Efficacy of plant extracts against Bihar hairy caterpillar on cabbage under laboratory condition

Abstract

Bihar hairy caterpillar (Spilosoma obliqua) is a sporadic, polyphagous and voracious foliage feeder attacking several host species of different families. Its impact is more pronounced in certain species of Cruciferae family, notably cabbage. The goal of the current study was to identify methods for pest control that are efficient, economical, and sustainable in order to combat the Bihar hairy caterpillar infestation on cabbage. The research was conducted to measure the efficacy of eight plant extracts in Entomology laboratory, Lamjung Campus at room temperature from March to April, 2019. There were eight treatments viz. Asuro (Justicia adhatoda), Bakaino (Melia azedarach), Ban fada (Lantana camara), Bojho (Acorus calamus), Kaligadi (Solanum nigrum), Neem (Azadirachta indica), Titepati (Artemisia vulgaris) and Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) in the experiment. Pure cultured insects were tested against treated leaf with four replications of each treatment placed in Complete Randomized Design (CRD). Antifeedant effect and mortality tests were performed for 24 hours and 15 days respectively. The results indicated that all the plant materials posses some sort of antifeedant and mortality effect to the insect. The statistical analysis revealed that both antifeedant effect (87.85%) and mortality (100%) were maximum in bakaino followed by neem. The result demonstrates a great potentiality of utilizing plant extracts against the pest, and suggests the incorporation of botanical extracts would be future alternative in pest management.