Mahesha, H. S. ， Keerthi, M. C. ， Singh, J. B. ， Yadav, Vijay Kumar ， Wasnik, V. K.
2026-01-20 ARCHIVES OF PHYTOPATHOLOGY AND PLANT PROTECTION 2026 59(卷), 2(期), (124-141页)
Sorghum, Sorghum bicolour L. Moench, is an important cereal grown for grain and fodder, but its productivity is constrained by insect pests, diseases, and weeds. To estimate avoidable yield and quality losses, field experiments were conducted for three Kharif seasons (2019-2021) at ICAR-IGFRI, Jhansi, India. Shoot fly, Atherigona soccata caused the most severe damage, reducing plant height by nearly 30% (118.2 cm vs. 193.3 cm in healthy checks) and green fodder yield by 41.8%. Stem borer, Chilo partellus and zonate leaf spot, Gloeocercospora sorghi reduced plant height by 7.8% and 9.0%, respectively, while weeds caused a 16.8% decline. Untreated plots showed cumulative losses with a 27.8% reduction in plant height and 45.4% loss in fodder yield. Nutritional quality was also impaired: crude protein content in untreated plants dropped to 6.3-6.7% compared with 8.3-8.5% in healthy checks, while acid detergent fibre (ADF) was highest under stress (up to 39.9%) and lowest in healthy plants (37%). These findings demonstrate that shoot fly and zonate leaf spot are the key pests, substantially reduce both yield and forage quality, highlighting the need for integrated management strategies in semi-arid sorghum production systems.