Application of Riau local entomophatogenic fungi Beauveria bassiana toward brown planthopper pest and production of rice

The decrease in rice production can be caused by pests that can damage the quality and quantity. Pests that always attack rice plants are Brown planthopper. The BPH causes several effects, namely hopperburn, as a virus vector and can cause crop failure. The control of BPHs by farmers to date is by using synthetic pesticides. The use of synthetic pesticides can cause residues, resistance, resurgence, and the destruction of natural enemies. The use of synthetic insecticides can be minimized by using environmentally friendly and sustainable control alternatives, namely by using the local entomopathogenic fungi B. bassiana. This study aims to determine the effect of the application of local Riau B. bassiana on BPH and rice production.The research was conducted at the Laboratory of Plant Pests and Experimental Gardens, Faculty of Agriculture, Riau University from April to July 2020. The research was designed a completely randomized design with five treatments local entomopathogenic fungi concentrations B. bassiana 0 g.l-1 water, 10 g.l-1 water, 20 g.l-1 water, 30 g.l-1 water, 40 g.l-1 water and four replications, in order to obtain 20 experimental units. The results showed that application of Riau local B. bassiana with a concentration of 40 g.l-1 for six days was able to cause the highest mortality of 92.5%. The higher the concentration of Riau local B. bassiana, the lower the attack intensity. The attack of brown planthopper nymphs affects the quality of rice production, but did not affect the quantity of rice production.