Vol. 9, Issue 3, Part F (2024)

Author(s): Ovais Ahmad Hajam, Dr. Zia-H Rufaie, Dr. Irfan Lateef Khan, Dr. Shakeel Ahmad Mir, Dr. Shaheen Gul, Dr. Zafar Iqbal Buhroo and Dr. MF Baqual

Abstract: Sericulture, is an agro-based industry for production of fabulous silk which is called queen of textiles. This industry has significant potential for socio-economic development of poor and marginal farmers who conduct silkworm rearing for production of raw silk. For production of quality silk one of the essential requirement is quality of leaf which contributes about 38.2% for success of cocoon crop. As the quality and quantity of mulberry leaf consumed by silkworm larvae greatly influence cocoon production, this study was carried out to investigate the effects of feeding silkworms fortified mulberry leaf with extracts from Aloe vera, Ocimum sanctum and Withania somnifera. Feeding fortified mulberry leaves with plant extracts significantly enhanced some post-cocoon parameters, including filament length, raw silk percentage, and denier. An average filament length of 1241 m was recorded in 3% Withania somnifera treatment during spring season as against 1082.17 m, which was recorded in control (T₁₃) where mulberry leaves without fortification were fed to silkworms. Similarly highest raw silk percentage of 17.91% was recorded in 3% Ocimum sanctum treatment during spring and 17.20% during autumn as against 15.7% and 14.5% recorded in control groups during spring and autumn seasons respectively. The values of denier were also within a narrow range across all treatments. This significant improvement in some post cocoon parameters can be attributed to the positive effects of fortifying mulberry leaves with plant extracts, which likely stimulated metabolic activities and silk protein synthesis in silkworms. The findings highlight the potential of utilizing these medicinal plant extracts as nutritional supplements for enhancing productivity in sericulture.