Incidence of Maize Aphids and Their Associated Natural Enemies under Mono and Intercropping Situations
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Date
2018
Authors
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Publisher
MPUAT, Udaipur
Abstract
Incidence of maize aphids and their associated natural enemies under
mono and intercropping situations
Mukesh Kumar Tali* Dr. M. K. Mahla The investigation on, “Incidence of maize aphids and their associated natural
enemies under mono and intercropping situations” was conducted on Agronomy Farm
and Department of Entomology, Rajasthan College of Agriculture, MPUAT, Udaipur
during kharif 2017. Maize variety Pratap maize-5 was sown with different maize
based intercrop plantings to study the seasonal incidence of maize aphids and to
compare the impact of with environmental factors on the abundance of aphids and
* PG. Scholar, Department of Entomology, Rajasthan College of Agriculture, MPUAT, Udaipur.
** Professor , Department of Entomology, Rajasthan College of Agriculture, MPUAT, Udaipur
associated natural enemies as well as to record the influence of different intercropping
on aphid abundance.
During the crop season, the population of maize aphids initiated in the first
week of August and remained active throughout the growing stage and reached to its
peak in the second week of September. On the basis of seasonal mean, the lowest
population was recorded on maize + cowpea (4.98 aphids/ plant); while, maximum
population (22.45 aphids/ plant) was recorded on sole maize. The mean aphid
population had a significant positive correlation with mean atmospheric temperature
in most of the intercrop treatments as well as sole maize except in maize + cowpea.
The coccinellids appeared in first week of August and thereafter gradually
increased with aphid population reaching to its peak in second week of September,
2017. The maximum seasonal mean population of coccinellids was recorded in maize
+ cowpea (5.09 aphids/plant). The mean population of coccinellids had a significant
positive correlation with mean atmospheric temperature in all the intercrop
treatments. The predation of aphids by the larval population of syrphid fly maggots
was observed from the first week of August, in the maize + greengram, maize +
blackgram and maize + cowpea; while, in sole maize and maize + soybean the
predation began in second week of August. The maximum seasonal mean population
of syrphid fly maggots was recorded in maize + cowpea (2.00 maggots/plant).The
mean population of syrphid fly maggots had a significant positive correlation with
mean atmospheric temperature in the treatments maize + greengram (r=0.61) and
maize + cowpea (r=0.67). The syrphid fly population under maize + blackgram
(r=0.61) showed a significant positive correlation with mean relative humidity. The
predator-prey relationships between the prey aphids and their predatory coccinellids
as well as the syrphid fly maggots had a significant positive correlation in the
intercrop treatments as well as in sole maize.
When maize was intercropped with legumes the minimum mean aphid
population per plant was recorded in maize + cowpea (1.75); while, the maximum
was recorded in sole maize (5.50). The maximum populations of natural enemies
(coccinellids and syrphid fly maggots) were observed in maize + cowpea (1:1) with
mean population 3.25 and 3.00 per plant, respectively. The maximum maize grain
yield (3.32 kg/plot) was recorded in maize + cowpea as compared to sole maize.
Description
Incidence , Maize Aphids, Associated Natural Enemies under Mono
Keywords
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Citation
Tali, M.K. and Mahla, M.K.