Abstract
Tomato leaf curl virus disease (TLCVD) is a major constraint in tomato production that is caused by tomato leaf curl virus (TLCV). TLCV is transmitted in tomato crop by whitefly in a circulative and persistent manner. As there is no viricide available, TLCV disease management is relied upon to control the whitefly vector. Whitefly management by using common insecticides results in environmental deterioration and development of resistance. The current study was undertaken to evaluate the efficacy of relatively safer and durable strategies for the management of whitefly and TLCVD. Five varieties Carmen, Roker, Uovo Roseo, Po-02, and Lyp#1 were sown in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. New chemistry insecticides (neonicotinoids i.e. Imidacloprid and Acetamiprid), botanicals (Azadirachta indica and Eucalyptus globulus), micronutrient solution (Classic (TM) of Ali Akbar group comprising 6% Zn (Zinc) and4% B (Boron) solution) and 0.35% salicylic acid were evaluated against whiteflies and TLCVD. All the treatments significantly reduced the whitefly infestation in five varieties. Imidacloprid was the most effective in reducing the whitefly population and gave 68.21% inhibition followed by acetamiprid (68.19%), A. indica (56.21%), salicylic acid (55.63%), Zn & B solution (28.43%) and E. globulus (15.01%), respectively. The maximum efficacy of imidacloprid in reducing TLCVD incidence was 74.13% followed by acetamiprid (63.00%), neem extract (54.34%), Zn & B solution (39.50%), salicylic acid and eucalyptus extract (36.17%). The study suggests that neonicotinoids, plant extracts, and micronutrients proved as effective eco-friendly approaches for whitefly and TLCVD management. (C) 2020 Friends Science Publishers