World Research Journal of Agricultural Sciences

Vol. 6(2), pp. 162-166, June, 2019. © www.premierpublishers.org. ISSN: 2326-3997

Research Article

Use of Low-Cost Pest Exclusion Net to Control Tuta absoluta

Infestation and Boost the Yield of Tomato in Surkhet and Dang
Districts of Nepal
*Kiran Bhusal1, Sagar G.C2, Kamana Bhattarai3
1Department of Entomology, Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science, Kritipur, Kathmandu, Nepal
2Department of Pathology, Agriculture and Forestry University, Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal
3Department of Agri-economics, Himalayan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Sanepa, Lalitpur, Nepal

Low cost pest exclusion nets (PENs) of 0.4 mm mesh sizes was evaluated to determine their
efficacy in reducing Tuta absoluta infestation and enhancing yields of tomato (Solanum
lycopersicum Miller) at Dang and Surkhet of Nepal, from December, 2016 to June, 2017 at field
production levels. The PENs efficiency was compared with no net (control) in a randomized
complete block design with 14 replications. Results showed the lower tomato leaf miner (Tuta
absoluta) infestation (P<0.05) with higher yield (P<0.05) on tomato grown under PENs with high
incomes. The results revealed that the farmers can adopt the use of PENs for pest management
in tomato production to easily control the invasive pest of tomato and obtain the higher yield.
Hence, farmers can use low cost pest exclusion nets to control the invasive insects of tomato.

Key words: Invasive, Solanum lycopersicum Miller, Pest Exclusion Net, Tuta absoluta

INTRODUCTION

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum Miller) is an important
vegetable grown in Nepal, but its production is constrained
by several pests and diseases. Tomato is usually grown
under commercial and subsistence agriculture,
characterized by high use of pest control products, water
and fertility management options. However, its annual
production in Nepal is 19.3 metric tons (MT) per ha,
(MoAD, 2015/16) which is far below worldwide production
of 37.46 MT per ha. (FAOSTAT Database, 2016). The
highest marketable yield was recorded from all-rounder
(86.6 t/ha) followed by Srijana (80.8 t/ha) in Nepal under
tunnel house (Chapagain et al., 2011). South American
tomato leaf miner, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera:
Gelechiidae) is an invasive and devastating pest of
tomato. The species has a particular preference for tomato
although it is also able to attack and cause damage on
different genera and species of the Solanaceae Family.
This pest can reduce 80-100 percent of tomato yield in
newly invaded areas if control measures are not applied
(Desneux et al., 2010). The pest has appeared as a havoc
causing higher crop loss with higher economic importance
in Nepal. This pest was recorded for first time in Nepal from
Kathmandu valley during May, 2016 and found spread into
tomato growing areas near Kathmandu valley and
surrounding districts; Kavrepalanchowk, Dhading and
Nuwakot (Bajracharhya et al., 2016). The impact of T.
absoluta on tomato crops, during the first years after its
detection, has led European and North African growers to
use insecticides extensively (Sannino & Espinosa, 2010,
Speranza & Sannino, 2012, Urbaneja et al., 2012).
Chemical control is often very effective as a short-term
solution; by contrast, its major drawbacks are the high
costs, the non-target effects, and the possibility of the pest
species developing resistance (Desneux et al., 2007, Lu et
al., 2012). A potential means to break the reliance on
pesticides is physical exclusion of pests using nets with a
fine mesh screen as part of an integrated pest
management (IPM) approach (Vidogbéna et al., 2015).
*Corresponding Author: Kiran Bhusal, Department of
Entomology, Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science,
Kritipur, Kathmandu, Nepal. Tel: 9851226246
Email: kiranbhusaliaas@gmail.com
Co-Authors Email: 2gcsagar92@gmail.com;
3
bhattaraikamana@gmail.com

Use of Low-Cost Pest Exclusion Net to Control Tuta absoluta Infestation and Boost the Yield of Tomato in Surkhet and Dang Districts of Nepal
Bhusal et al. 163
Insect nets enable passive control of flying insect pests of
vegetable crops by creating a physical barrier between the
plants and pests (Vincent et al. 2003; Boiteau and Vernon
2004), thus reducing the need for pesticide sprays (Martin
et al. 2006; Licciardi et al. 2008; Weintraub 2009). Recent
reports on the effectiveness of mosquito nets against DBM
(Diamond Back Moth) (Licciardi et al., 2008; Martin et al.,
2013) opened a window for exploring the use of low cost
pest exclusion nets (PENs) in managing the invasive pest
by smallholder farmers. Additional advantages of such
nets include moderation of microclimate, which is known
to improve the crop performance (Briassoulis et al., 2007).
However, the possibility of using the nets in the plastic
tunnels to control T. absoluta has received limited
attention. Therefore, this study was carried out to test the
efficiency of the PENs in managing invasive tomato pests
and PENs contribution to increased tomato yields.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Study area
The study was conducted on farmer's field at Thulo Harre,
Surkhet and Satbariya, Dang. Surkhet and Dang are
located northwest of capital of Nepal comprising 82.00º to
82.46º E longitudes, 27.45º to 27.67º N latitude and 81.36º
to 84.00º E longitudes, 28.00º to 28.36º N latitude
respectively. Thulo Harre, Surkhet is located at 900 m
above sea level,(A.S.L) with the annual average
temperature ranging from 5°C to 38°C while Satbariya,
Dang is located at 253 m above sea level, with annual
average temperature ranging from 9°C to 40°C.
Nursery and Land Preparation, Sowing
Transplanting
Tomato var., All-rounder F1 was sown in the nurseries at
the Dang and Surkhet farmers' field on Dec 30, 2016 at a
spacing of 1 cm × 10 cm and covered with PEN so as to
produce insect damage free seedlings. A bio fungicide,
Trichoderma viridae was applied as a drench at the rate of
5 gm in 1 liter of water, for the control of fungal diseases
(damping off and blights). Field trials were carried out after
about 5 weeks of nursery preparation in which healthy
seedlings were used. Crops were transplanted on the
main field on 1st week on January on both the districts.
Plants were grown with fertilizers 120:100:60 Kg NPK and
15 Ton compost per hectare. Plots were watered to
supplement rains in all the sites as needed.
PEN structure
PEN structures were prepared in all the sites by covering
the tunnels made up off bamboos by the low-cost pest
exclusion nets which were made up off nylon. These
structures were generally prepared by using the locally
available materials to make it low cost and easily
Use of Low-Cost Pest Exclusion Net to Control Tuta absoluta Infestation and Boost the Yield of Tomato in Surkhet and Dang Districts of Nepal
accessible and affordable by the marginalized farmers.
The heights of the tunnels were 10 feet at the center while
it was 8.5 feet on the slope ended sides. The net house
was prepared with the single door system. The size of the
net was 0.04mm mesh size so that it helps to restrict the
entry of the Tomato Leaf Miner (TLM) moths along with
other small insects like aphids, whiteflies etc.
Treatments and experimental design
The treatments included: Tunnel with PEN of 0.4 mm mesh
size and open field condition (Control). Both the treatments
differ from each other only in case of the presence and
absence of the exclusion net. Replicates (14) were used
in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) in each
district with a total of 28 replicates on two districts. In each
districts 14 PEN plots and 14 control plots were considered
for the data collection. The plots measured 5 X 10 m where
plants were cultivated at the row to row (R X R) distance
of 1 m and plant to plant (P X P) distance of 0.6 m.
Data collection and yield assessment
Data collection started one week after transplanting, and
continued on a weekly basis until the termination of the
trial. The data included records of in situ collection of Tuta
absoluta in the TLM lure with Wota-T-Trap and yield on 10
plants selected randomly from PEN and control plots. Two
TLM lure traps were set per plots and were kept at the
height of 60 cm above the ground surface. The lures in the
traps were changed every two months interval. Tomato
was harvested and weighed, 12–16 weeks after
transplanting. The weight of marketable and unmarketable
fruits was recorded and the cause of damage was
and documented.
Statistical analysis
Data were subjected to student t-test using R-Studio.
Means of pest infestation, crop damage and yields were
compared across the treatments. Statistical significance
was tested at 95% level of confidence limit.
RESULT AND DISCUSSION
Higher significant difference in insect infestation
between two different treatments was observed at
Harre, Surkhet. The infestation of the pest was higher
on the control plots when it was lower in PEN plots. The
crop was transplanted on the 1st week of January, the
infestation of the pest was observed from last week of
March (11th week after transplanting) while highest pest
population was observed on 4th week of May followed
by 1st week of June which gradually decreased with the
onset of the monsoon.
 World Res. J. Agric. Sci. 164

Table 1: Infestation of Tuta absoluta under PEN and control condition at Harre, Surkhet
Insect infestation (Weeks after transplanting (WAT))
Treatment (4th (1st (2nd (3rd (4th (1st (2nd (3rd (4th (1st (2nd (3rd (4th
week week week week week week week week week week week week week
March) April) April) April) April) May) May) May) May) June) June) June) June)
11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th 17th 18th 19th 20th 21st 22nd 22nd
WAT WAT WAT WAT WAT WAT WAT WAT WAT WAT WAT WAT WAT
PEN 1b±0 1.35b 1.42b 1.35b 1.28b 1.50b 1.42b 2.07b 2.92b 2.64b 1.42b 1.28b 1.14b
±0.07 ±0.07 ±0.14 ±0.07 ±0.14 ±0.14 ±0.21 ±0.21 ±0.21 ±0.21 ±0.07 ±0.07
Control 7.5a±0.5 16.355a 27.00 a 35.00a 46.21a 58.21a 66.21a 74.50a 84.72a 84.50 a 74.07a 59.42a 42.35a
±0.71 ±1.71 ±1.57 ±1.64 ±1.57 ±1.71 ±1.78 ±1.71 ±1.85 ±2.00 ±1.57 ±1.50
P value 6.05e- 2.84e- 4.02e- 2.17e- 2.73e- 1.45e- 5.73e- 9.25e- 2.76e- 1.33e- 3.97e- 1.28e- 1.96e-
09 *** 10*** 09 *** 11 *** 13 *** 13 *** 15 *** 15 *** 15 *** 14 *** 14 *** 13 *** 12 ***
CV 26.43 26.01 28.61 23.41 16.98 16.23 12.73 13.05 11.72 13.33 14.86 16.21 19.84
LSD 1.05 1.88 4.01 3.47 3.29 3.95 3.51 4.08 4.19 4.74 4.58 4.01 3.52
GM 4.25 8.85 14.21 18.17 23.75 29.85 33.82 38.28 43.82 43.57 37.75 30.35 21.75
CV: Coefficient Variation; LSD: Least Significance Difference; GM: Grand Mean

Table 2: Infestation of Tuta absoluta under PEN and control condition at Satbariya, Dang
Treatments Insect infestation (Weeks after transplanting)
(3rd week (4th week (1st week (2nd week (3rd week (4th week (1st week (2nd week (3rd week (4th week
March) March) April) 12th April) April) April) May) May) May) May)
10th WAT 11th WAT WAT 13th WAT 14th WAT 15th WAT 16th WAT 17th WAT 18th WAT 19th WAT
PEN 1b ±0.00 1.35 ±0.07 1.42b ±0.07 1.57b ±0.07 1.42b ±0.14 3.00b ±0.14 2.28b ±0.21 1.64b ±0.14 1.07b ±0.07 1.00b ±0.00
Control 10.42a 19.57a 30.87a 38.28a 48.92a 67.71a 62.28a 51.14a 39.78a 31.71a
±0.50 ±0.71 ±0.50 ±0.64 ±1.50 ±0.92 ±0.64 ±1.14 ±0.85 ±1.00
P value 4.24e- 1.09e- 2.87e- <2e- 5.61e- <2e- <2e- 3.12e- 1.18e- 8.51e-
10*** 12*** 15*** 16*** 14*** 16*** 16*** 16*** 15*** 14***
CV 26.45 17.41 11.48 8.51 14.97 6.59 6.48 9.95 11.14 15.39
LSD 1.23 1.48 1.51 1.38 3.07 1.90 1.70 2.14 1.85 2.05
GM 5.71 10.46 16.14 19.92 25.17 35.35 32.28 26.39 20.42 16.35
CV: Coefficient Variation; LSD: Least Significance Difference; GM: Grand Mean

The table 2 above shows the high significant difference in

insect infestation on two different treatments at Satbariya,
Dang. The infestation of the pest was higher on the control
plots when it was lower in PEN plots. The crop was
transplanted on the 1st week of January, the infestation of
the pest was observed from 3rd week of March (10th week
after transplanting) while highest pest population was
observed on last week of April and 1st week of May which
gradually decreased with the onset of the monsoon.
In this study use of low cost PEN structure to control the
invasive pest and yield was mainly focused. The result
showed that PENs are effective pest management tools to
control the Tuta absoluta on both the field conditions at
Dang and Surkhet. This result is in agreement with earlier
finding by Majumdar (2010), where the insect netting was
highly effective against moths and caterpillars. The study
showed the pest population was highest during the month
of May at both the conditions similar result for the pest was
reported in the tomato growing areas of Nepal by
Bajracharhya et al. (2016).

The average yield of marketable tomato fruits recorded

from plots under PENs was higher compared with those
grown without PENs (control) (Figure 1). PENs resulted in
a 38.8– 49.5% yield increase compared with the control on
the data recorded from both the districts. Better yields
realized on the PEN- protected plots confirm earlier
findings by Martin et al. (2006), which reported similar
findings for better yield under PEN compared to control
plots. Microclimatic conditions on PENs usually enhance
seedling growth, which when combined with pest control
result in better yields was reported by Gogo et al. (2012),
Muleke et al. (2013) and Kiptoo et al. (2015).
Figure 1: Yield of the crop under PEN and control plots at
Dang and Surkhet districts of Nepal

Use of Low-Cost Pest Exclusion Net to Control Tuta absoluta Infestation and Boost the Yield of Tomato in Surkhet and Dang Districts of Nepal
Bhusal et al. 165
CONCLUSION
The finding shows that there are benefits of low cost PENs
in controlling the crops from tomato leaf miner and boost
the yield. The higher infestation was recorded during May
so proper management tactics before May under
controlled condition could help to reduced higher crop
damage. Increased yield and damage free production of
the crop leads to the higher economic return under PEN
plot. Hence, the uses of low cost PEN structures are
beneficial in increasing yield and controlling the flying
insects like Tuta absoluta.
LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
Budget was the major limitations during the study as there
were no any sponsors to carry out the research activity.
The research was carried out on the sole interest of the
researchers. The lack of easy access to the TLM lure in
the area as the pest was new to the country.
DATA AVAILABILITY
The data used to support the findings of this study are
available from the corresponding author upon written
request.
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
The author(s) declare(s) that there is no conflict of interest
regarding the publication of this paper.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Farmers from Satbariya, Dang and Harre, Surkhet are
highly acknowledged for providing field facilities and
support for this study.
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Use of Low-Cost Pest Exclusion Net to Control Tuta absoluta Infestation and Boost the Yield of Tomato in Surkhet and Dang Districts of Nepal