Farmers warned of possible crop pests
The agriculture ministry has warned farmers to be on the lookout for possible crop pest and disease outbreaks in crop-growing regions as a result of good rainfall and increasing temperature.
The ministry’s executive director, Percy Misika, in a statement said pests and diseases are likely to appear in Kavango East, Kavango West, Zambezi, Kunene North, Omusati, Oshana, Oshikoto, Ohangwena, Otjozondjupa and Omaheke.
He said for the past four years, Namibia has been invaded by new invasive species of crop pests and diseases prompted mainly by concurrent severe droughts. Now that the country is experiencing good rains, however, trans-boundary crop pests and diseases such as the armoured ground cricket, African armyworm, fall armyworm, tomato leaf miners, fruit fly and African migratory locusts are likely to increase. “Crop production is increasingly under threat due to plant pests and diseases; hence, there is a need to apply control measures annually. The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform would like to advise and encourage crop farmers to visit their fields on a regular basis to conduct surveillance for early detection,” said Misika.
He added the best time to conduct scouting around the crop field is early mornings and once a farmer detects pests, it is recommended they apply different control methods such as destroying pests and applying sand to suffocate the pests.
“Simultaneously, farmers should inform agricultural extension officers about any pest or disease-causing damage to their fields. The agricultural extension officer will instruct farmers on the measures to be taken, including the correct pesticides to ensure good crop management,” said Misika.