Bio-intensive management of fruit fly, Bactrocera cucurbitae (Coquillett.) in cucumber

Abstract

The present investigation was conducted to evaluate the bio-efficacy of different bio-intensive treatment modules against cucurbit fruit fly, Bactrocera cucurbitae in cucumber laid out at Horticulture Farm of Rajasthan College of Agriculture, Udaipur during kharif, 2016. The results revealed that among eight spray combinations of biopesticides viz., Spinosad (200ml/ha), Azadirachtin (0.03%) and NSKE (5%), three sprays of Spinosad (200ml/ha), first spray applied as soon as the ovipositor marks were seen on the fruits and subsequent sprays at an interval of twelve days proved to be the most effective treatment module in controlling the fruit fly with least mean number of fruits with ovipositor marks (1.50), mean number of pupae of fruit fly formed from damaged fruits (5.92) and mean per cent fruit infestation (8.28 per cent) and avoiding maximum losses up to 56.88 per cent with highest fruit yield (555.56 q/ha). The treatment module comprising two spray applications of Spinosad (200ml/ha) followed by a spray of Azadirachtin (0.03%) was the next effective treatment.