Effectiveness of Sowing Methods and Fertilizers on the Incidence of Rice Leaf Folder, Cnaphalocrocis medinalis Guen.

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted in a split plot design with three replications during kharif 1994 and 1995 at the Main Rice Research Station, Gujarat Agricultural University, Nawagam to evaluate the influence of two sowing methods (sprouted seed method and transplanted method) and levels of two commonly used fertilizers on the incidence of rice LF. Two methods of sowing i.e. sprouted seed method (M1) and transplanting at 20 x 15 cm (M2) were kept as main plot treatments. Four levels of nitrogen (50, 100, 150 and 200 kg N/ha) and three levels of phosphorus (0, 25 and 50 kg P2O5/ha) were arranged as sub-plot and sub-sub-plot treatments. Sowing methods evaluated had no impact on LF incidence; however, leaf folder incidence increased with the increasing doses of N fertilizers (from 50 to 200 kg N/ha). Impact of phosphorus fertilizer on LF damage was not noticed in pooled results.