A fractional-order fall armyworm-maize biomass model with naturally beneficial insects and optimal farming awareness.

Abstract

Maize remains an important food crop in Africa. However, the production of this crop, and consequently the livelihood of the growers are threatened by the invasion and widespread infestation of the fall armyworm which causes substantial maize yield losses. In this paper, a fractional-order fall armyworm-maize biomass model with naturally beneficial insects and optimal farming awareness has been formulated. Comprehensive analysis of the model has shown that it contains five equilibrium points which are all locally and globally asymptotically stable if the conditions outlined in Lemma 2.1 and 2.2 are met. We also carried out numerical simulations to support the analytical results and to illustrate different dynamical regimes that can be observed in the model. We have found that time-dependent farming awareness can significantly reduce fall armyworm population if the cost of implementation is relatively low.