Surveillance and Control of Peach Flat-Headed Borer, Sphenoptera Dadkhani (Oben.) in Plum Orchards of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Peach flat-headed borer, Sphenoptera dadkhani (Oben.) is the major insect-pest of stone fruit orchards. Survey of three districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa revealed the highest mean infestation in plum orchards of district Peshawar (89.60%), followed by Nowshera (75.79%) and Swat (45.42%). In peach orchards, highest mean infestation was recorded in Peshawar (88.33%), followed by Nowshera (72.77%) and Swat (53.72%). The mean infestation of 70.86% was recorded in apricot orchards in Peshawar, followed by Nowshera (62.40%) and Swat (40.73%). Bordeaux mixture treatment applied to tree trunks was very effective in reducing the borer infestation during dormant season. After pruning orchards, Nurelle-D 505EC and Triazofos 40EC @ 75ml of each proved to be the best toxicants, which showed synergistic effect in Bordeaux mixture (Copper oxychloride 75g + Lime 3kg + water 10L) in reducing borer infestation (exit holes/ gum points) in the month of January.