Cultural practices and resistance varieties in

banana

Next Previous End

Cultural or ecological control involves purposeful manipulation of the

environment to make it less habitable for pest species

Any change in the spatial distribution of host plants (crop rotation,

intercropping, or trap cropping), variations in the time of planting or

harvesting, application of water and fertilizer, and management of

ground cover and / surrounding vegetation may have a significant

effect on the survival and growth of pest populations

Next Previous End

Climate and Soil Requirements

Banana is well adapted to well-drained, loamy, soil that is rich in

organic matter.

Areas with an average rainfall of 4000 millimeters (mm) a year are

ideal sites for a banana plantation.

A temperature between 27 to 30o C is most favorable to the crop.

Banana grows at sea level up to 1,800 meters altitude.

It is susceptible to root rot when exposed to too much water.

Typhoon belt areas do not make good plantation sites.

Next Previous End

Propagation

Banana can be propagated through its rhizomes and suckers.

Suckers must be parasite-free and have healthy roots.

These are spaded out of the clumps when four to five feet tall.

Land Preparation

Next Previous End

The field is ploughed and harrowed thrice.

All stumps and bushes must be removed.

Knee-deep holes with 45-cm diameters are dug and each hole

is fertilized with 10 grams of Complete fertilizer and a few of

granular nematode.

Planting

Suckers are set on field in vertical position, then covered with

surface soil.

Compost material added to the soil enhances the recovery and

growth with the new plants.

The soil is stumped around each base and watered regularly.

During dry months, irrigation if possible, is advised.

Planting is best at the start of the rainy season

Next Previous End

Cultivation and Maintenance

Cultivation should go beyond six inches

from the base of the plant to avoid root

injury.

Plants must be propped with bamboo

poles during fruiting for support

against strong winds.

Intercrops / Glamoxine or Karmex spray

act as weed control.

Next Previous End

Intercropping

One of the way to reduce pest

populations by increasing environmental

diversity.

Intercropping lowers the overall

attractiveness of the environment, as

when host and non-host plants are

mixed together in a single planting.  

Next Previous End

Managed application

Water or fertilizer can have a big impact on the survival of pest

populations in some crops.

Annual flooding, for example, is a cultural practice that eliminates

many potential pests.

Balance diet application of irrigation and fertilization keeps plants

healthy, vigorous, and more resistant to insect injury.

It is not unusual for small amounts of injury to actually stimulate

compensatory growth in healthy plants.

Next Previous End

Sanitation

Cultural control strategy that may be highly

effective for pest’s control.

Removing crop debris from banana fields

after harvest eliminates corn weevils.

Collecting the removed side coppice after

that Shredding or burning.

Next Previous End

Crop Rotation

Rotating the field to a different type of

crop can break this cycle by starving

pests that cannot adapt to a different

host plant.

Crop rotation schemes work because

they increase the diversity of a pest's

environment and create discontinuity in

its food supply.

Next Previous End

As a rule, rotations are most likely to be practical and effective when

they are used against pests that:

Growing a single crop year after year in the same field gives pest

populations sufficient time to become established and build up to

damaging levels.

Attack annual or biennial crops

Have a relatively narrow host range

Cannot move easily from one field to another, and

Are present before the crop is planted

Next Previous End

Desuckering or Pruning

Next Previous End

Fertilization

For poor soils, fertilizers should contain N-P-K at a ratio of 3-1-6.

The ratio is doubled when fertilizers are applied to young plants.

The amount of fertilizer applied increases as the tree matures.

At flowering and fruiting period, a tree needs five to six pounds of

complete fertilizer.

Next Previous End

Weed management

Weed control and weed management are

the two terms used in weed science.

Weed control is the process of limiting

infestation of the weed plant so that crops

can be grown profitably. Weed

management includes

Prevention

Eradication

Control by regulated use

Suppression of growth

Prevention of seed

production

Complete destruction

Restricting invasion

Next Previous End

Bunch covering

Use transparent polyethylene

sleeves with 2% (during cool

season) - 4% (during summer

season) ventilation to cover the

bunch immediately after opening

of the last hand.

Next Previous End

Soil Flooding

This is a pre-planting practice which can be regarded as a soil

disinfestations treatment.

A classic case of control on a large scale was demonstrated with the

Panama wilt disease of bananas caused by Fusarium oxysporum

f.sp. cubense).

The harmful effect of flooding on soil-borne pathogens related to a

lack of oxygen, increased CO2 or various microbial interactions, e.g.

production of substances that are toxic to the pathogen upon

anaerobic processes. (Cont)..

Next Previous End

The soil is flooded for 3–4 months or more, with a minimum of 30 cm

of water.

Flooding was not effective when large populations of the pathogen

were present, or in soil which contained unknown factors which

favored the pathogen.

Flooding also apparently destroys Pseudomonas solanacearum and

the nematode Radopholus similis.

Where flooding was practiced in the past to eliminate soil-borne

organisms including fungi, nematodes and insects.

Next Previous End

Host Resistance

Breeding plants (or animals) for resistance to insects is really just

another form of biological pest control.

Next Previous End

Rather than finding insects to attack the pests, breeders

look for genetic traits (or combinations of traits) that

reduce an organism's susceptibility to attack or injury by

its insect pests.

Resistant varieties in banana

Major banana varieties grown in India

Poovan:

It is the most important commercial variety in Tamil Nadu, Andhra

Pradesh and West Bengal.

It is also known as Lal velchi in Maharashtra.

It is resistant to Panama wilt.

Next Previous End

Dwarf Cavendish or Basarai:

It is a dwarf variety.

It is resistant to Panama disease.

It is a high yielding variety with fruits large and of good quality.

Next Previous End

To sum up

Different cultural practices increase the production and

protection of plant.

They are field preparation, planting material – free from pest and

diseases, irrigation system- drip irrigation (to avoid wastage of

water), intercropping(increase the productivity), weed

management,sanitation, crop rotation, soil flooding, resistance

varieties , bunch covers for increase the quality to protect fruits

from cold, sun scorching.

Next Previous End