Abstract
The effect of okra mosaic virus (OMV) on growth and yield of okra plants varied with the time of inoculation with OMV during the early rains. Inoculation of plants with OMV 14 and 21 days after emergence (DAE) significantly reduced the average weight of fruits per plant compared with those inoculated 28 DAE and the uninoculated control. Since number of fruits was significantly positively correlated with weight of fruits in all treatments, a similar pattern was also noted for number of fruits per plant. There were no significant differences in heights of plants inoculated 14 and 21 DAE, although these both differed significantly from plants inoculated 28 DAE. The latter was not significantly different from the uninoculated control. The relevance of these findings to the control of OMV in rain-fed okra plantings is discussed.
