The Hindu : Karnataka News : Hoppers haunt king of fruits

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Friday, Mar 28, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka

Hoppers haunt king of fruits

Mango growers in Kolar and Chickaballapur districts are a worried lot

UNDER THREAT: Mango trees at a village in Srinivaspur taluk which are infected with hopper mite.

Already battered by unseasonable rain and drop in flowering of mango trees, mango growers in Srinivaspur taluk and other parts of Kolar and Chickaballapur districts are now worried over attacks from hopper menace to the crop.

It may be noted here that the mango farmers in the mango basin of Karnataka and other parts of both the districts have had to encounter slew of problems since the beginning of the present season due to a drop in flowering. Their worries were compounded as large quantities of flowers withered due to off season rain coupled with gusty winds in February. While both these were bad signals about the quantity of the crop, attacks by mango hoppers has come as a bolt from the blue to the farmers.

“In fact, this itself is the offshoot of the unseasonable rain,” K.N. Sureshchandra, Senior Assistant Director of Horticulture Department at Srinivaspur told The Hindu.

“Rain caused tender leaves to sprout, and their sheen has attracted the mango hoppers in large numbers. The excreta of this insect adversely affects the crop,” Mr. Sureschandra said.

If it was not controlled at early stage, accumulation of excreta develops into powdery mildew disease which harms the fruit, he explained.

VISHWA KUNDAPURA IN KOLAR

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