Cotton Pest Control: Whitefly, Jassid and Pink Bollworm Plan

Cotton needs scouting before spraying

Cotton fields in Multan, Bahawalpur, Lodhran, and Rahim Yar Khan can look healthy in the morning and cross pest threshold within days. The safest plan is regular scouting, targeted chemistry, and good spray coverage.

Weekly scouting routine

• Walk the field in a diagonal pattern and inspect at least 20 plants per acre.
• Check the lower side of leaves for whitefly nymphs, jassid injury, and sticky honeydew.
• Open random bolls from different rows to spot pink bollworm entry holes early.

Economic threshold guide

• Whitefly: treat when you see 5 adults or nymphs per leaf on average.
• Jassid: treat when leaf edges begin yellowing and curling across multiple plants.
• Pink bollworm: act quickly when rosette flowers or fresh boll holes appear.

Spray strategy

1. 1Avoid unnecessary broad-spectrum sprays in early crop because they remove beneficial insects.
2. 2For whitefly pressure, rotate chemistry instead of repeating one active ingredient.
3. 3For bollworm season, use strong canopy penetration and spray in the evening.

Spray setup checklist

• Use a charged battery sprayer with clean hollow-cone nozzles.
• Keep water volume high enough to wet the underside of leaves.
• Do not spray in strong wind or harsh afternoon heat.