Mealybug Attack in Cotton/Narma

Cotton is a very important crop for the Kharif season after the paddy. In Paddy and cotton crop there are different types of pest and diseases which affect the crop n few days and increase the loss of a farmer. Like one of them is Mealybug. This article you will read about the mealybug management. 

Mealybug not only attacks the cotton, but it will also attack different crops like sugarcane, guava, brinjal. tomato etc. 

Symptoms of Damage 

Mealybugs can damage the whole plant by feeding and injecting toxins into plants and cause deformation and excrete honeydew. This honeydew makes them sticky and attract the ants on plants and many more types of pests.

If they reach on a single plant in 1-2 days the whole plant is coved with a white layer.  At high levels of damage or population, it can cause plant defoliation and even cause plant death. mostly they damage the stem and leaf of plants results in plant looks black sooty mold, yellowing and dying of leaves, distorted or stunted plant growth.

Identification 

Mealybug is soft-bodied, flat, and waxy and has an oval shape and d mostly white in colour. We can see them with naked eyes. They can spread easily in the crop within 10-15 days and damage up to 50 percent in production. An adult female can lay around 600 eggs and die after laying eggs. 

Management of Mealybug

• Remove the affected plants.
• Farmers can control them by using Dimethoate 2 ml/litre of water and Profenophos 2 ml/litre of water at the affected plant. 
• The spray must be repeated after 3-4 days and a maximum of 7 days of interval.
• Farmers can easily control them and protect their crops at timely spray if their population is increased and reached in more plants you have to face a big challenge.

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