In vitro Evaluation of Entomopathogenic Fungi for the Management of Broad Mite, Polyphagotarsonemus latus Occurrence on Mulberry

The in vitro evaluation of two entomopathogenic fungi, Lecanicillium lecanii and Hirsutella thompsonii, was conducted to assess their efficacy against the Broad mite, Polyphagotarsonemus latus, damaging mulberry. The study measured the cumulative mortality rates of Broad mites at 1, 3, 5, and 7 days after Spraying (DAS) of the fungi at different concentrations (1.5, 2.5, and 3.0 ml/l). Significant variations in mite mortality were observed across different treatments and time points. The highest mortality rate was 65.87 ± 1.61% with H. thompsonii at 3.0 ml/l, while the lowest was at 1.5 ml/l with a 43.86 ± 0.90% mortality rate at one DAS. Three days after spray, H. thompsonii at 3.0 ml/l showed the highest mortality rate (82.00 ± 1.05%), with the least effective being at 1.5 ml/l (53.60 ± 3.20%). At five days after treatment, the highest mortality was 95.60 ± 1.31% observed in H. thompsonii at 3.0 ml/l, whereas L. lecanii recorded 91.34 ± 0.76% with. By the seventh day, H. thompsonii at 3.0 ml/l achieved the highest mortality rate of 98.80 ± 0.65%, while L. lecanii showed 98.00 ± 0.42%.