Onion thrips(Thrips tabaci, Thripidae, Thysanoptera)
Damaging stage: Nymph and adult
Damaging symptoms: silvery white, curl, wrinkle and gradually dry from tip downwards
Identification
Egg: kidney-shaped eggs singly in slits made in leaf tissue with its sharp ovipositors.
Nymph: Nymphs resemble the adults in shape and colour but are wingless and slightly smaller
Adult: The adults are slender, yellowish brown and measure about 1 mm in length. Males wingless; females have long, narrow strap-like wings.
- Nymphs pass through four stages and are full-fed in 4-6 days, after which they descend to the ground and pupate at a depth of about 25 The pre-pupal and pupal stages last 1-2 and 2-4 days, respectively. Several generations are completed in a year.
Management:
- Grow resistant
- Use neem coated urea to reduce the infestation of the
- Install sky blue colour sticky traps@ 25/ha
- Conserve predators like Scymnus nubilis,Orius albidipenis, Chrysopa sp,and predatory thrips vis., Aelothrips collartris
- Spray 625 ml of malathion 50 EC, dimethoate 30 EC 500 ml- 750 ml in 500 – 750 L of water per ha as soon as the pest appears. A waiting period of 7 days should be observed, before harvest.