Population dynamics of major insect pests infesting chrysanthemum

Abstract

Chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflora Borkh) is one of the most popular and widely grown flower crop in both the tropics and subtropics of the world. It is a member of the family Asteraceae. Low yields and poor quality of flowers have been attributed to a variety of issues, including poor seedling quality, pest infestations and severe weather conditions. The field study conducted in Gadag revealed that the peak incidence of aphid, whitefly and leaf miner was observed during the last week of January, the first week of January and second week of January, respectively. The peak incidence of thrips and bud borer was observed during the third and fourth weeks of February, respectively. The correlation coefficient between different weather parameters and the population of chrysanthemum pests revealed that maximum temperature recorded a negative correlation with the incidence of aphids, whiteflies and leaf miner but positively correlated with thrips and bud borer. Further, all the insect pests exhibited a non-significant and negative correlation with rainfall, except leaf miner, which showed a positive correlation with rainfall.