Efficacy of organic inputs against aphid, Lipaphis pseudobrassicae Davis infesting broccoli

Abstract

In the era of sustainable and organic agriculture, the management of insect-pests infesting different crops is now focused more prominently on use of non-chemical measures. It has benefits not only to the target crops but also to natural enemies, human beings as well as whole ecosystem also. Inspired from this, current research experiment was conducted for eco-friendly management of aphids infesting broccoli. Various non-chemical organic inputs viz., cow urine, neemastra, botanicals (neem seed kernel extract and neem oil) and entomopathogenic fungi (Lecanicillium lecanii, Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana) were evaluated under field condition for their efficacy against aphid, Lipaphis pseudobrassicae infesting broccoli. Of all organic components tested, L. lecanii found the most effective in reduction of aphid population followed by M. anisopliae which also exhibiting higher yield as compared to other treatments.