Evaluation of Mating Disruption of Brinjal Shoot and Fruit Borer Leucinodes orbonalis Guenḗe in Bangladesh

The brinjal shoot and fruit borer Leucinodes orbonalis Guenée (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) is a serious pest of brinjal (Solanum melongena) in South and Southeast Asia. Farmers in Bangladesh have been indiscriminately applying chemical insecticides to control this pest. In lieu of developing a safe, effective, and economical control method, the efficacy of mating disruption to control L. orbonalis was evaluated in farmers’ fields by conducting two trials in 2023-24 at Magura/ Jhenaidah and Mymensingh, and a third trial in 2024-25 at Satkhira during winter-spring growing seasons in Bangladesh. The CREMIT gel impregnated with L. orbonalis pheromone placed at a dose of 346.5 g/ ha in the first two trials was insufficient to tackle the pest. In the third trial, the dosage was doubled to 693 g/ ha and it provided satisfactory control of L. orbonalis.