IMPACT OF NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT SCHEDULES ON INFESTATION OF BEMISIA TABACI ON AND YIELD OF NON-BT COTTON (GOSSYPIUM HIRSUTUM) UNDER UNSPRAYED CONDITION

Nutrient management improve the plant health, which enables the plant to tolerate the incidence and herbivory of sucking as well as of chewing insect-pests. This research project was, therefore, designed to investigate the impact of nutrient management schedules, involving different formulations of various nutrients (N, P, K, Zn, B and Humus), on infestation of whitefly on non- Bt cotton cultivar under unsprayed conditions. A field experiment was conducted at Entomological Research Area, University of Agriculture Faisalabad. The experiment was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design. Experiment was comprised of two treatments T (nutrient management schedule of Target, 1 Ali Akbar Group) and T (nutrient management schedule of Warble Private Limited) and one 2 control, each repeated thrice. Application of treatments was done according to the schedule, recommended by the companies. The data of cotton yield was recorded at the end of season. The results revealed that nutrients had significant effect on population of whitefly in plots treated with T1 and T2 as compared to control. Treated plots had highest concentration of Zn, B, N, P and K in per gram of leaf samples as compared to control. Zn, B, N, P and K accumulatively demonstrated 83.6% variation in the population of whitefly. Maximum role in population fluctuation of whitefly was played by nitrogen 80.62%. The performance of nutrient management schedule of Target (T1) was found better than nutrient management schedule of Warble (T2) against whitefly incidence and for yield components of cotton was similar. It is, therefore, recommended that nutrient management schedule should be practiced in IPM of sucking insect pest as per schedule.