The Punjab Agriculture Department has urged the cotton growers to pay special heed towards removal of weeds in cotton crop as these serve as debris for whitefly, which may cause Cotton Leaf Curl Virus (CLCV) and Mealy bug attack.
A spokesman of the department said here on Thursday that under special directives of Secretary Agriculture Punjab department is full alert for achieving cotton high production and assisting technically its level best to cotton growers.
Extension and pest warning has deputed teams for check & balance of insect threshold attack in Punjab. Also through smart phones equipped with special applications, agriculture department is providing technical assistance to cotton growers.
Cotton growers are advised to pay special heed towards crop during rainy season as cotton plant is very sensitive towards water tolerance. If rain water stands in field more than 48 hours then cotton plant may die and this will ultimately effect on total cotton yield. If water is present in large quantity then it may be pushed towards neighbouring field by using pumps to avoid any damage.
Spokesman also advised farmer to conduct pest scouting twice a week to avoid harmful insects & pests of cotton crop. If farmer observed that attack on crop is above threshold level then they are advised to contact Extension/ Pest warning teams for their elimination.
Spokesman also disclosed that in rain fed areas, farmers are advised to save moisture in the earth and for this purpose deep ploughing is recommended. During Monsoon season, crops are more vulnerable for attack of sucking insects so farmers are advised to pay special heed for their eradication.