Tamil Nadu - Tiruchi   

TNAU team suggests measures to revive partially damaged crop

TIRUCHI: A three-member expert team from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University’s Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) and Sugarcane Research Station (SRS) at Sirugamani, along with Agriculture Department officials, has made a study of paddy crops that were damaged in last month’s heavy rain in Tiruchi district and the possibility of reviving them.

The team, comprising N. Raju, Professor of Entomology, SRS, ML. Manoharan, Professor of Agronomy, KVK, and P. Balasubramanian, Associate Professor, KVK, has come out with recommendations for reviving the crops, wherever possible.

The team, accompanied by N. Ponnusamy, Joint Director of Agriculture and other officials, toured the district extensively last week to come up with the suggestions. They inspected fields in a large number of villages including in Tiruverambur taluk and also villages in Lalgudi, Pullampadi and Andhanallur divisions. The major paddy varieties grown in this region were White Ponni BPT.5204 and CO.43.

Mr. Ponnusamy told The Hindu that the team has come out suggestions for farmers on ways to revive crops which were partially damaged during the vegetative (more than 25 days old) and flowering (more than 40 days old) stages. The measures suggested could help make the available tillers productive and restrict the yield loss. Crops which were less than 25 days were fully damaged beyond any chance for revival.

After the water had receded the crops have been hit by pest and diseases. The team found attacks by leaf roller/folder, stem borer and mealy bugs. In some places, crops were affected by sheath blight, narrow leaf spot, stem rot and bacterial leaf blight diseases.

The expert team has suggested application of trichogramma sp. at the rate of five cubic centimetres (cc) a hectare, three times at weekly intervals. The application should be made on the 40th day of planting. For crops which are 25 days old, a similar application can be made to control leaf folder and stem borer pests.

While these were biological control methods, the following chemical control measures were also recommended: Application of chlorpyriphos (500 ml mixed in 200 litres of water) an acre to control leaf folder; monocroptophos (400 ml mixed in 200 litres of water) an acre to control stem borer; bactrimycin 40 grams with copper oxichloride (500 grams mixed in 200 litres of water) an acre for bacterial leaf blight disease and dithane M45/copper oxychloride 500 grams/carbendazim 100 grams (any one mixed in 200 litres of water) an acre for leaf spot disease.

To tackle nutrition deficiency also noted in some areas, spraying of zinc sulphate 0.5% has been recommended followed by application of 25 kg of nitrogen an acre for better establishment of the crop.

The team has estimated that the crops have suffered about 60 per cent damage and expected a proportionate yield loss.

The control measures was aimed at recovering the available crop to the maximum possible extent and reduce the loss to the farmers, Mr. Ponnusamy said. The advice by the team was being propagated to the farmers through field level officials. Retail fertilizer/pesticide shops have also been advised suitably about the farmers’ requirements, he added.

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