Ahmed, I: Biopesticides and Cotton insect pest

Pesticides have been used to control these pests but none has yielded better cost and benefit ratio due to increasing hazards related to human life, domestic animals and environment. Recent trends in cotton production have been to minimize the use of pesticides and ultimately control the pest by better management practices (BMPs). Keeping in view these critical issues the experiment was conducted during May-October 2009 under randomized complete block design (RCBD) with five treatments, biological control agents (T1), foliar applications of botanical Neemosal, azadirachtin+salannin 0.5% (T2), homeo chemicals (T3) and available insecticides (T4) having three replications. Results showed that safer insecticides were found to be superior to over all other treatments in their control of insect pests complex. Biological control had no quick control as compare to insecticides and neemosal. Homeo chemicals also performed better. While in case of spotted bollworm Biological control through release of Trichogramma chilonis had showed effective and quick control as compare to neemosal. Neemosal performed better than Homeo chemicals.