Integrated control of sheath blight and banded leaf in maize in Madhya Pradesh's Kymore plateau and Satpura Hills Agricultural Zones
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: The comparative effectiveness of integrated management strategies proved to be highly persuasive for farmers. It became evident that all three tested treatments significantly outperformed the existing farmer practices (T1). Treatment-4 (T4), which included a tolerant hybrid variety combined with soil treatment using Trichoderma viridi at 5 kg in 50 kg of enriched vermicompost, seed treatment with Vitavax Power (Carboxin 37.5% + Thiram 37.5%) at 3 g/kg of seed, the removal of lower leaves along with their sheaths, and a foliar spray of Azoxystrobin 18.2% and Difenconazole 11.4% w/w SC (Amistar Top 325 SC) at a rate of 1 ml/L of water at 50 days after sowing or immediately following the appearance of symptoms, was found to be the most effective in reducing the incidence of BLSB by 63.10%, based on an average across three crop seasons. The yield increases to 26.04% and a net return of Rs. 1917.10 for T4 were particularly favorable and encouraging. Treatment-3 emerged as the second most effective option. The treatments enhanced production without imposing significant input costs on farmers, as demonstrated by the cost-benefit analysis conducted in this study. Therefore, it can be concluded that T4 should be regarded as a viable sustainable practice for managing BLSB in maize.
Authors: Jai Singh, Satpal Singh
Institution: Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya
Language: English
Subfield: Plant Science
Domain: Life Sciences
SDGs: Zero hunger, Life on land
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W4408689407