Agriculture department issues guidelines to protect maize from fall armyworm attack

The Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare department of Thoothukudi has issued guidelines to protect maize crops from fall armyworm infestation.

It has advised farmers to make use of the scattered monsoon rain to plough the land deeply, which will expose the larvae and pupae present in the soil to sunlight and birds and destroy them. This also prevents the moth from emerging from the pupae. It has further instructed farmers to apply 250 kg of neem cake powder per hectare, during the final ploughing to control larvae and emergence of adult moths.

The guidelines also stressed the need for proper spacing while sowing, which could make the pest management easier. It further advised the farmers to spray 20 ml of neem oil diluted in 10 litres of water to prevent moths from laying eggs. It also highlighted the inter-crop method with leguminous crops, preventing army worm infestation.

It also urged the farmers to avoid unrecommended pesticides and to spray biopesticides such as Metarhizium anisopliae, four kg per hectare and Trichogramma pretiosum in maize fields two to three times at one week intervals.