Botanical Remedies: Remedies From Plant Material Under Natural Farming

Natural Farming is a chemical-free alias traditional Indian farming practice. It is considered as an agro-ecology based diversified farming system which integrates crops, trees and livestock with functional biodiversity that largely depends on use of on-farm biomass recycling with major stress on biomass mulching, on-farm production of cow dung urine-based formulations for maintaining soil fertility as well as crop protection, etc.

As in natural farming management use of synthetic chemicals are prohibited, the pest management is done by cultural or agronomic, mechanical, biological or by naturally accepted botanical extract.

Some of the remedies from plant material in natural control are as under: –

1) Remedies from organic material:

A) Citronella Grass: Use of Citronella grass repels other bugs like flies.

Target Diseases & Insect-Pests:

• Insects: storage pests, cockroaches, mosquitoes, fruit flies

• Fungi: Aspergillus, Macrophomina

• Bacteria: Erwinia carotovora.

Method of Application: Use citronella oil as a repellent.

B)  Finger millet

Target Diseases & Insect-Pests: Insect: army worms, caterpillars, cutworms, fruit flies

Method of Application: Finger millet residues are used as mulch, grown as trap crop for cutworms and soak the residues in water for spraying fruit flies.

C)  French marigold

Target Diseases & Insect-Pests

• Insect: rice green leafhoppers, brown plant hoppers, diamond back moth, black bean aphids, ants, beetles, cotton strainers, flies, maize borers, storage pests

• Fungi: Cocliobolus, Pyricularia, Uramyces, Phytophthora

• Nematode and bacteria in general

Method of Application:

• Plant together with crop to attack nematodes

• Leaves prevent stored pests

• Dusting plants with dried, powdered parts

• Crush 100-200g leaves, roots, flowers, pour on 1 litre boiling water, soak for 24 hrs, add 1 litre cold water, soap and then mix and spray.

D) Garlic

Target Diseases & Insect-Pests

• Insects in general

• Fungi: Alternaria, Cercospora, Colletotrichum, Curvularia, Fusarium, Helmintosporium, Pestalotia, Cochliobolus,

• Bacteria: Xanthomonas

Method of Application:

• Plant together with crop to attack nematodes

• Leaves prevent stored pests

• Dusting plants with dried, powdered parts

• Crush 100-200g leaves, roots, flowers, pour on 1 litre boiling water, soak for 24 hrs, add 1 litre cold water, soap, mix and spray.

E) Ginger

Target Diseases & Insect-Pests

Fungi: Cercopspora

Method of Application: Extract ginger juice from rhizome and used it as spray.

F) Goat weeds

Target Diseases & Insect-Pests

• Insect: diamond back moth, cotton strainers, flies, snout beetles, maize weevils, stored beetles

• Nematodes and bacteria in general

Method of Application:

• Dried and powdered plant material or water extract are used as spray

• Planting goat weed as neighbouring plant against pest attack

• Used as mulch

Courtesy: Dr. Pranab Dutta CPGSAS, CAU (I), Umiam, Meghalaya.

Dr T Esther Longkumer

CTO-Soil Science

KVK Phek, ICAR-NRC on Mithun

Phek. Nagaland