PESTS OF MORINGA :: MAJOR PESTS ::POD FLY
Distribution and status: Serious pest of moringa in South India.
Host range: Moringa
![](Gitona distigma.jpg) |
Gitona distigma |
Damage symptoms :
Maggots enter into tender fruits by making small-bore holes at the terminal end. This causes oozing out of gummy fluid from fruits, which ultimately results in the drying of fruits from tip upwards. A maximum of 20-28 maggots are found in a fruit. Internal contents of the fruits rot.
Bionomics :
Activity is maximum from April to October and declines thereafter. Adult is a small yellowish fly with red eyes. Wings extend beyond body and have a dark spot near the coastal margin. Cigar shaped, sculptured and white coloured eggs are laid on the grooves of tender pod either singly or in groups of 3-4. Egg period 3-4 days, maggot period 18-25 days. Full-grown cream coloured maggots pupate in soil for 5-9 days.
Management
- As moringa pod flies are not attracted to methyl eugenol and fish meal, use attractants like citronella oil, eucalyptus oil, vinegar (acetic acid), dextrose or lactic acid to trap flies.
- Periodically collect and destroy all the fallen and damaged fruits by dumping in a pit and covering with a thick layer of soil to prevent carry-over of the pest.
- Frequently rake up the soil under the trees or plough the infested field to destroy puparia and apply endosulfan 4% at 25 Kg/ha or drench NSKE 5% at 2 L/tree at 50% fruit set.
- Spray dichlorvos 76 SC 500 ml or malathion 50 EC 750 ml in 500 - 750 ml of water per ha when pods are 20-30 days old and apply Azadirachtin 0.03 % 1.0 L during 50% fruit set and 35 days later.
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