:::

Take care of pest control for planting green manure crops in fallow lands after second rice crop season

     The purpose of cultivation of green manure crops is to maintain farmland fertility and prevent weeds. To plow the cultivation green manure crops back and then they can release nutrients after fully composting for the next crop utilization. But if not under good management, the manure crops will be attacked by pest seriously resulting in production lost and failure of maintaining farmland fertility. Moreover, when the pest population accumulated to high enough , it would damage other crops nearby or the next generation crops continuously. The pest commonly found in green manure field include twill cutworm, pod borer and Quasi-foot guard, among which twill cutworm is the most lethal.

     Due to the cooler temperature of late fallow period after second rice crop season during October to November, twill cutworms are easy to multiply. If without prevention and control the larvae will feed on leaves of green manure plants, eventually only the stem will be left. Then these larvae migrate to the neighboring crop fields and even invade farmhouse to trouble the residents.

     Sesbania is the most compatible green manure crop to be attacked by twill cutworm and damaged seriously. In recent years, cultivation area of Sesbania has been reduced drastically under policy advocacy. But other kinds of green manure are in turn to become the objects large-scale attacked by pest. To avoid the problem derived from planting green manure, pest control followed recommended methods by control manual is necessary. Alternatively, the green manure plants should be plowed back earlier before serious pest infestation.