Bagging of ampalaya fruits: an effective strategy against fruitfly Bactrocera cucurbitae and the melon worm Diaphania indica

Issue Date

10-2011

Abstract

Melon fruitfly (Bactrocera cucurbitae) and melon worm (Diaphania indica) remain as major pests in ampalaya production. To control them, PhilRice introduced in 2004 the technique of bagging ampalaya fruits using fiber glass net bags. This paper aims to compare the effectiveness of PhilRice Bagging Technique with that of weekly spraying against D. indica and B. cucurbitae. The study was conducted from July to November 2010 in a lowland field in Victoria, Laguna. There were three treatments evaluated in the study, namely, bagging, weekly spraying and untreated. Each treatment had four replicate measured 24 m2. Weekly monitoring of insect populations was done on ten plants of each replicate. Amulet® cue lure was setup in the field to serve as monitoring tool for B. cucurbitae field populations. Ampalaya fruits were harvested twice a week and sorted into marketable and non-marketable classes. Results were subjected to ANOVA and the means of the treatments were compared using the Fisher's LSD test. Data on weekly monitoring of insect pests revealed that D. indica was present for seven weeks, with their numbers varying from 0 to 15. Trap catches B. cucurbitae in Amulet® cue lure was observed for four weeks, with the number of males caught ranging from 0 to 9. Results showed that 95% and 93% of the harvested fruits were marketable for bagged and sprayed treatments, respectively. At p > 0.02 level, these figures are not significantly different from each other. The yields of the treated plots, however, are significantly higher than the 75% marketable yield of the untreated control. Bagging is an effective pest management practice against B. cucurbitae and D. indica and provides a viable alternative to weekly spraying. The conduct of an in-depth economic analysis is suggested to further evaluate the potential of this technique as a pest management practice in ampalaya production.

Source or Periodical Title

Philippine Entomologist

ISSN

0048-3753

Volume

25

Issue

2

Page

201

Document Type

Article

Frequency

semi-annually

Language

English

En – AGROVOC descriptors

BACTROCERA CUCURBITAE; DIAPHANIA INDICA; MOMORDICA CHARANTIA; PLANT PESTS; BAGGING (PEST CONTROL); PEST MANAGEMENT

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