Background and aims Locally produced bio-inoculant consortium and plant bioactive extract were studied as sustainable management options to boost maize production. Methods The field study was conducted from 13th April to 15th July 2021 and repeated on another field site from 5th May to 4th August 2023 to avoid residual effects while validating reliability of the treatments. Experiments were set up as randomized complete block design with 5 treatments including a Control (No input), Chemical (NPK fertilizer + synthetic insecticide), Organic (Poultry manure + Piper guineense), and locally produced or commercial bio-inoculant of plant growth-promoting bacteria, with 4 replicates. Results Local inoculum significantly (P < 0.05) increased maize grain yield than untreated control. Microbial and organic amendments produced comparable maize grain yield to chemical input, which were significantly higher than the untreated control (P < 0.05). The local inoculum reduced fall armyworm (FAW) infestation of maize cobs by 18% and 31% in 2021 and 2023, respectively, compared to untreated control (P < 0.05). Stem borer infestation also reduced significantly (P < 0.05) across treatments for both years, with the lowest in local inoculum (6%), followed by commercial inoculum (31%), organic (52%), chemical (42%), and control (100%) in 2021, with a similar trend observed in 2023. In 2021, amounts of plant available phosphorus and exchangeable potassium were 71 mg kg(-1) and 1010 mg kg(-1) soil, respectively, in the locally produced bio-inoculant consortium, which were significantly (P < 0.05) higher than 30 mg kg(-1) and 374 mg kg(-1) in the control, respectively, and a similar trend was observed in 2023.

Fall armyworm resistance into maize breeding programs is a vital approach to combatting the widespread and destructive impact of this pest. Nine maize genotypes i.e. FH-1046, YH-201, FH-1036, YH-1898, FH-949, YH-202, Sahiwal-2002, Golden and Neelam were assessed for relative resistance to fall armyworm ( Spodoptera frugiperda) on leaf and kernel damage basis at 14, 21, 28 and 42 days after infestation (DAI). Leaf and kernel damage ratios were correlated with morphological plant characters i.e. leaf area (cm(2)), leaf trichome (cm(2)), cob length (cm) and cob height (cm). Results revealed that FH-1046, YH201 and Neelam were relatively more resistant with leaf damage of 3.41, 3.81 and 3.89, respectively. FH-1046 and Golden showed more resistance with least kernel damage of 3.27 and 3.80, respectively while FH-949 and YH-202 were highly susceptible. Leaf damage had a strong and positive correlation with leaf area (r=0.920) and was negatively correlated with leaf trichome density (r=-0.842) with 84.64 and 0.95 % impact, respectively. Kernel damage had a significant and positive correlation with cob length (r=0.969), whereas cob height had a minimal effect (r=-0.896) with 93.88 and 0.95 % impact, respectively. Overall, leaf area and cob length are stronger predictors of damage than trichome density and cob height from soil level. Larval attraction time (min), duration (day) and growth rates were ranged from 0.5-1.7, 11.5-14.6 and 0.16-0.21, respectively. Genotypes FH-1046, YH-201 and Neelam with shorter larval attraction times tended to have shorter larval durations and lower growth rates, indicating that longer larval attraction times are associated with longer larval development and higher growth rates.

Maize ranks as the 3rd most economically valuable cereal crop worldwide but its productivity is under severe threat by an invasive pest, Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). The 3rd instar S. frugiperda larvae are most damaging stage of lifecycle, that's why the present study is planned to evaluate the impacts of silicon dioxide (SiO2), potassium silicate (K2SiO3), and sodium silicate (Na2SiO3) @ 400 and 800 ppm against the 3rd instar larvae of S. frugiperda by using two application methods (soil drenching and foliar spray). Moreover, the impact of Si supplementation on biological parameters (pupation, adult emergence, and egg laying) was also recorded. The findings showed that SiO2 application through foliar spray @ 800 ppm concentration caused maximum mortality (12-36%) followed by K2SiO3 (8-32%) and Na2SiO3 (4-24%). The soil drenching method of silicon application was less effective in comparison to foliar spray. The surviving larvae showed negative impacts on growth and development, including pupation (48, 52, and 60%), adult emergence (41.67, 46.15, and 53.33%) and fecundity (46.20, 52.60, and 54.20) by SiO2, K2SiO3 and Na2SiO3 foliar spray @ 800 ppm respectively. The present study revealed that Si had a significant detrimental impact on immature stages of S. frugiperda. Consequently, Si treatment can reduce S. frugiperda reproduction which may ultimately decrease S. frugiperda establishment and early harm in maize. Silicon applications may offer a sustainable way to lessen S. frugiperda infestations, improving maize protection and lowering the need for conventional insecticides.

Fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda, has posed a serious threat to global food security since its discovery in Africa in 2016. Intercropping peanuts with maize is a very common cultivation practice, which can result in a high possibility of peanut damage by FAW. Our study investigated the feeding behavior, plant part preferences, and damage symptoms of FAW larvae on peanuts throughout the larval period, considering changes in population densities and the passage of time over the number of investigations. The results indicated that FAW larvae frequently inhabited peanut leaves, particularly the undersides of the leaves. Larvae moved from the leaves to the soil in the seedling pot to complete development. Furthermore, FAW larvae tended to feed on peanut leaves rather than stems regardless of population densities. Based on the damage symptoms, the feeding preferences of FAW larvae tended to be heart leaves, followed by mature leaves and stems. The most frequent damage symptoms caused by FAW to peanuts were window panes, followed by leafless. This study provides a reference for the integrated management of FAW in peanut fields.

The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith), invasion endangered the maize production worldwide, including India. The objective of this study was to quantify the FAW damage severity and its impact on leaf area index (LAI), biomass and grain yield of maize and to detect the field damage using high-resolution multispectral spaceborne remote sensing data. Maize growing fields in the Kurnool District of Andhra Pradesh and the Gadwal District of Telangana, India, were randomly surveyed to collect detailed ground-truth information. Foliar damage due to FAW was recorded, and the fields were categorized into various severity grades (healthy, low, medium and severe). FAW infestation caused significant change in LAI between the severity grades, which formed the basis for its damage detection using multispectral spaceborne remote sensing. Severe FAW infestation caused significant reduction in LAI, biomass and grain yield ranging between 36.9 and 39.9% compared to healthy grade. The infestation at the leaf collar (LC) stage caused significant yield loss of up to 26.5% compared to the tassel initiation (TI) and tasselling and silking (TS) stages. Canopy spectral reflectance from healthy and FAW-infested plants showed significant differences in the visible and near infrared (NIR) regions. A reflectance peak was observed in the NIR region of healthy plants compared to infested plants. Among various spaceborne vegetation indices, the Soil Adjusted Vegetation Index (SAVI) performed better in identifying the FAW infestation (R2 = 0.61**), biomass (R2 = 0.70**) and yield loss (R2 = 0.82**). These findings indicate the feasibility of utilizing multispectral remote sensing data for monitoring FAW infestation on a spatial scale, thus enabling the site-specific management.

Food security, mediated by agricultural pests, puts the world at stake. Fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda, is an invasive polyphagous pest that recently made problems worse. The current study inspects the potency of spinetoram in FAW control programs. Spinetoram is a biocide derived from spinosyns created by soil bacteria, actinomycete Saccharopolyspora spinosa. The susceptibility of S. frugiperda 4th instar larvae against spinetoram was evaluated. Biological impacts on consecutive S. frugiperda stages and related biochemical disturbances following treatment with spinetoram were assessed. The results revealed the high toxicity of spinetoram against S. frugiperda larvae. Larval and pupal growth slowing, increasing mortality rates, adult malformation, fecundity suppression, and hatchability reduction were the most remarkable biological influences after treatment. Spinetoram application caused disruptions in total carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and digestive enzymes. Moreover, significant elevations in acetylcholinesterase, alpha-esterase, beta-esterase, acid phosphatase, alkaline phosphatase, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, phenoloxidase, and chitinases were monitored. Spinetoram also resulted in severe histological damage of the midgut characterized by necrosis and sloughing of the epithelial lining, in addition to cytoplasmic vacuolization. The results confirmed the hypothesized potency of spinetoram against S. frugiperda and paved the road to adopting the application of this eco-friendly biocide in FAW control programs.

Fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda (Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), invasion in Africa has threatened food security. Optimization of plant tolerance and post-infestation recovery are among the management tactics that are being promoted for the integrated management of this pest, but these techniques are poorly studied in sub-Saharan Africa. Our study examined the efficacy of enriched compost, split-NPK fertilization, conventional fertilization, and bioinsecticides on FAW infestation rates, maize plant resilience, natural enemy presence, and grain yield. We found that split-NPK fertilization significantly improved maize plant robustness and reduced FAW incidence and leaf damage in a phenology-dependent manner, leading to higher grain yields. A synergistic effect was observed when split-NPK was coupled with bioinsecticides, resulting in increased populations of natural predators, and specifically the egg endoparasitoid, Telenomus remus (Nixon) (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae). Multivariate analyses confirmed that factors like split-NPK fertilization, bioinsecticide usage, stem circumference, and overall plant robustness are major determinants of maize grain yield. Our results endorse soil fertility management via split-NPK fertilization as an effective cultural control measure against FAW, providing an alternative to synthetic insecticides. These insights set the stage for future research focused on assessing the economic viability of this integrated approach, exploring the integration of split-NPK with alternative insecticides, evaluating environmental impacts, and examining the underlying resilience mechanisms to FAW, among other avenues.