Divisi
Jassids (leafhoppers)
· Insect
Photo: Hectonichus · CC BY-SA 3.0
Jassids, or leafhoppers, are small, active, wedge-shaped green insects (Amrasca and Empoasca species) that gather on the underside of leaves and suck the plant's sap. As they feed they inject a toxic saliva that scorches the leaf, causing the tell-tale edge-yellowing, curling and bronzing known as hopperburn. On seedlings and on smooth-leaved susceptible varieties this checks growth badly and can sharply cut the yield of cotton, okra, beans, brinjal (eggplant) and groundnut.
gailhampshire · CC BY 2.0 
xpda · CC BY-SA 4.0
Why it matters
Jassids are tiny green leafhoppers that sit under your leaves and suck the sap, and as they feed they inject a poison. That poison burns the leaf edges yellow, then red-brown, and curls them under — this is called hopperburn — so the leaf can no longer feed the plant, and a heavy attack on young plants can cost you up to 40% of your crop (nearly half). The hard part is that once a leaf is burned and curled it will not recover, even after the jassids are gone; they hide underneath the leaves and breed fast in warm, dry weather, and hitting them with a strong, kill-everything spray also kills the ladybirds and spiders that were holding them down — so they bounce back worse than before. That is why catching them early, while the plants are still young, matters far more than spraying late.
When to act
About 2 or more nymphs per leaf on the lower canopy, or first leaf-margin yellowing and cupping (hopperburn) on young plants.
This guidance is general, compiled from published agronomic references including FAO and CABI. Thresholds and timing shift with your crop, your variety and the season.
In much of the region a spray is simply called mushonga — medicine. But a chemical group you cannot name is one you cannot rotate, and a product you did not write down has no pre-harvest interval you can observe. Mushonga, and other farming words →
The full jassids (leafhoppers) field guide
- Identify it
- Scout for it
- Control it
12 field-guide sections in the app
The full guide to jassids (leafhoppers) — every symptom to check, how and when to walk your field looking for it, and the controls that actually work, ranked. Built into your crop plan, so you are told to look before it costs you a harvest.
Crops it affects
Frequently asked questions
How do I identify jassids (leafhoppers)?
The damage — you see this first: the edges of the leaves turn yellow, then red-brown or bronze, and curl and cup downward. This is called hopperburn. Badly hit leaves go brittle and dry from the rim inward, and young plants stay short and stunted. The give-away is that the burning always starts at the leaf margin (the edge) and works inward — never in the middle of the leaf first.
When should I take action against jassids (leafhoppers)?
About 2 or more nymphs per leaf on the lower canopy, or first leaf-margin yellowing and cupping (hopperburn) on young plants.
How do I control jassids (leafhoppers)?
Prevent it first — plant a hairy-leaved variety: in cotton and okra, choose the hairy-leaved (fuzzy) tolerant varieties. The tiny hairs on the leaf physically stop the small jassids from settling, feeding and laying their eggs, so this is your strongest single defence — and it needs no spraying at all. For beans, brinjal (eggplant) and groundnut, ask your extension officer or seed dealer for the tolerant varieties recommended for your area.
Which crops does jassids (leafhoppers) affect?
Among the crops covered here: Cotton, Eggplant, Groundnut, Okra.
Catch it before it costs you a harvest
Divisi builds scouting into your crop plan — it tells you when to walk your field, what to look for at that stage, and what to do when you find it. Free for farmers, works offline.
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