Preventive Control
Natural enemies
Parasitoids
- Braconid
- Tachinid fly
Predators
- Damsel bug
- Ground beetle
- Minute pirate bug
- Spider
Cultural and
management practices
- Get rid of the broadleaf weeds in and around the field as they provide alternate homes for the bugs.
- Remove all plant debris after harvest as the bugs may continue feeding and breeding on these.
- Practice crop rotation. When planting cotton, make sure that adjoining fields are not attacked by bugs. Infestation of plant bugs in cotton, usually comes from other host plants grown nearby (McGinley, 2002).
- Planting trap crops helps in managing lygus
bugs. Alfalfa, cowpea, and lima beans are compatible trap crops to cotton.