Expert Advisory Details

Prevention of fall armyworm in maize crop

Fall armyworm: Fall armyworm, a new insect pest of maize, feeds voraciously on the central whorl leaves causing round to oblong holes and producing a large amount of faecal matter. The larvae can be easily identified by the presence of four spots arranged in square pattern at tail end, and a predominant white coloured inverted Y-shaped mark on the head. Avoid staggered sowing in adjacent fields to minimize the spread of this insect. Spray the grain crop with Coragen 18.5 SC (chlorantraniliprole) @ 0.4 ml or Delegate 11.7 SC (spinetoram) @ 0.5 ml or Missile 5 SG (emamectin benzoate) @ 0.4 g per litre of water. Direct the spray nozzle towards the whorl, for its effective control. If the infestation is in patches or the crop is more than 40 days old and spraying is difficult, apply soil-insecticide mixture (about half gram) in the whorls of the infested plants. To prepare the soil–insecticide mixture, add 5 ml of Coragen 18.5 SC or Delegate 11.7 SC or 5 g of Missile 5 SG in 10 ml of water and mix well in one kg of soil.