Efficacy of Insecticides and their Combinations for Management of Foliar Aphids in Wheat under North-Western Indian Conditions

Abstract

Foliar aphids are important sucking pests of wheat and can adversely affect crop growth and grain productivity when populations increase during susceptible crop stages. The study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of selected insecticides and their combinations against the foliar aphid complex in wheat and to assess their persistence and effect on grain yield at Karnal, Haryana. Seven insecticidal treatments, viz., thiamethoxam 12.6% + lambda-cyhalothrin 9.5% ZC, thiamethoxam 25% WG, lambda-cyhalothrin 5% EC, beta-cyfluthrin 9% + imidacloprid 21%, imidacloprid 17.8 SL, beta-cyfluthrin 25 SC and sulfoxaflor 12% SC, were evaluated against an untreated control. All insecticidal treatments substantially reduced aphid populations compared with the untreated control, and suppression persisted up to 15 days after application in both seasons. Pooled analysis showed that thiamethoxam 12.6% + lambda-cyhalothrin 9.5% ZC recorded the lowest average aphid population (3.56 aphids earhead⁻¹), followed by sulfoxaflor 12% SC (3.59 aphids earhead⁻¹) and beta-cyfluthrin 9% + imidacloprid 21% (3.62 aphids earhead⁻¹), compared with 17.45 aphids earhead⁻¹ in the untreated control. Grain yield in treated plots ranged from 53.15 to 53.34 q ha⁻¹ in the pooled analysis, with sulfoxaflor 12% SC recording the highest yield (53.34 q ha⁻¹). The results demonstrate the effectiveness and consistency of the evaluated insecticides for foliar aphid suppression under the prevailing field conditions. Their use should, however, be integrated with pest surveillance, need-based application, rotation of insecticidal modes of action and conservation of natural enemies as part of an integrated pest-management programme.