Sorghum Pests

Pests of National Significance

Insect pests

• Shoot fly: Atherigona soccata (Rondani) (Diptera: Muscidae)
• Stem Borer: Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)
• Midge: Stenodiplosis sorghicola (Coquillett) (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae)
• White grub: Holotrichia consanguinea (Hope) (Coleoptera:Scarabaeidae)

Diseases

• Grain mold: Fusarium sp.,Phomasp. (Saccardo) Curvularia sp.
• Charcoal rot: Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi, Goid)

Weeds

Broad leaf

• Cock'scomb: Celosia argentea L. (Amaranthaceae)
• Common purselane: Portulaca oleraceaL.( Portulacaceae)
• False amaranth: Digera arvensis (Forssk) (Amaranthaceae)
• Horsepurslane: Trianthema portulacastrum L. (Aizoaceae)
• Pigweed: Amaranthus viridis (Hook. F.)(Amaranthaceae)
• Swinecress: Coronopus didymus L. Sm. (Brassicaceae)
• Black nightshade: Solanum nigrum L. (Solanaceae)
• Sessilisjoywood: Alternanthera sessilis L DC (Amaranthaceae)
• Punarnava: Boerhavia diffusa L. (Nyctagnaceae)
• Tropical spiderwort: Commelina benghalensis L (Commelinaceae)
• Whitetop Weed: Parthenium hysterophorus L (Asteraceae)
• Bullhead: Tribulus terrestris L (Zygophyllaceae)
• Coat button: Tridax procumbensL(Asteraceae)

Grasses

• Rabbit/crow foot grass: Dactyloctenium aegyptium (Willd) (Poaceae)
• Goosegrass: Eleusine indica L. (Gaertner) (Poaceae)
• Barnyard grass: Echinochloa crusgalliL. (Scop) (Poaceae)
• Crabgrass: Digiteria sanguinalis L. (Scop) (Poaceae)
• Burmuda Grass: Cynodon dactylon (Poaceae)
• Johnson grass: Sorghum halepense L Pers (Poaceae)
• Gamba grass: Brachiaria ramose L (Poaceae)
• Finger grass: Chloris barbata Sw (Poaceae)

Sedges

• Purplenutsedge: Cyperus rotundus L (Cypraceae)
• Flat sedge: Cyperus iria L. (Cypraceae)

Parasitic weeds

• Witchweed: Striga asiatica L. (Kuntze) (Orobanchaceae)

Nematode

• Lesion Nematode: Pratylenchus spp. (Tylenchida: Pratylenchidae)
• Cyst nematode: Heterodorasorghii

Vertebrates

• Rodent: Springhare sp. (Rodentia)
• Parrot: Psittacines sp. (Psittaciformes)
• Crow: Corvus spp. (Passeriformes: Corvidae)

Pests of Regional Significance

Insect and mite Pests

• Armyworm: Mythimna separate (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Karnataka, Maharashtra
• Cutworms: Agrotisipsilon (Ochsenheimer) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
• Grasshopper: Hieroglyphus sp (Krauss) (Orthoptera: Acrididae) Karnataka, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi
• Pyrilla: Pyrilla perpurilla (Linnaeus) (Hemiptera: Lophopidae) Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh
• Shoot bug: Peregrinus maidis ( Ashmead) (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, South India, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Maharashtra
• Earhead caterpillars: Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Eublemma spp,(Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Crytoblabes spp. (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Maharashtra
• Earhead bug: Calocoris angustatus (Hemiptera: Miridae) Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh
• Sugar cane aphid: Rhophalosiphum maidis Koch (Hemiptera: Aphididae) Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Gujarat, Maharashtra
• Spider mite: Oligonychus indicus Hirst (Trombidiformes: Tetranychidae) Karnataka, Punjab, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu

Diseases

• Downy mildew: Peronosclerospora sorghi (Weston & Uppal, C.G. Shaw) Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana
• Anthracnose: Colletotrichum graminicola (D.J. Politis)
• Loose smut: Sporisorium cruenta (de Bary)
• Ergot: Claviceps sorghi (B.G.P. Kulk)Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra
• Grain smut: Sporisorium sorghi (Ehrenb ex. Link)
• Red leaf spot : Helminthosporium turcicum Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra
• Rust : Puccinia purpurea (Cooke) Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Central Provinces

IPM for Sorghum

To know the IPM practices for Sorghum, click here.

Source: NIPHM and Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine & Storage