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Plant Science Today (PST)

Research Articles

Vol. 12 No. sp4 (2025): Recent Advances in Agriculture by Young Minds - III

Evaluation of selected biopesticides and chemical insecticides against natural enemies in the pigeon pea ecosystem

DOI
https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.8744
Submitted
8 April 2025
Published
25-11-2025

Abstract

The safety evaluation of biopesticides and chemical insecticides against natural enemies in the pigeon pea ecosystem was carried out at Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Kalyani, West Bengal, India. Pigeon pea (Var. UPAS-120) seeds were planted in 20 m2 plots during the kharif seasons of 2013- 2014 with a spacing of 60 cm x 20 cm and eleven treatments were arranged in a randomized block design (RBD). Two sprays of chemical insecticides and bio-pesticides were applied at 15 days intervals. Fourteen days before and after each spray, the number of coccinellid complexes (adult and grub) was counted. The experimental findings revealed that fenvalerate was most toxic treatment to the coccinellids. The next most toxic insecticides were spinosad, indoxacarb and flubendiamide whereas biopesticides were comparatively less toxic to the natural enemies. However, M. Anisopliae was recorded as the least toxic biopesticide in the present study. The mortality of adult Bracon brevicornis W. in the laboratory was highest with spinosad followed by fenvalerate, indoxacarb, annonin and karanjin. The impact of insecticidal treatments on the emergence of adult of Trichogramma chilonis I. from pupae of Corcyra cephalonica Stainton showed that fenvalerate was the most toxic, with the lowest emergence of adults from the pupae, followed by spinosad, karanjin and indoxacarb.

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