Integrated pest management of okra in India

Abstract

Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus (Malavaceae), a major contributor to global vegetable production, is an excellent resource for overcoming global malnutrition and rural poverty. Globally, okra is cultivated on an area of 1.12 mha with a production and productivity of 8.71 mt and 7.8 t/ha respectively. Pests and diseases are major constraints to the quality and quantity of okra produced with total losses of about 35-40 %. Farmers rely on the use of synthetic pesticides for the control of pests thereby endangering environmental and public health. In this context, this chapter describes the biology and etiology of the key pests and diseases of okra and describes the development of components that are integrated into a package of practices as alternatives to the use of pesticides. The Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach termed the “okra IPM package” registered significantly lower populations of aphids, whiteflies, leafhoppers, leaf miners, nematodes, fruit borer damage and incidence of Yellow vein mosaic virus and powdery mildew coupled with an increase in shoot and root growth and natural enemy populations as compared to the farmer’s practice which consisted of the use of conventional pesticides. The yield increase in the IPM plots was 12.43-45.54 % above the farmers practice. The benefit:cost ratio was 2.53-3.23:1 in the IPM plots as compared to 1.23-1.52 in the farmer’s practices plots. In addition, the IPM approach was environmentally safe and provided residue-free produce for the consumers.