A comparative study on the persistence of imidacloprid and beta-cyfluthrin in vegetables

In an effort to compare the persistence of imidacloprid and beta-cyfluthrin, when applied through a ready mix formulation, Solomon 300 OD @ 200 and 400 mL ha(-1) in the fruits of brinjal, tomato and okra, the present study has been made. The study indicated that the dissipation of these insecticides irrespective of fruits followed concentration dependent first order kinetics. The degradation constant and half live value of beta-cyfluthrin varies between -0.287 and -0.642 day(-1) and 1.07 and 2.41 days while that of imidacloprid between -0.21 and -0.34 day(-1) and 1.98 and 3.30 days respectively suggesting that the persistence of beta-cyfluthrin is lower than that of imidacloprid in fruits of these vegetables. Moreover, the persistence of these insecticides when compared between different fruits, it is highest in brinjal followed by tomato and least in okra, a probable clue of which has been proposed based on the non-enzymatic antioxidant content of the fruits.