Effect of plant traps and sowing dates on population density of major soybean pests

A field trial was conducted to evaluate the role of certain field crops as plant traps in soybean fields. Maize, mungbean and sunflower were sown on the borders of soybean fields to investigate their ability to attract Lampides boeticus L., Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius), aphids [Aphis gossypii (Glover) Aphis craccivora (Koch)] and Nezara viridula L. away from soybean plants. Results revealed that sowing either maize or sunflower at the borders of soybean fields was not effective in reducing infestation with L. boeticus. On the other hand, surrounding the borders of soybean field with maize or mungbean might offer a reliable protection against the infestation with B. tabaci. When soybean was surrounded by a mixture of maize, mungbean and sunflower, it escaped from aphid infestation. Soybean plants surrounded by mungbean were more liable to be attacked by N. viridula individuals as compared with the other treatments where soybean plants were surrounded by maize, sunflower, mixture of the three plant traps, or soybean alone.