Special pest management in brinjal cultivation increased production
Pest management helps brinjal crop saved from pest attack, income increased
Brinjal is cultivated in almost all the states of the country. But there is a possibility of large scale damage to the brinjal crop due to the pest. Hanumantharayappa, a farmer from Kolihalli village in Tumkur taluk, Karnataka, also had to suffer a lot in brinjal crop due to pests. Pest management technique invented by the Bangalore-based ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, IIHR solved their problem. Now his crop is being protected from the wrath of pests. Due to higher production, their income has also increased.
Crop damage due to pest
Hanumantharayappa has a total cultivable land of 5.5 acres. In its 3 acre area, he grows many vegetables including brinjal, tomato, okra. With this his annual income was around Rs 1.75 lakh. He used to cultivate brinjal on one acre of land in two seasons of the year. But 38 percent crop was damaged due to stem and fruit borer pests. It is a serious type of pest, which rots the fruit of brinjal from inside. Spraying of chemical insecticides is one way of pest management, but even this does not guarantee 100% elimination of the pest. These are expensive, due to which the cost of cultivation itself reaches about Rs 37,450 per hectare.
Benefit from new technologies in the cultivation of brinjal
Krishi Vigyan Kendra at Hirehalli helped Hanumantharayappa to solve his problem. The new technology developed by IIHR was shown to them by front line demonstration, which was effective against stem and fruit borer pests.
What are the techniques?
A pheromone trap was installed at a distance of every 400 square meters in the brinjal field. A pheromone is a chemical substance or secretion that is released by female caterpillars to entice male caterpillars to breed. But after getting its smell, when the male caterpillars reach there, they get trapped in the trap. This disrupts the breeding cycle of the caterpillars and gets rid of them. In pheromone traps, artificial rubber lures (septa) are used to attract male caterpillars to different species. Change this lure every 21 days.
In addition, 50 thousand parasitic insect Trichogramma chilonis were released per hectare area. Actually, Trichogramma kilonis is a parasitic insect, which feeds on insects that damage the crop. At the same time, when the flowers started coming out, on the advice of agricultural scientists, spray was also done.
The result of adopting all these methods was also good. The effect of pests on crops has been reduced to a great extent. Where earlier the infection rate was up to 33.65 percent, it has now come down to 12.65 percent. In this way, where Hanumantharayappa had a profit of about Rs 69,890 earlier, it has now increased to about one lakh 70 thousand.
Hanumantharayappa was convinced that by using this new technique, a good crop could be obtained by properly managing the stem and fruit borer pests of brinjal. So, he told about this technique to the people in his entire village and other farmers of the area are also using these techniques in the cultivation of brinjal.
Stem and Fruit borer
It is a major pest in brinjal plants. Its outbreak starts a few weeks after the sowing of the crop. After the insects grow up, they lay eggs on the plants, from which the larvae come out and damage the plants by piercing them. Then it goes inside the fruit and rots it too. This causes a lot of damage to the crops.
Other methods of pest management
- Farmers can reduce the pest infestation with some measures.
- Keep the field clean and if you have cultivated brinjal last year, then do not plant brinjal this time in the same field.
- After planting two rows of brinjal, put coriander or fennel in one row.
- Apply pheromone trap @ 4 to 5 per acre after 2 weeks of sowing.
- If the effect of insect is visible on the fruits, then make a solution of 4% neem seed juice and spray it on the crop at an interval of 15 days.
- Avoid using synthetic pyrethroids, as this helps the sucking pests to thrive again.
- Avoid the use of pesticides during ripening and harvesting of fruits.
- Uproot and destroy old plants before planting new ones, as they harbor insects and spread infection.
Contact us: If farmers want to share information or experiences related to farming with us, then they can do this by calling us on the phone number 9599273766 or by writing an email to kisanofindia.mail@gmail.com or by sending your recording. Through Kisan of India, we will convey your message to the people, because we believe that if the farmers are advanced then the country is happy.
You can connect with Kisan of India on Facebook, Twitter, and Whatsapp and Subscribe to our YouTube channel.