Abstract
A field experiment was carried out at Micheal Okpara University of agriculture Umudike, South Eastern Nigeria to evaluate the effectiveness of some botanical insecticides in controlling okro leaf beetle (Podagrica Uniformer). The study was aimed at evaluating safer and friendly alternatives to synthetic insecticide in pest management.The experiment consisted of 8 treatments arranged in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with 3 replications and planted at a distance of 50 x 25cm. The treatments included: Neem powder extracts applied at 1 week interval (NAIWAP), Neem powder extracts applied at 2 weeks interval (NA2WAP), Capsicum frutescens extract applied at lweek interval (PEIWAP), Capsicum frutescens extract applied at 2weeks interval (PE2WAP), Neem powder extracts + Capsicum frutescens applied at lweek interval (NA+PE1WAP), Neem powder extracts + Capsicum frutescens applied at 2weeks interval ((NA+PE2WAP), untreated Control and a synthetic chemical for comparison.Data was collected on leaf beetle population, percentage leaf defoliation, weight and number of pods/fruits per plot and percentage damaged pods/fruits per plot. Data was collected on 5 selected plants from the middle of each plot and was subjected to analysis of variance and means were separated using fisher’s least significant difference at 5 % level of probability. Results from the experiment showed that all the botanical treatments reduced leaf beetle infestation when compared with the untreated control. The untreated plots recorded the highest mean leaf beetle population of (3.09 insects per plot) highest leaf damage (47.06%), highest number of pod damage ( 21.67) and lowest pod yield (1.62t/ha). In contrast, the combined neem and pepper extract applied at one week interval gave the best performance among the botanicals with a reduced mean beetle population of (1.53insects /plot), leaf damage of (7.57%), pod damage of (5.87%) and and pod yield of (3.48 t/ha) which was closely comparable to the yield of synthetic chemical insecticide that produced (3.63t/ha). All the botanical extracts performed better than the control. The study revealed that neem and pepper extracts especially their combination at weekly application possess strong insecticidal properties against okro flea beetle and can significantly improve okro yield when properly applied and therefore is recommended as cheap, safe and environmentally friendly option for sustainable okro production.
KEYWORDS: Extracts, Capsicum frutescens (pepper), Neem extract (Azadirachta indica), Abelmoschus esculentus, Podagrica sppjaerem NEW Efurumibe, P.E
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