Potato pests and diseases
Pests
The common pests are Bollworms, thrips, whiteflies, leafminers and any other hopping insect. Insects eat potato stems/leaves.
The Leafminers make white patters on the leaves.
Whiteflies are small white insects which suck the juice from crops and are found below the leaves.
Diseases
Bacterial wilt has no cure and can only be controlled by using certified seeds,crop rotation and use of clean farming tools. Dig out sick plants with a ball of soil, put away from all other crops to dry then burn.
Blight is another common disease in potatoes. It is a fungal disease. On potatoes you can see the disease when the flowers abort or the leaves turn brown. Control using fungicides like MASTER/ MISTRESS from Osho Chemicals.
Powdery mildew is a fungal disease which you can see as a white powder on the leaves of your plants. It can be treated and prevented using COTAF from Osho Chemicals.
For more on Pests and diseases contact iShamba on 0711082606 or SMS to 21606.
