Srinagar: Given the rain spell predicted by MeT across Kashmir from the 17th of April, the experts have advised orchardists to spray fungicide before rains to avoid scab-like diseases.
Experts said that it is usually best to apply a fungicide before it rains, because rain wets the leaf surface making it prone to most foliar diseases, and rain may splash spores from leaf to leaf and from plant to plant.
Therefore, if one can coat plants with fungicides before rainfall, the plant gets protection from the disease, they said.
“Wet weather period is prone to infections, it’s the time when a plant is most vulnerable to foliar disease. Fungicides, properly applied, may help to prevent or slow the initiation of disease and the spread of disease which commonly occurs during or shortly after a rain,” they added.
Dr. Tariq Rasool, a senior scientist at SKUAST (Sher-i-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology) said that as rains are predicted from Sunday, growers must spray fungicide before rains to avoid scabs.
Orchards, where over 50 to 60 percent of petals have fallen must be sprayed with any SKUAST-recommended fungicide to avoid any disease in the future, he said.
Those Orchardists who have sprayed in around the last week of March and apple flowers are in full, they too can go far fungicides as per the latest research- it has been found safe to spray fungicide in bloom and there won’t be any effect on the fruit, he said.
He advised farmers that they must use a mist spray, not full-speed spray so that it won’t damage the petals and fruits mist spray must be used always and the practice of bathing the whole tree must be avoided.
“Best time for the spray is morning and this is the critical stage of the scab so people must avoid mixing more pesticides and insecticides and focus on fungicide only this time,” he said.
He said that even if it rains, a few hours after spraying fungicide, it will still protect the fruit and keep diseases at bay.
(KNO)
