Quality assessment of multivoltine silkworm (Bombyx mori L.) pure Mysore through mulberry genotypes in Kunigal seed area of Karnataka

Abstract

Mulberry silkworm (Bombyx mori L.) is an economically important insect which has been domesticated for centuries for the purpose of obtaining silk, the most sought after natural fibre. Mulberry is the sole food plant of B. mori and hence cultivated extensively for production of leaves. Quality of the silk largely depends on the mulberry leaves that the silkworm feeds on. Since the crop performance of the silkworm is highly dependent on the quality of the mulberry leaves, it is pertinent to know the nutritional status of the leaves. An experiment was therefore conducted at P3/P2 Basic Seed Farm Nagenahally, during kharif 2018-19 to study the influence of mulberry genotypes on growth and yield components of multivoltine silkworm Pure Mysore, B. mori. The experimental results revealed significantly high weight of larvae (26.67 g/10 larvae), yield per 100 dfls by number and weight (40168 and 46.11 kg respectively), cocoon weight (1.148 g), cocoon shell weight (0.173 g), shell percentage (15.11) and pupation percentage (97.00) with the mulberry genotype V1 compared to the genotypes G4 and S36 whereas lower larval duration (29.07 days) & number of cocoons per kg (870) were significatly low. The study recommends V1 as the most suitable mulberry genotype for raising Pure Mysore silkworm in the Kunigal Seed area of Karnataka among the three popular mulberry genotypes, followed by the next best genotype of G4.