author(s)
Sanjay C Maish

abstract
Vegetable production is a preferred agricultural practice in India and many south east Asian countries. It is a highly profitable venture but comes with a major drawback of pest infestation. The Insect pests cause major damage to the crop production and are the major limiting factor. Even among the main insects pests, Lepidopteran cause significant damage to the crops. Lepidoptera order of insects includes butterfly and moths. Pests such as diamond-back moth (DBM) on cabbage (Plutella xylostella), fruit borer on tomato (Helicoverpa armigera), pod borer on chilli (Spodoptera litura), shoot and fruit borers on brinjal (Leucinodes orbonalis) and okra (Earias fabia) are among the major lepidopteran pests of vegetables. With the advent of intensive high yielding varities/hybrids, changing cropping patterns, and the shift in pest status along with drastic decline in the climate, habitat and ecosysytem; the vegetable cultivation is facing major challenges. There has been gradual expansion in the horizon of the pests. Chilli gall midge (Asphondylia capparis) in parts of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, solenopsis mealy bug (Phenacoccus solenopsis) in brinjal, tomato, okra and cucurbits; Hadda beetle (Henosepilachna vigitioctopunctata and Epilachna dodecastigma) on cowpea and bitter gourd; plume moth (Sphenaeches caffer) in bottle gourd are some of the examples. As a result the end users have adopted indiscriminate use of synthetic insecticides leading to resistance against pesticides and secondary outbreaks. This paper depicts Lepidopterous pest, biology and its effects on vegetable crops.