Pink boll worm | Pectinophora gossypiella | · Larval excreta at bore hole point · Rossette flowering · Double seeds · Early boll shedding · Fade colored lint · Hollow seeds | Cultural: · Timely crop harvesting · Rapid crop remains destruction · Timed irrigation · Ploughing & mulching · Crop rotation with alfalfa Chemical: · Bolgard II · Spinosad formulation sprays |
Red cotton bug | Dysdercus cingulatusi | · Decayed bolls · Red colored lint · Water soaked bolls · Boll browning · Premature boll shedding | Cultural: · Field ploughing Chemical: · Insecticidal phosphamidon spray |
Shoot weevil | Alcidodes affaber | · Shoot galls · High marginal bore holes | Cultural: · FYM application Chemical: · Soil treatment with Carbofuran |
Spotted bollworm | Earias vittela | · Terminal shoots wilting · Bolls & squares shedding · Bracts flaring up at boll formation stage · Holes & rotting of bolls | Chemical: · Insecticides (Carbaryl, Chlorantraniliprole, Indoxacarb, Phosalone or Triazophos) Biological: · Bacillus thuringiensis |
Stem borer | Sphennoptera gossypii | · Drooped leaves · Wilting | Cultural · Soil treatment with Carbofuran · Application of FYM |
Thrips | Thrips tabaci | · Leaf epidermal removal · Leaf wrinkling · Destroyed bud edges · Shiny grey under leaf surface | Chemical: · Imidacloprid seed treatment · Insectcidal sprays (Imidacloprid, Methyl demeton or Dimethoate) |
Tobacco cutworm | Spodoptera litura | · Leaf veins skeleton · Scrapped leaf epidermal layer · Bare plants without leaves or bolls · Small holes on leaves | Cultural: · Light traps · Sex pheromone trap · Castor bordering · Destruction of larval clusters · Manual collection of shed plant parts · Destruction of young caterpillars Chemical: · Insecticidal spray (Chlorpyriphos, Chlorantraniliprole, Diflubenzuron or Nuclear polyhedrosis virus) · Poison bait rice bran pellets |
White fly | Bemicia tabaci | · Leaf petiole & veins chlorosis · Premature complete leaf shedding · Mould spreading · Buds & bolls shedding · Lesser boll opening · Major vector of Cotton leaf curl virus | Cultural · Avoid host crops in adjoining areas · Single cotton crop per year · Preferred crop rotation with Corn, Sorghum or Ragi · Eradication of weeds · Proper sanitation of field · Sticky traps · Elimination of affected leaves Chemical: · Insecticidal sprays (Acetamipirid or Chlorpyriphos) · Neem oil treatment Biological: · Verticillium lecanii |