Abstract

Species of Lantana have invaded and overspread almost all the part of the country and is found growing as an aggressive colonizer even up to 1,500 m above m.s.l. in the Northwestern Himalayas. The rapid encroachment of the species in cultivable waste, forest gaps and other marginal areas including grasslands has threatened the forestry plantations, grassland productivity and even agriculture and horticulture areas to a great extent. In fact it has become a nuisance for the foresters as well as for the farming community. Many control and eradication measures for the species have been worked out but all have their limitations. The present biocontrol study was carried out with the basic idea of parasitizing the weed with Cuscuta spp. The process of parasitizing the Lantana spp. With Cuscuta spp. Has been standardized and it has also been observed that the parasite (Cuscuta spp.) does hamper/restrict the growth behaviour of the host (Lantana spp.).

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