Integrated Pest Management of fall armyworm on maize

Description

A split plot design was adopted in this trial with three randomly selected maize fields using mating disruption technology dispensers (With MDT) and the other three without the dispensers (No MDT) as the main plots. In the With MDT farms, pheromone dispensers were placed at a distance of 20 meters apart extending to a radius of 127 m from the center of the trial crop to represent an area wide integrated pest management approach (AW-IPM) covering five hectares. Additionally, each of the six maize fields was subdivided into two equal plots (sub plots), where IPM approach, based on the use of biocontrol and synthetic insecticides for FAW in one, guided by scouting results for FAW pest damage levels, egg mass, larvae density and monitoring trap catches. The other plot was the control, where FAW management was not undertaken. The two sub plots in each farm were separated by a distance of five meter buffer plot with maize crop where data collection were not done. Forty plants from each sub plot were randomly selected for both crop and pest data collection. Yield data (number & weight (g) of cobs per plant, undamaged and damaged grains per cob) were also recorded. Data were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using Genstat (15th edition; VSN Inter-national, Hempstead, UK). Significant means were separated using Fisher’s protected Least Significant Difference at 95% confidence interval.

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