The Agriculture Department of Kerala has issued an advisory to farmers in the Wayanad district in the wake of the infestation of fall armyworm (FAW). The advisory has been released as it can cause extensive damage to crops.
Key Points
- The pest attack has been reported on maize and plantain cultivations in various parts of the district, including Edavaka in Mananthavady block panchayat and Perikkallur and Pulpally in Panamaram block panchayat.
- The invasive pest has damaged maize crops in different parts of the country.
- It was found that it had damaged the plantain crop in the district, especially the nendran variety of plantain.
- The lepidopteran pest, which is indigenous to America, has been harming crops and spreading across the world.
- It migrated to Africa in the year 2016 and reached India in June 2018.
- It feeds in large numbers on leaves and stems of more than 80 plant species and causes major damage to crops like rice, maize, sorghum and sugarcane, cotton, and vegetable crops.
Two years ago, the attack of pests on maize was reported in some parts of the Malappuram and Thrissur districts. However, a recent survey by the department in the district in December 2020 found that it had attacked 2 to 4 month-old plantain crop.
As per reports, a female moth lays 100 to 200 eggs inside the whorls of leaves. The worms that come off the eggs eat the lower portion of leaves, and as a result, the color of the leaves turns to white from green.