Potato tuber moth ( Pthorimoea opercula, Gelichlidae, Lepidoptera)

• A most serious pest of potato fifield and tore condⁿ.

Damaging stage  larva

Damaging symptoms :

• Larva mining the leaves and twisting tunnel in the tuber through the eye of the potato.

Identification

• Egg: laying singly underside of leaves and exposed tuber, smooth and yellow
• Larva: pink or green with dark brown
• Pupa: pupation in folded leaf, soil, inside the tube cacks of tuber, stem.
• Adult: brown black triangular spots at the lateral edges of the forewings with a mall blotch of mid-brown and hindwings are pale gray.

Management

• Larval parasitoid : Apenteles gelechiidivorus , Bracon
• Egg/Larval parasitoid: echelons phthorimaeae,copidosoma
• Predator : chrysoberyl carnea( green lacewing)
• Bacteria: Bt var kurstaki
• Pheromone trap like PTM1 and PTM 2x to attract male mass @ 4 capsule/ 100m³ volume
• Potato intercropped with onion, garlic, pea,
• Planting of potato at 10 cm depth and filling up 3
• Orange peel oil and vegetable oil reduced the fecundity of PTM.
• Appy 10pmmm neem oil at storage
• Seed treated with quinalphos