Pests of Wood apple

Major pests of Wood apple are:-

1.Fruit borer: Deudorix isocrates

Symptoms of damage:

• Caterpillar bores into young fruits and feeds on internal contents (pulp and seeds)
• Fruit rotting and dropping

Identification of pest:

• Larvae: Dark brown, short and stout, covered with short hairs
• Adult: Bluish brown butterfly, female has V shaped patch on forewing

Management:

ETL: 5 eggs/plant

• Collect and destroy damaged fruits
• Clean cultivation as weed plants serve as alternate hosts
• Endemic areas – grow less susceptible varieties
• Cover the fruit with polythene bags when the fruits are up to 5 cm
• Use light trap @ 1/ ha to monitor the activity of adults
• Malathion 50 EC 0.1% or two rounds, one at flower formation and next at fruit set
• Flowering stage – spray NSKE 5% or neem formulations 2 ml/l
• Apply dimethoate 30 EC 1.5 ml/l
• Release Trichogramma chilonis at one lakh/acre

2.Citrus butterfly: Papilio demolious

Symptoms of damage:

• Caterpillar feed on the leaves
• Defoliation

Identification of pest:

• Larvae: Early stage larva resembles bird dropping. Grown up larva – cylindrical, stout, green and brown lateral bond
• Adult: Dark brown swallowtail butterfly with numerous yellow marking

Management:

• Hand pick the larvae and destroy
• Early stage – spray 2 ml of methyl parathion per litre of water
• Field release of parasitoids Trichogramme evanescens and Telenomus sp on eggs of Brachymeria sp on larvae and Pterolus sp. on Pupae.

Source-

• TamilNadu Agritech Portal