What is the Potential of Sugarcane Borer in Reducing Sorghum Fitness and Grain Production?

26 Pages Posted: 29 Jul 2023

See all articles by Camila da Silva Souza

Camila da Silva Souza

Federal University of Lavras

Bruno Henrique Sardinha de Souza

Federal University of Lavras

Marcos Antônio Matiello Fadini

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Josélia Carvalho Oliveira França

Federal University of Lavras

Cícero Bezerra de Menezes

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Priscilla Tavares Nascimento

Federal University of Lavras

Simone Martins Mendes

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Abstract

Pest attack is an important factor in the loss of sorghum productivity, and one of the main insect pests of grain sorghum is sugarcane borer (SCB) Diatraea saccharalis. Despite the importance of this insect species, little is known about the relationship between infestation and reduction in grain production as well as on economic thresholds for decision-making to control SCB populations. This study evaluated the influence of SCB infestation on plant fitness and grain production in three commercial grain sorghum hybrids. For this, the hybrids AG1090, BRS 373, and DKB 590 were planted in three crop seasons: March 2018 (2018/1) (crop season 1), September 2018 (2018/2) (crop season 2), and March 2019 (2019/1) (crop season 3). Six treatments were assessed in the experiments, consisting of the three grain sorghum hybrids with and without chemical treatment using the insecticide chlorantraniliprole (Altacor®) at 150 g ha-1 under SCB natural infestation. The parameters evaluated on sorghum plants were the length of galleries, plant height, length and weight of panicles, infestation intensity, and grain yield. The infestation intensities of SCB in the three crop seasons were higher when sorghum plants were not treated with insecticide, and consequently resulted in lower productivity. Regarding the difference between seasons, crop season 1 had lower infestation intensity. The hybrid DKB 590 had the lowest tolerance level, whereby insecticide treatment increased yield by 150% in crop season 1 (149.77 %). In crop season 2, hybrid BRS 373 exhibited the lowest increase in grain yield with insecticide control (29.79%), followed by AG1090 (33.13%), and DKB 590 (40.79%) with greater dependence on chemical control to increase yield. Crop season 3 obtained the lowest yield among the three crop seasons, and hybrid AG1090 responded better to chemical control, with yield increase of 105.90%, followed by DKB 590 with 54.26%, and BRS 373 with 38.19%. This is the first study that effectively shows how much grain production is lost by SCB attack in grain sorghum hybrids.

Keywords: Infestation intensity, Diatraea saccharalis, Yield, tolerance, IPM

Suggested Citation

Souza, Camila da Silva and de Souza, Bruno Henrique Sardinha and Fadini, Marcos Antônio Matiello and França, Josélia Carvalho Oliveira and de Menezes, Cícero Bezerra and Nascimento, Priscilla Tavares and Mendes, Simone Martins, What is the Potential of Sugarcane Borer in Reducing Sorghum Fitness and Grain Production?. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4524890 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4524890

Camila da Silva Souza

Federal University of Lavras ( email )

Lavras
Brazil

Bruno Henrique Sardinha De Souza

Federal University of Lavras ( email )

Lavras
Brazil

Marcos Antônio Matiello Fadini

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

Josélia Carvalho Oliveira França

Federal University of Lavras ( email )

Lavras
Brazil

Cícero Bezerra De Menezes

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

Priscilla Tavares Nascimento

Federal University of Lavras ( email )

Lavras
Brazil

Simone Martins Mendes (Contact Author)

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

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