Field Evaluation of Indigenous Spodoptera frugiperda nucleopolyhedrovirus NBAIR1 for the management of maize fall armyworm in India

The bioefficacy of an indigenous Spodoptera frugiperda nucleopolyhedrovirus (SpfrNPV) National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources 1 (NBAIR1) infecting maize fall armyworm (FAW) was evaluated under field conditions. In 2019, FAW infestation on maize was less after two sprays of emamectin benzoate (19.04%) followed by S. frugiperda nucleopolyhedrovirus ICAR-NBAIR1 (21.90%) and control (80.00%). In 2020, FAW infestation on maize was less after two sprays of emamectin benzoate (16.19%) followed by S. frugiperda nucleopolyhedrovirus ICAR-NBAIR1 (19.04%) and untreated control (69.52%). Field trial results revealed that there was 72.6% reduction in FAW infestation and 57.6% increase in the grain yield from the SpfrNPV NBAIR1-treated plots during 2019 and 2020. It is concluded that SpfrNPV NBAIR1 is a potential isolate to manage the FAW infestation