Nature of damage:
------------------

• The younger larvae feed initially on the foliage for a while and later bore into the green fruits.
• The larva while feeding, thrusts its head into the fruit leaving the rest of its body inside.
• Young larvae feed on tender foliage. Mature larvae bore circular holes.
• The bored fruits invite secondary infection by other organisms, lead to rotting.

Management :
-------------

• Deep ploughing during summer season to expose the larvae and pupae to sunlight and predation by birds.
• Planting one row of 40 days seedlings of marigold as trap crop every after 16 rows of 25 days old seedlings of tomato for attraction of adults to trap crop for egg laying and colonization.
• Collect and destroy the infected fruits and grown up larvae.
• Collection and destruction of larvae from marigold flowers.
• Installation of pheromone traps (5/ha) 25 days after transplanting for early pest detection.
• Two releases of Trichogramma brasiliense @ 2,50,000 parasitized eggs/ha (Tricho-cards) during peak flowering stage at interval of 10 days.
• Foliar spray of HaNPV @ 250 LE with jaggery (10 g/lit), soap powder (5 g/lit) and teenopol (1 ml/lit) during evening hours.
• Spray carbaryl 50 WP 2 g/lit or B. thuringiensis 2 g/lit. Do not spray insecticides after fruit maturity.