‘Cotton must be picked before January to end PBW infestation’

With the cotton time in Maharashtra is about to conclusion, this 12 months also noticed the continual attacks of Pink Boll Worms (PBW) on the crop.

In order to crack the daily life cycle of PBW, the neighborhood Krishi Vigyan Kendras and Agriculture Universities have advisable farmers to terminate their cotton crop in Maharashtra by December.

Having said that, the crops are even now in the fields in quite a few cotton-expanding districts. In accordance to the Point out Sowing Report on October ten for kharif time, the region underneath the crop had arrived at 42.83 lakh hectares, though the normal is 41.83 lakh hectares. In important districts these as Yavatmal, cotton was planted on 4.65 lakh hectares and five.thirty lakh hectares in Jalgaon.

Agriculture Scientist and Entomologist at the Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Yavatmal, Pramod Magar mentioned that inspite of the advisories farmers continue on to keep their cotton crop until January or February, which will help the PBW keep the daily life cycle until future sowing time (May perhaps-conclusion or early June).

Breaking the cycle

The insect inhabitants keeps growing foremost to attacks in the future time. Therefore terminating the crop is vital to conclusion attacks of PBW. A gap demands to be designed in the feeding cycle of the pests, he mentioned.

Magar mentioned that in a PBW-infested plant, some cotton bowls continue to be partially wrecked with some cotton still left in the bowls, for that reason, the farmers keep these diseased vegetation in the fields with a desire to get some residual cotton. Because of to these procedures, the inhabitants keeps on acquiring crafted up foremost to attacks in the future time.

An official at the Maharashtra Agriculture Commissioner office mentioned that nearly 1-third of the crop is even now standing in Yavatmal. Preferably, the farmers really should have been in the closing stages of removing the crop and making ready the soil for planting summer season crops. Having said that, labour availability is also a difficulty in the Vidarbha region.

Temperature factor

In the primary cotton-expanding parts of Khandesh, Vidarbha and Marathwada regions in Maharashtra, wintertime sets by October.

The big difference involving night and working day temperature is ten-15°C, which is most favourable for the infestation of PBW, Magar mentioned.

Veteran cotton scientist and Vice-President of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, CD Mayee, advised BusinessLine that if the PBW infestation cycle has to be interrupted then the crop need to be removed from the subject by December or by hottest January fifteen. In Punjab there are fewer incidents of PBW attacks mainly because farmers following second picking of cotton take away the crop and make way for other crops these as wheat.

Just after January fifteen, all the cotton plant stalks need to be removed and wrecked or despatched to biomass makers for building briquettes.

When the temperature increases in Maharashtra following January, the sunshine will help in breaking the PBW in the soil, Mayee mentioned.

On the other hand, a cotton farmer from Yavatmal, Milind Damle mentioned that the farmers continue on to hold their crop right until January and February mainly because they can pick the cotton for the fourth or the fifth time. Residual cotton also has financial value, he mentioned.