Effect of Date of Sowing on Incidence of Fall Armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda in Maize

Abstract

Fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) is a member of the Noctuidae family which has economic importance as a polyphagous and extreme pest of many important crops, including maize in India and elsewhere. In this context, an experiment regarding the influence of different dates of sowing on the incidence of fall armyworm was conducted in MARS, Dharwad. The results revealed that the least mean larval load of fall armyworm was recorded in crop sown during the July 2nd fortnight (0.75 larvae per plant) and the highest was recorded in crop sown during the August 2nd fortnight (1.53 larvae per plant). Whereas, the lowest mean leaf damage score of 2.95 was observed in crop sown during 2nd fortnight of July and the highest was recorded in the crop sown during 2nd fortnight of August (4.82).