphania pulverulentalis(hampson)(lepidoptera: pyralidae)(Department of Entomology, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2005) Ramalakshmaiah, C; KAU; Jim, ThomasInvestigations were carried out on the “ Bioecology and management of mulberry leaf roller, Diaphania pulverulentalis (Hampson) (Pyralidae : Lepidoptera ) simultaneously in the department of Entomology, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara and in Kottat village of Chalakkudy area of Thrissur district during April 2004 to March 2005. The objectives of the study were to find out the biological aspects of leaf roller namely, fecundity, duration of each life stage, number of larval instars as well as bioecological aspects like identification of collateral hosts, natural enemy complex and the correlation of weather parameters on leaf roller incidence and also the pest management issues like population counts at before and after treatments and per cent leaf damage per harvestable shoot. Relative humidity at morning and evening was negatively correlated to larval population and shoot damage in both the open and intercropped system of cultivation. Photo phase showed significant positive relation on larval population in open and intercropped system of cultivation. Precipitation showed significant negative correlation on the larval population in the intercropping system of cultivation. The number of larvae per plant and shoot damage varied from month to month on mulberry. The number of larvae per plant was 1.56 in June, ascended to 5.37 by December. It came down to 1.47 in the following March in open system of cultivation. The number of larvae per plant was 1.94 in June, ascended to 7.26 by December. It came down to 2.25 per plant by the following March in intercropping system of cultivation. The shoot damage increased from 37.13 (June) to 72.83 (December). It came down to 36.96 by the following March in inter cropped system of cultivation. The shoot damage ascended from 28.5 (June ) to 75.83 (December). It came down to 45.46 per cent by the following March in open system of cultivation. The biological studies on the leaf roller revealed that the fecundity was 157 eggs with a range of 117 to 211eggs per female. The biological studies in peak season (October to December) recorded the egg period as 4 days, individual larval periods as 1.714, 2.5, 3.214, 3.28 and 3.92 days for the I, II, III, IV and V instar larvae respectively. The pupal period was 7.95 days, the adult male longevity was 8.15 days and the adult female longevity as 10.225 days. The biology in lean season (February – March) recorded the incubation period of egg as 3.3 days, individual larval periods as 1.516, 2.009, 2.471, 2.52 and 3.5 days for I, II, III, IV and V instar larvae respectively. The pupal period was 7.95 days. The adult male longevity was 8.15 days and female longevity was 10.225 days. The total development period varied from 23.25 days during the lean season to 28.01 days during peak season. There are many natural enemies affecting different life stages of leaf roller. Bracon hebetor, Chelonus sp. and a mermithid nematode parasitizes the larvae. Tetrastichus howardi attacks the pupae. The spiders Tetragnatha sp. and Philodromus sp. predated on the leaf roller. The experiments on the collateral hosts showed that the existing weed flora in and around mulberry garden, were not the hosts of leaf roller. The leaf roller did not feed on the leaves of related plant species to mulberry like Jack, Hibiscus and Cucurbits. The evaluation of different management practices against leaf roller showed that the integration of the practices like clipping of top leaves, inert soil dust application and the application of dichlorvos 0.1 per cent as the best treatment than the individual treatments concerned for the reduction in larval population and shoot damage. The management practices were not pronounced in summer season (February to April). The results were almost similar in open, intercropped system of cultivation. The chemical treatment with dichlorvos at 0.1 per cent afforded greater reduction in pupal population than other treatments. Dichlorvos exhibited greater ovicidal action by recording the hatchability of 43.33 and 16.67 per cent at 0.1 and 0.2 per cent concentrations respectively. The probit analysis if dose mortality response of dichlorvos at different concentrations showed that 1.73 per cent as the LC50 value. The time mortality response of dichlorvos at 0.1 per cent showed that 17.12 hours as the LT 50 value. The experiments on food consumption and utilization indices recorded that the approximate digestibility (AD), efficiency of conversion of ingested food into body tissue (ECI) and the efficiency of digested fool into body matter (ECD) were 53.3, 37.34 and 25.23 per cent respectively.ThesisItem Open Access IPM strategy in bittergourd using new generation insectisides and botanicals(Department of Agricultural Entomology, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2005) Malarvizhi, G; KAU; Maicykutty P, MathewThe investigation on the “IPM strategy in bittergourd using new generation insecticides and botanicals” were carried out in the field as well as in the laboratory of Department of Entomology, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara during October 2003 to February 2004. The present investigation revealed that profenofos gave high mortality to epilachna beetles, NSKE and spinosad were safe to honey bees and spinosad alone was found to be safe to predatory coccinellids under laboratory conditions. Under field conditions ethofenprox was found as the most effective insecticide against leafhoppers, profenofos against epilachna beetle and all chemical treatments and NSKE against leaf miner infestation. Spinosad, citronella oil, NSKE, fipronil and deltafos recorded lower pumpkin caterpillar infestation. NSKE, fipronil, deltafos and spinosad consistently effective in reducing the gall fly infestation. Citronella oil, NSKE and deltafos had registered the lower fruit fly infestation. The fruit borer infestation was less in the plots treated with spinosad, citronella oil and woodash. All botanicals and woodash harboured spider predators and spinosad was comparatively safe to spiders. Citronella oil and NSKE recorded higher coccinellid predatorsThesisItem Open Access Management of root knot nematode in rice(Department of Agricultural Entomology, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2005) Renitha, Govind; KAU; Ushakumari, RThe objectives of the study entitled ‘Management of root knot nematode in rice’ was to identify the species of rice root knot nematode and to study the management of this nematode by different bio agents, chemical pesticides and a neem formulation. A survey was conducted for the collection of soil and root samples from the rice growing tracts, already infected with root knot nematodes. The species of root knot nematode attacking rice plant was identified as Meloidogyne graminicola Golden and Birchfield. Pot culture experiments were conducted to study the management of rice root knot nematode under flooded and non flooded condition by different bio agents, chemicals and a neem formulation The effect of the treatments on the shoot characters, yield, root characters and nematode population were tested. Seed treatment with B. subtilis, P. fluorescens, T. viride and P. fluorescens + T. viride produced more vigorous seedlings with more number of leaves and height compared to other treatments. At the time of harvest also B. subtilis was superior. All other treatments except carbosulfan showed significant effect on the number of leaves, tillers and height of the plant. In non flooded condition, B. subtilis followed by AMF and carbofuran showed superior effect in terms of root characters (length and weight of roots). In flooded condition also B. subtilis showed its superior effect. This was closely followed by AMF, carbofuran and P. fluorescens. Carbosulfan was the least effective treatment in both the conditions. Control plants showed poor root growth with only very short roots. The yield attributes (days to flowering, days to harvest, number of panicles, number of grains per panicle, wet weight of grains, dry weight of grains and straw weight) in both flooded and non flooded conditions were superior in plants treated with B. subtilis. This was followed by carbofuran, AMF and P. fluorescens in non flooded condition and AMF, carbofuran, P. fluorescens and neem granules in flooded condition. There was no effect for enhancing the yield characters by carbosulfan. Plants in control pots were dwarf with only less number of leaves and tillers. The nematode population characters with reference to reduction in number of nematodes in soil and root and gall count in root was superior in carbofuran treated plants in non flooded condition with 99.08, 99.26 and 97.50 percent reduction over the control respectively. B. subtilis treated plants showed superiority in flooded condition with 98.36, 98.79 and 95.56 per cent reduction over the control. There was statistically significant reduction in nematode population in all the other treatments (AMF, P. fluorescens, neem granules, T. viride and P. fluorescens + T. viride) except carbosulfan.ThesisItem Open Access Indigenous natural organic materials for the management of major insect pests of rice(Department of Agricultural Entomology, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2005) Smitha Revi, D; KAU; Suma Paulose, FBio efficacy of natural organic materials was evaluated by field experiment at Agricultural Research Station, Mannuthy, 2003-04 against major insect pests of rice. A popular variety ‘Jyothi’ released by RARS, Pattambi was used for the study. Leaves of different plant species like mango (Mangifera indica), cashew (Anacardium occidentale), garadi (Cleistanthus collinus), snake wood (Strychnos nux-vomica), glycosmis (Glycosmis pentaphylla), glyricidia (Glyricidia maculata) leaves and cowdung (5 t ha-1) were incorporated into the field two weeks prior to transplanting. The organic sprays viz., karanj (Pongamia pinnata) oil (2%), hydnocarpus (Hydnocarpus laurifolia) oil (2%) and cow’s urine + asafoetida (Ferula foetida) (20ml + 20g L-1) were sprayed at three critical stages of crop growth (i.e, active tillering stage, maximum tillering stage and milky stage). The effect of these treatment combinations was compared with chemical insecticides, which were recommended by Package of Practices Recommendations of KAU. The salient findings are abstracted below. The present investigation revealed that the most effective treatment combinations against stem borer were snake wood + hydnocarpus oil and snake wood + karanj oil. It was found as effective as chemical treatment carbofuran (@0.75 kg ai ha-1). The effect of snake wood + hydnocarpus oil and garadi + karanj oil was similar to that of carbaryl (0.3%) in the control of leaf folder. The chemical insecticide Methyl parathion (0.2%)gave the highest control over rice bug infestation. The treatment combinations mango + karanj oil, mango + hydnocarpus oil, mango + cow’s urine-asafoetida, and snake wood + hydnocarpus oil exhibited effective control over the population of rice bug. Population of natural enemies was high in botanical treated plots as compared to chemical treated plots. Treatment combination, garadi + karanj oil gave the highest control on sheath rot disease of rice. Glyricidia + cow’s urine–asafoetida treated plots recorded the lowest incidence of brown spot. Studies on the effect of treatments on weed population showed that combination of snake wood and hydnocarpus oil was the best treatment. Better plant height and maximum number of tillers was observed in glyricidia + hydnocarpus oil treated plots. Different treatment combinations showed similar effect on test weight of seeds. Glyricidia + hydnocarpus oil treated plots gave higher number of panicles per hill, whereas mango + hydnocarpus oil applied plots recorded the highest per cent of filled grains. The highest grain yield of rice crop was recorded in glyricidia + hydnocarpus oil treated plot (3152 kg ha-1). Highest grain : straw ratio was noticed in garadi + karanj oil applied plots followed by snake wood + hydnocarpus oil. The results show the importance of organic materials for the suppression of pests of rice and also their efficacy in preserving the natural ecosystem. In the present scenario of sustainable agriculture, use of natural organic materials requires special attention, as they are ecofriendly and farmer friendly.ThesisItem Open Access Evaluation and characterisation of effective fungal pathogens associated with the coconut eriophyid mite (Aceria guerreronis Keifer)(Kerala Agricultural University;Thrissur, 2005) Amritha V.S.; KAU; Pathummai Beevi, S.
