Push-Pull Tactic to Control Fall Armyworms (Spodoptera frugiperda)

The amyworms (S.frugiperda) has been spreading in many country on the world. it is impact to agriculural production , and loss yield in mize, and rice. Farmers are confusing until now to control this pest, because actually this species is native from America. So, in foreign country still confused to control it by effective and efficient. 

Fotunately, many researchers have been developing to control this pest. In this blog, I would like sharing about one of tactic to control this pest. Yesterday, I have read a journal from Economic Entomology. You can visit to exlplore and deep study in there. 

This picture below illustrate how farmer control armyworms by culture technique. Using 3 variety of plants and there are three segement of cultivation in one field. I think this tactic is very important to implement in all country. Actually, this tactic has some weakness like amount of your main cultivation is low.  I think that's so normally when you using it. 

Illustrated by norman wijaya

There are 3 cultivation in this tactic. First, you use signal grass as border in your field. This plant has function to attract adult pest of armyworms. As well as we know the adult of this pest is moth. Second of cultivation is Green leaf. It has opposite function with signal grass. green leaf has function to againts laying of egg. So, The production of mize can increase exponentially without distrubed by armyworms.

So calm, and stay happy. I will share a link to see this interesting journal. Dont worry, this journal is open access to everyone. In addition, this journal has many of tactic to control this pest like using natural enemies or GMO seeds (BT). 

"Managing Fall Armyworm in Africa: Can Bt Maize Sustainably Improve Control?"

Tritrophic Interaction

 Tritropic interaction is an interaction that includes three organisms. First, the plant or producer of food resources is the main of interaction. The second is a consumer of producers. The consumer is mainly herbivores that disruption in other organisms, especially on plants. The last are natural enemies. Commonly, the natural enemies always come when the plants that attacked by some herbivores. Actually in this interaction have two types of natural enemies (Parasitoid and Predator). More people has known about predator function or activity. Example, paryer manthis and ladybug. The parasitoids are an organism that has function as a predator doing. We know about that function when we look at the circulation of the ecosystem. 

The animal in the ecosystem always death. The examples are mouse farm death because an eagle ate the mouse. Just like that, an herbivore death by predators and parasitoids. The predators killed the herbivores often diggest directly. The parasitoids often killed the herbivores more softly.

The picture illustrates the Thritropic interaction. According to the above explanation, we can conclude that plant is maize, the herbivore is aphids, and the predator is a ladybug. The plants have two protection. First is direct protection, like grow some part of the body that function against herbivores. The second is indirect protection, like in the picture. Ladybug was deriving on maize and diggest the aphids. Chemicals materials were out from plants that invite some natural enemies (ladybug as predator). It was out from plants because plants get induced by herbivores.