Eggplant Integrated Pest Management AN ECOLOGICAL GUIDE

_________________________________________________________________________________Eggplant Crop DevelopmentShoot loss compensation study: an example from BangladeshA shoot pruning study from Jessore, Bangladesh, lead to the conclusion that up to 50% loss ofshoots at 75 and 100 days after transplanting could be compensated very well by the eggplants andwas not reducing the yield as compared to unpruned control plants (Kumar, TOT Jessore report,1999). Also see section 4.5 on crop compensation.Also, removal of infested fruits (to test sanitation practice for fruit and shoot borer (FSB)) may beconducted to see if loss of young fruits leads to lower production in the longer term. An eggplant will puta lot of energy in producing fruits. If a fruit is lost (by removing FSB infested fruits) the plant can put thatenergy in producing more flowers and fruits or produce fruits of a larger size. This may compensate theloss of that one fruit.Some pests are present throughout the season and can affect eggplant at any growth stage. They willonly affect the quality or yield at susceptible growth stages. Damage will also depend on the season, theeggplant variety grown, and other elements of the ecosystem like natural enemies, weather conditions,fertilizer, water availability and so on.The following table shows when potential injury from common eggplant pests and diseases may occur atspecific growth stages. Please note that these are general values. There may be considerabledifferences in each region!Always look at all elements of the agro-ecosystem when making crop management decisions!Susceptibility of growth stages to eggplant insect pests and diseases:growth stagepest/diseaseDamping-off(Pythium sp.)Phomopsis rot(Phomopsis vexans)Red ant(Dorylus orientalis)Aphids(Myzus sp./ Aphis sp.)Early Blight(Alternaria solani)Southern stem rot(Sclerotium rolfsii)Fruit and shoot borer(Leucinodes orbonalis)Epilachna beetle(Epilachna sp.)Basal stem rot(Fusarium solani)Whiteflies(Bemisia sp.)Rootknot nematode(Meloidogyne sp.)Red spider mite(Tetranychus sp.)Jassids(Amrasca sp. & others)Sclerotinia stem rot(Sclerotinia sclerotiorum)Root rot/Fruit rot(Phytophthora sp.)Little leaf(mycoplasma)seedlingearlyvegetativelatevegetativeflowering fruiting harvesting6Eggplant Ecological Guide