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Effects of Intercropping Groundnut with Sunnhemp on Termite Incidence and Damage in India

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Abstract

The effects of intercropping groundnut with sunnhemp on termite incidence and damage were studied in the rainy and post-rainy season at ICRISAT Center in central India. Termite incidence in different cropping systems was determined by baiting with bamboo stakes. Damage to groundnut plants and pods was evaluated at harvest.

Intercropping groundnut with sunnhemp did not affect termite abundance or damage to groundnut. These results contrast with a Colombian intercropping study in which sunnhemp exudates repelled cassava burrowing bugs. Termite biology, including recruitment of foragers and construction of protected runways, may have reduced exposure to sunnhemp, thereby minimizing effects.

Résumé

Au centre de l’ICRISAT en Inde centrale, une étude a été effectuée au moment de la saison des pluies et de l’après-saison des pluies sur les effets de l’association culturale arachide/Crotolaria juncia sur l’incidence et les dégâts des termites. L’évaluation de l’incidence des termites dans les différents systèmes culturaux a été effectuée à l’aide de piquets de bambou servant d’appâts. L’estimation des dégâts occasionnés sur les plants et les graines d’arachide a été menée au moment de la récolte.

L’association culturale arachide/Crotolaria juncia n’a eu aucun effet sur l’abondance des termites et leurs dégâts sur l’arachide. Ces résultats sont en contradiction avec une étude colombienne portant sur l’association culturale dans le cadre de laquelle on a constaté que les éxudats de Crotolaria juncia repoussaient les punaises foreuses du manioc. Il est possible que la biologie des termites comprenant notamment le recrutement d’ouvrières et la construction de voies de passage protégées ait limité leur exposition à Crotolaria juncia, minimisant ainsi son effet repoussant.

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Author notes

  1. C. S. Gold

    Present address: Current address: IITA, Biological Control Programme, B. P. 08-0932, Cotonou, Benin

Authors and Affiliations

  1. ICRISAT, Patancheru P. O., Andhra Pradesh, 502 324, India

    C. S. Gold & J. A. Wightman

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  1. C. S. Gold
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Gold, C.S., Wightman, J.A. Effects of Intercropping Groundnut with Sunnhemp on Termite Incidence and Damage in India. Int J Trop Insect Sci 12, 177–182 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1017/S174275840002066X

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S174275840002066X

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