Wankhade, Dr. P. P.MANE, KU. SHITAL DEVANAND.2021-05-262021-05-262019-08-22MANE, KU. SHITAL DEVANAND. (2019). Adoption of integrated pest management practices for control of pink bollworm by cotton growers. Department of extension education, Nagpur. Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Akola. M. Sc. 2019. Print. xvii, 118p. (unpublished).https://krishikosh.egranth.ac.in/handle/1/5810169289Cotton is most important cash and fibre crop of Vidarbha grown under diversified condition in the region. Integrated Pest Management is a pest management system hat in the content of the associated environment and the pest population dynamics of the pest species. Pink bollworm has ravaged the cotton crop in the district, where farmer suicide has been rampant. The pink bollworm eats away the cotton fibre and the bolls, causing economic loss to the farmer.The present study on adoption of integrated pest management practices for control of pink bollworm by cotton growers was conducted in Nagpur district of Vidarbha region of Maharashtra State with sample size of 120 farmers from 10 villages. Data were collected on personal, socio-economic and psychological characteristics of respondent cotton growers and knowledge and adoption of integrated pest management practices for control of pink bollworm by cotton growers with the help of pre structured and pretested interview schedule. The result showed that, majority of respondents belonged to middle age(56.66%), education up to secondary school (39.16%), agriculture as their main occupation (78.34%), semi medium land holding (42.50%), possessed area under cotton cultivation (21.16%), possessed medium farming experience (35.84%), high annual income (40.00%), medium level of sources of information (66.66%), medium extension participation (72.50%), medium economic motivation (71.66%) and medium scientific orientation (70.84%), respectively. In case of integrated pest management practices cent per cent respondents (100.00%) had knowledge about allowing cattel grazing on the left over green bolls of the plant at the end of crop season, deep ploughing during summer and timely sowing (80.84%). Regarding mechanical method, most of the respondents had knowledge about destruction of cotton stubbles immediate after by harvest (81.66%), followed by use of pheromone traps (61.66%) and hand picking and destruction of larvae (60.00%) , respectively. In case of biological method, majority of the respondents were having knowledge about spraying of Neem Seed Kernel Extract (N.S.K.E.) 5% during flowering stage (56.67%) and zero per cent of them had no knowledge about use of trichocards. In case of chemical methods, majority of respondents have knowledge about application of chloropyriphos 20 ml / 10lit. / quinolphos 20ml / 10lit / profenophos 20 ml / 10 lit / thiodicarb 20 gm / 10lit at initial stage of ETL (87.50%) , followed by avoid mixing of agrochemicals(65.00%). Further findings of study shows that cotton growers had medium level of overall knowledge index i.e. 55.84 per cent about integrated pest management practices. In regards to adoption with integrated pest management practices, most of the cultural practices were completely adopted cultural methods were allowing cattle grazing on the left over green bolls of the plant at the end of crop season (71.67%), deep ploughing during summer (59.13%).In case of complete adoption of IPM practices under mechanical method , destruction of cotton stubbles immediate after by harvest (36.66%) and use of pheromone traps (2-3 pheromone traps/acer) for monitoring (34.16%). In case of complete adoption of biological method such as spraying of Neem Seed Kernel Extract (N.S.K.E.) 5% during flowering stage (27.50%). It may also seen that of complete adoption of chemical methods like application of chloropyriphos 20 ml / 10lit. / quinolphos 20ml / 10lit / profenophos 20 ml / 10 lit / thiodicarb 20 gm/10lit at initial stage of ETL (43.34%), avoid mixing of agrochemicals (30.00%). Further the findings study found that majority of respondents (85.84%) had medium level of extent of adoption of integrated pest management practices. The finding of correlation analysis revealed that among selected variables age and farming experience was negatively significant correlation with knowledge. Whereas, education, occupation and economic motivation, extension participation and sources of information found to have correlation positive highly significant correlation with knowledge. The variables like land holding, annual income and scientific orientation did not shown any significant association with knowledge. The findings of correlation analysis with adoption revealed that among the selected variables age has negatively and significantly correlated with adoption also education, occupation, farming experience, extension participation, economic motivation and scientific orientation, sources of information and knowledge positively and significantly correlated with adoption of IPM practices by the respondents . The variables like land holding, area under cultivation and annual income did not show any significant relation with adoption of IPM of cotton growers. In case of constraints all of the respondents expressed the major constraints such as lack of knowledge about use of trichocards (100%), non availability of good quality of pheromone traps at proper time (65.83%), lack of knowledge about selection of recommended variety with early medium maturity (52.50%), high wages rate (45.83%), lack of knowledge about spraying of Neem Seed Kernel Extract (43.33%), lack of knowledge about application of chloropyriphos 20 ml/10lit. / quinolphos 20ml/10lit / profenophos 20 ml/10 lit / thiodicarb 20 gm/10lit at initial stage of ETL (36.66%), labours are not available at proper time (35.83%), lack of knowledge about avoid mixing of agrochemicals (35.00%) and high cost of insecticide (33.33%), respectively.EnglishSocial Science, Agricultural Extension, Villages and Television.Thesis