Crop Introduction
- Lentil
Soil Requirement
Climate Requirement
Time of sowing and sowing method
Manures and Fertilizers
Inter cultural operations
Major insect pest and their management
Average yield
1. STRAWBERRY
Strawberry fruit is also known as ‘Accessory fruit’. Some qualities of strawberry are sodium free, fat free, cholesterol free, low calorie food. These have tiny edible seeds.
Scientific Name- Fragaria ananassa
Growing season- October to February
Seed rate- 45 to 100 qa./ha
Average yield - 8 tonnes/acre
Some cultural practises followed are:-
Weeding;
Keep the field weed free ,i.e., weeding operations should be done at regular intervals.
Apart from weeding operations, some other intercultural operations like harrowing, ploughing, application of herbicides can be done.
Application of straw mulch (organic mulch made up of natural substance).
Irrigation;
Irrigation should be done more frequently but amount of water should be less everytime.
Early planting of strawberry crop in autumn for good vegetative growth.
Twice a week irrigation in September and October if there is no rain.
Fertilisers;
NPK is applied.
Apply P,K and part of N before planting.
No over ferilisation especially with N.
Soil
Prefer slightly acidic soil(pH= 5.3 to 6.5)
If pH is greater or less then the preferred value then adjust its pH by adding lime or acid.
Add sulphur before planting if the soil pH is too high.
Major diseases ;
Red stele - caused by fungus Phytophthora fragariae. Common in areas with cool and moist soil conditions. No visible symptoms initially. Gradually, as the infection progresses. Rotten roots can be seen.
MANAGEMENT;
Fumigate the soil before planting.
Use sufficient amount of water in irrigation ,i.e., neither excess nor less’
Plant annually with certified transplants.
Black root rot- Caused by fungus Thielaviopsis basicola. Roots get infected and have small dark brown to black brown. Have rotted roots.
MANAGEMENT;
Use of appropriate sanitation methods.
Use of pathogen-free plants.
Acceptance of solarisation and steaming.
MAJOR PESTS;
Red spider mites- Caused by new, infected plants. It can be fatal in more amount. Favourable conditions for red spider mites to occur is hot and dry weather.
MANAGEMENT;
Spray water free from calcium to avoid dry conditions.
If the infestation is mild then simply wiping a soft moist cloth on leaves can be done.
SUGARCANE
Scientific name- Saccharum officinarum
Growing season- September to October(autumn)
February to march (spring)
Seed rate- 35 to 45 qa./acre
Average yield- 82 metric tons per hectare
Some cultural practises followed are;
Soil ;
Well drained loamy soil.
Deep ploughing should be done before formation of furrows.
Exposion of sunlight for few months.
Fertilizers
Application of some biofertilizer like azospirillum provide Nitrogen to sugarcane crop.
Apply nitrogen and potassium fertilizer in split doses, in the formation of bands on either side of cane row.
Weeding
By moving and cutting so that production of seeds can be reduced.
By mulching.
By soil solarisation.
Irrigation
By drip irrigation since it provides water and nutrients direct to crop’s root.
By flood irrigation.
By alternate skip furrow method
By sprinkler irrigation.
MAJOR DISEASES;
Leaf scald disease- Caused by bacterium Xanthomonasalbilineans. Also cause yield losses. Favourable conditions for this disease to occur is wet weather, high nitrogen fertilization and close spacing.
MANAGEMENT;
By maintaining good flow of air between plants ,i.e., by favouring wide spacing.
By opting for disease resistant varieties.
By providing appropriate amount of water.
Rotation of crops.
2. Mosaic disease- Caused by various strains of several hundred virus. Affected plant have mottled appeareance. This virus do not harm humans. This disease is common in tomatoes, cauliflower, cucumber, etc.
MANAGEMENT;
Do not mix infected and uninfected plants in the compost pile together.
Disinfect gardening tools after use.
MAJOR PESTS;
Early shoot borer- It feeds on internal tissue. It makes a number of bore holes at the basal portion of shoot.
MANAGEMENT;
Use resistant varieties.
Mulching
Presence of adequate moisture so that temperature of soil decreases and increase in humidity.
2. Mealy bug- Female feed on plant sap (roots, bottoms of stored fruits). They secrete powdery wax layer on themselves for self protection. Male not usually feed on plant sap and therefore are mainly for fertilizing female.
MANAGEMENT;
By application of neem oil on infected area.
By application of mealy bug’s predators like ladybugs, lacewings, etc.
By application of horticultural oil.
LENTIL
Scientific name- Lensculinaris
Growing season- November to December
Seed rate- 25 to 30kg\ha
Common name- Masoor
Average yield- 15-20 quintals of grain per hectare
Some cultural practises followed are;
Soil
1 ploughing and 2 harrowing are done.
By application of organic matter like garden compost, peat moss, goat, chicken, cow manure, dried leaves etc. to make the soil loamy.
Weeding
2 manual weeding in 2 months should be done.
Harrowing or rotary hoeing should be done in the field.
Fertilizer management
Since lentil is a legume therefore they aren’t really needed nitrogen as fertilizer. Instead they need phosphorus fertilizer as more beneficial.
Application of fertilizers should be before or during the seedbed preparation.
Irrigation
2 times irrigation is given to the field ,i.e., first at 40-45 days of planting and second at pod filling stage.
When there is absence or lack of moisture in soil during winter then 2 light irrigations are given.
Avoid more irrigation , it can damage the crops.
MAJOR DISEASES;
Ascochyta blight- it is caused by Ascochytalentis. Lesions are seen on affected portions. Also pre mature falling of flowers occurs.
MANAGEMENT;
By crop rotation.
By seed treatment.
By growing resistant varieties.
Lentil rust- it is caused by Uromyces viciaefabae. There is appearance of small white pustules on the leaves.
MANAGEMENT;
Application of neem oil, jatropha oil spray.
Crop rotation.
Planting resistant varieties.
MAJOR PESTS;
Pea aphids- it sucks plant sap and feeds on legumes ( per, clover, alfa-alfa etc.). Loses by attack of this pest occurs a lot. Loses such as spoilage of flower, failure of pods filling and virus infection.
MANAGEMENT;
Selection of varieties having high resistant against pea aphids.
Introducing pea aphid’s predator such as lady beetles, coccinella septempunctata in the field.
2. Thrips –have fringed wings and asymmetrical mouth parts. They feed on plants by puncturing and sucking the contents of plant sap. But thrips are not harmful to humans.
MANAGEMENT;
By shaking of branches on which the thrips are present.
By using yellow and blue coloured sticky traps.
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