4 months ago
2
Bio Control Laboratory successful Virudhunagar has recommended farmers to follow integrated absorption methods to power fabric mealybug (Penococcus solanopsis), a pest that tin origin output losses successful the scope of 25% to 50% successful cotton.
A connection from the Agricultural Officer of the lab, G. Ariputhiran, advised the farmers to pain the residue of erstwhile crop, isolated from practising harvest rotation. They should besides support tract hygiene by destroying weeds similar parthenium, ‘oomathai’ and ‘chenopodium’, which are the hosts of the mealybug.
Similarly, crops similar fenugreek, tomato, and bringal should beryllium avoided successful the vicinity of fabric field.
Symptoms of Mealybug
The insects look connected the tips of the shoots, leaves, and pods and suck the sap. The affected plants crook yellow, wilt and adust up. Sometimes the leaves and pods autumn off. The insects instrumentality to the leaves and stems successful ample numbers, forming a fluffy mass. Mealybugs provender connected young tissues and inject their saliva, causing the leaves to curl. They secrete a honeydew-like liquid, which causes achromatic fungal maturation connected the leaves.
Management methods
The connection said that infected harvest parts should beryllium removed and burnt. Ladybird beetles (Cryptodamus montroygeri, Cryptodamus segmaculata), which are insect enemies of mealybugs, should beryllium encouraged.
Growing Corn, which grows good and tall, astir the field, volition enactment arsenic a obstruction and forestall airborne mealybugs from entering the field.
Similarly, planting of maize and wide beans on the bunds of canal volition assistance multiplication of beneficial insects specified arsenic Chrysophagus and Bori beetles, and power mealybugs.
Farmers should besides debar applying of nitrogen fertilizers successful excess of the recommended dosage. Instead, Neem oil-based bio-pesticide oregon Buprofezin could beryllium sprayed during the increasing play of cotton.
Farmers should use 750 grams of Thiodicarb 75 WP oregon spray 1.25 kg of Profenophos 50 EC, 2 kg of Acepate 75 SP, 1 liter of Dimethoate mixed with 200 liters of h2o per acre, if they find 10% of their plants are infected by mealybugs. Chlorpyrifos should beryllium mixed astatine a complaint of 5 ml per liter of h2o and sprayed with a manus sprayer to thoroughly bedewed the full crop.
Any liquid soap could beryllium added to pesticide solution to guarantee that the pesticide solution is good distributed successful the powdery movie connected the mealybugs. This should beryllium repeated aft 10-15 days.
