Development of suitable integrated pest management strategy to reduce aphid [Myzus persicae (Sulzer)] infestation for sustainable production of potato

The effectiveness of six integrated pest management (IPM) modules, along with a control, was evaluated against Myzus persicae (Sulzer) on the potato variety Kufri Jyoti during the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 seasons. Among the seven treatment modules, M4 and M1 were the most successful in lowering aphid populations. The benefit-cost analysis showed that M4 offered the highest return (11.69:1), largely due to the higher market value of onion compared to potato.Module 1 performed comparably to Module 4. The benefit-cost ratio rankings of the modules were: M4 (11.69:1) > M1 (10.76:1) > M5 (5.20:1) > M6 (4.57:1) > M2 (3.97:1) > M3 (3.91:1). The higher cost-benefit ratios of Module 4 and Module 1 were mainly attributed to the additional yield of onion in M4, and the combined yields of onion and safflower along with potato in M1, which surpassed those of the other IPM modules.