IIInnndddiiiaaa IIIPPPMMM CCCRRRSSSPPP SSSiiittteee VVViiisssiiittt::: TTrraaiinniinngg iinn VVeeggeettaabbllee GGrraaffttiinngg

IIPPMM RReesseeaarrcchh aanndd DDeemmoonnssttrraattiioonn TTrriiaallss

TRIP REPORT April 29 to May 11, 2008

E. A. ‘Short’ Heinrichs (VA Tech), Greg Luther, Deng-Lin WU (AVRDC),

Nutan Kaushik (TERI), M. Murugan (TNAU)

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Executive Summary The major objective was to fulfill the request of TERI and Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) to provide training to staff and collaborating farmers on vegetable grafting technologies. The India sites are part of the IPM CRSP South Asia Regional Project which has as one goal to regionalize successful technologies. Based on the very encouraging economical, ecological and social impact of the Bangladesh grafting project it is believed that the conditions are suitable to achieve a similar impact in India. Grafting is an alternative to pesticides for management of bacterial and fusarium wilt of tomato, eggplants and chili peppers and various cucurbits. Grafting also provides controlof the root knot nematodes on tomato and tolerance to flooding in vegetables. All of these are serious constraints to vegetable production in India. The three day training was led by AVRDC scientists and hosted and organized by TERI in Delhi and TNAU in Coimbatore. Training was directed towards farmers and potential trainers. A total of 82 persons participated in the training at TERI and TNAU. At TERI, 21 men and one woman farmer participated plus five TERI staff and students (3 men and 2 women who are potential trainers). At TNAU, where more women are farmers than in the Delhi area, 16 women and 14 men farmers were trained. An additional 25 TNAU staff and students (22 women and 33 men) participated as potential trainers. Training consisted of classroom presentations and practicum. A grafting manual produced by AVRDC was translated into the local language and provided to the trainees. Training included visits to the IPM CRSP field research and demonstration plots where IPM technology/demonstration trials were observed. TERI and TNAU staff will follow up the training to get the technology out on the farmers’ fields. Farmers trained a TNAU are “conveners” each responsible for about 20 women who they will train in grafting technology as an integral part of an integrated pest management program TNAU staff will also conduct one day training sessions for the many commercial nurserymen in the area who are now selling vegetable seedlings to farmers. It is expected that this technology will be readily adopted by vegetable farmers at the IPM CRSP sites in India. Visits to TERI IPM CRSP field sites in Uttar Pradesh, near Delhi, and TNAU IPM CRSP field sites, near Coimbatore, were included as a component of the training. Both, the hands on training activities and field visits, are illustrated by an extensive series of photos.

3

Introduction The purpose of the trip was to review the IPM CRSP South Asia Regional Project, India site activities and to visit AVRDC to review the latest vegetable IPM technologies suitable for possible employment in the India site project. Project sites: Uttar Pradesh (TERI), Andhra Pradesh (TERI), Karnataka (TERI), Tamil Nadu (TNAU) TERI IPM CRSP sites in Uttar Pradesh (upper arrow), Andhra Pradesh (2nd arrow down), Karnataka (3rd arrow down) and TNAU sites in Tamil Nadu (lower two arrows)

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TTrraaiinniinngg iinn VVeeggeettaabbllee GGrraaffttiinngg aatt TTEERRII,, DDeellhhii aanndd TTNNAAUU,, CCooiimmbbaattoorree Summary Two training workshops on integrated vegetable grafting technology for managing soil-borne diseases and increasing tolerance to flooding in the hot-wet season were conducted by World Vegetable Center staff and collaborators recently in India. The first workshop, held near Delhi on 1-3 May 2008, was hosted by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). The second, held in Coimbatore on 7-9 May 2008, was hosted by Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU). Trainees built a grafting chamber and got hands-on experience grafting tomato, eggplant, pepper, pumpkin, watermelon, sponge gourd and bitter gourd. They learned about the technical requirements for successful vegetable grafting and heard about how grafting has been applied in Taiwan, Vietnam and Bangladesh. They received an introduction to AVRDC’s Production Theme and integrated disease management of bacterial wilt. Trainees included farmers, TERI staff, and TNAU faculty and students. Twenty-seven men and women were trained in Delhi, while the Coimbatore workshop had about 30 trainees and 25 other visitors. Most of the farmers trained in Coimbatore are Conveners of Farmer Groups for their villages. Each Convener plans to train approximately 20 farmers now that they have completed the training. TERI staff is quite experienced in farmer facilitation and are well-equipped to carry grafting technologies forward in the field.

These workshops were part of the Integrated Pest Management Collaborative Research Support Program (IPM CRSP) funded by USAID. Trainers were Deng-Lin WU, Greg Luther and Jaw-Fen Wang of AVRDC, and E.A. “Short” Heinrichs, IPM CRSP Consultant and Secretary General of the International Association of Plant Protection Sciences (IAPPS).

5

Program

Training Workshop on Integrated Vegetable Grafting Technology for

Managing Soil-Borne Diseases and Increasing Tolerance to Flooding in the

Hot-wet Season

Trainers: Deng-Lin WU1, Gregory C. Luther2, Jaw-Fen Wang3 and E.A. “Short”

Heinrichs4

Day 1

09:00-09:30

Official Opening

09:30-10:30

Overview of the Production Theme at The World Vegetable Center and grafting as a part of integrated management of bacterial wilt *

11:00-12:30

Improvements on tomato cultural management technologies for off-season production; raising grafted seedlings *

12:30-13:30

Lunch

13:30-14:30

Finishing to build the tunnel-type grafting chamber with locally available materials for healing tomato seedlings **

1 Principal Research Assistant, Crop and Ecosystem Management Unit, AVRDC - The World Vegetable

Center 2 IPM / Development Specialist and Deputy Global Theme Leader, Vegetable Production Theme, AVRDC -

The World Vegetable Center 3 Bacteriologist and Global Theme Leader, Vegetable Production Theme, AVRDC – The World Vegetable

Center 4 Consultant, IPM CRSP

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14:30-16:00

Learning and practicing grafting seedlings including tomato, eggplant, pumpkin, water melon, bitter gourd and sponge gourd (up to 250 seedlings will be grafted by each trainee) **

16:30-17:00

Farmer Learning Experiences in Taiwan *

* Presentation ** Practicum

Day 2

09:00-10:30

Development of integrated crop management associated with grafting technology for reduce incidence of Phytophthora blight and bacterial wilt to improve hot- and sweet pepper yields in summer *

11:00-11:40

Effects of protective structures on yield of summer grafted tomato and sweet pepper * Field management of grafted transplants for production during in off-season in summer *

11:40-12:40

Screening tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill) and eggplant (Solanum melongena Linn) rootstocks for tolerance to anoxia(2003); preventing Fusarium wilt on tomato by grafting onto eggplant rootstock *

12:40-13:40

Lunch

13:40-15:00

Screening tomato and eggplant rootstocks for grafted tomato cultivations at AVRDC (2000-’01). * Overcoming seasonal stress for tomato production – “Minimizing bacterial wilt damage by grafting”(2002) * Hybrid tomato, and eggplant rootstocks for tomato production in hot-wet season 2002-2003 *

15:00-15:20

The grafting success story in Vietnam *

15:50-16:20

The grafting success story in Bangladesh *

16:20-17:20

Learning experience at AVRDC: Integrating grafting techniques into field cultivation management. * Important Issues: raising seedlings, fertilization, mulching beds, protective shelters, transplanting, shoot pruning, stem training, weed control, spraying Tomatotone growth substance, appropriate irrigation for moisture

7

management, and whitefly (virus vector) control; And evaluating the yield and reduction of FW of watermelon through grafting rootstocks and irrigation system(2004).

Day 3

08:00-16:00

Final practicum and review of graft healing on grafted seedlings, whitefly control before transplanting; ** How to promote grafted tomato production in hot-wet conditions Field Day: Visit private tomato farms for disease diagnosis and integrated tomato cultural management instructions

Photos of trainees

TNAU grafting trainees and faculty

8

TERI grafting trainees and faculty

Grafting trainee at TNAU

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Dr. Wu, AVRDC, demonstrating the grafting technique at TNAU

Grafting trainee at TNAU

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Constructing a humidity chamber for grafted plants at TNAU

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VVeeggeettaabbllee GGrraaffttiinngg TTrraaiinniinngg GGuuiiddee

AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center

Contents

Foreword

Pros and cons of using eggplant rootstock

Facility

Preparation on seedlings of scion and rootstock

Procedures of grafting

Field management of grafted tomato plants

References

Tomato Seedlings Grafted with Eggplant

A Producer’s Manual

12

Foreword

Grafting technique, originated from East Asia, has been used mostly in the

production of fruit vegetable, such as cucurbits, tomatoes and eggplants. There are two

main reasons for employing this technique. They are 1) to control soil-borne diseases

and 2) to overcome unsuitable climatic conditions. In Japan, grafting has been widely

applied in the production of fruit vegetable. Data showed that 59% of the fruit vegetable

was produced from grafted plants in 1990. Therefore, production of grafted seedlings

has been commercialized in Japan with the development of specialized facility, such as

grafting machine and grafting chamber etc. However, these commercial products have

not been introduced to many other countries. Moreover, the mass and automatic

production may not be necessary or suitable for the small or median size producer, such

as farmers or nurserymen in developing countries. Therefore, this manual aim to

introduce a grafting technique and related facilities developed at AVRDC with main

subjects on the procedures in producing tomato seedlings grafted with eggplant, the

required facility, and special field management for grafted seedlings.

During our research and the preparation of this manual, it is realized that only

few references are available on the production of tomato grafted seedlings. This shows

the importance in publishing this manual. The contents are based on experience of

researchers at AVRDC accumulated over years. We do wish to share our experience

with more producers through this manual, as well as to promote the use of flooding

tolerant and disease resistant eggplant rootstock in order to increase tomato production

during the hot and rainy seasons.

Den-ling Wu

Jaw-Fen Wang

October 1999 at AVRDC

13

Pros and cons of using eggplant rootstock

Why use eggplant as rootstock? What kinds of variety are suitable? First of all, we

need to understand the production of tomato. Tomato is a temperate crop. The production in the

tropics and subtropics is mostly done during dry and cool autumn-winter seasons, which results

the seasonal supply of tomato and the significant rising of tomato price in summer season.

Although summer production of tomato can be done in the highlands, the production acreage is

limited. Moreover, the highland production may cause destroy of forest, soil erosion, and

contamination of ground water with pesticides and fertilizers. Thus, it is not a sustainable

cultivation. To extend the production period in the lowland, particularly in summer, the major

constrains are high temperature, water-logging or flooding, and diseases. The high temperature

constrain can be overcame by planting heat-tolerant cultivars and using fruit-set hormone, such as

4-chlorophenoxy acetic acid etc. Water-logging or flooding is common during rainy season.

However, tomato is not tolerant to flooding and no flooding tolerant cultivars have been

developed. Although using raised bed can achieve the production purpose in the rainy season, the

cost is quite high (3). Research at AVRDC has shown that eggplant has great flooding tolerance

(4). Results show that tomato plants grafted with eggplants can grow well and produce acceptable

yield during rainy season (Fig. 1). Under high temperature and moisture condition, bacterial wilt

caused by Ralstonia solanacearum is the major disease for tomato production. This is a soil-

borne disease and no chemical control is available. Cultivars with tolerance to bacterial wilt have

been developed. However, use of tolerant cultivars is limited due to the fruit preference and the

stability of resistance. Several eggplant lines have been identified to be highly resistant to

bacterial wilt at AVRDC. Resistance in EG190, EG203, and EG219 was found to be stable after

several greenhouse and field screening (1). These lines were used as rootstocks and grafted with

tomato to test their resistance to bacterial wilt and yield. The scion variety included Taichung

ASVEG No.4 (ASVEG#4), Known You 301, Tainan ASVEG No. 6 (ASVEG#6) and Santa etc.

Plants grafted with EG203 and EG219 were further identified to be more resistant (Fig.

2) and have higher yield.

Tomato production under simple protective structures has increased recently.

Under these structures, farmers tend to product tomato or other horticultural crops

continuously without rotation with paddy rice. This is favorable for the epidemic of soil-

borne diseases. Except bacterial wilt, other common soil-borne diseases of tomato are

14

root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) and fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium

oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici. It was found that EG190, EG203 and EG219 are highly

resistance to these two diseases as well (Fig.3), which greatly increases the usage of these

rootstocks. The above mentioned disease resistant eggplant lines are flooding tolerant as

the other eggplant. Results of on-farm trials in fields planting tomato continuously

demonstrated that ASVEG#6 grafted with EG203 or EG219 can grow and produce well

during summer rainy season, while non-grafted plants were all suffered from flooding

and diseases (Fig. 4).

What are the disadvantages of using eggplant as rootstock? How about the

fruit quality and yield produced from grafted plants? The disadvantages are: 1. The

price of grafted seedlings is higher than non-grafted ones; 2. Growth of grafted plants are

1 to 2 weeks slower compared with non-grafted ones; 3. Special field practices are

required for grafted plants (see section on “Field management of grafted tomato plants”).

After several field trials, it is clear that fruit quality of table tomato is not affected by

grafting. However, when cherry tomato is used as scion, the fruit size is smaller but the

brix and vitamin C content are higher. Grafted tomato can have 40 to 60% increases in

yield compared with non-grafted control under the epidemic of root-knot nematode or

bacterial wilt or water-logging condition. However, yield can be 30% lower than non-

grafted tomato, when growing grafted tomato under suitable production environment, i.e.

suitable soil moisture and no incidence of soil-borne diseases. The degree of yield

decrease may depend on the combination of scion and rootstock. Thus, it is obvious that

using grafted tomato seedlings for production is not economical under suitable

environment.

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Facility

Suitable facilities and environments are necessary for an efficient production of

grafted seedlings. Three types of facilities with different functions are needed. They are

1.Seedling nursery – for raising seedlings of scion and rootstock; 2.Grafting chamber –

for healing of the grafting union (joint of scion and rootstock); 3.Acclimatization room –

for recovering and hardening of grafted seedlings. Principles and special notes for

constructing these facilities are explained in the following sections. Available facilities at

AVRDC are used as examples. Currently, a specialized screenhouse is designed for the

production of tomato grafted seedlings (Fig. 5). The design is a closed type screenhouse

with no opening on the roof (Length, width, and height are 25m, 4.5m, and 3.5m). The

entire screenhouse is partitioned into seedling nursery, grafting chamber, and

acclimatization room. Grafting chamber is located in the center based on the production

sequence.

I. Seedling nursery Seedling nursery is the facility for raising seedlings of scion and rootstock.

The location should have sufficient sunlight and good ventilation. Special notes

for setting up this facility include:

1. Acreage: The area of nursery depends on the production scale. For example, if

total of 5,000 grafted seedlings were planned for production and the grafting

successful rate was 90%, total of 11,000 seedlings of scion and rootstock

should be prepared. Seedlings of rootstock can be raised in pots with diameter

of 6 cm (one plant per pot). And scion seedlings can be raised in flat (60x40x8

cm; spacing 4 cm; 90 plants per flat). Then the acreage for nursery should be

about 15x4.5 m including 2 benches (14x1.7 m each) and a path.

2. Prevention of tomato viral diseases: Most tomato viral diseases have latent

period. Therefore, it is important to prevent the diseases at the seedling stage.

Since insects, such as aphids, thrips, and whiteflies etc. transmit several

tomato viral diseases, raising seedlings in a nethouse can prevent the entry of

16

insects. However, net size of 60 mesh (pore size of 1/60 inch2) is necessary to

block the entry of whitefly. Therefore, 60 mesh net is used to construct the

specialized screenhouse except clear plastic sheets are used to cover the upper

portion for rain prevention (Fig.5). Moreover, double screen door is used to

prevent the entry of insects with workers. Once virus vectors are found in the

nethouse, chemical spray should be applied immediately.

3. Shading for cooling and prevent sunscald: As ventilation inside screenhouse is

poor, high temperature (35 oC or more) is commonly observed in summer

period. Exposure of young seedlings under high temperature and strong

sunlight can cause sunscald on leaves. It is suggested to used silver shading

net (50% light cut) to cover the screenhouse. The shading net can be set up 30

cm above the roof (Fig. 5). The temperature can be decreased 2 to 3 oC in

summer with this type of shading.

Figure 5. Specialized screen house for the production of grafted seedlings

30cm

5.0m

4.5m

5.0m

Silver shading net (50% light cut)

Clear plastic sheet (Thickness:0.15mm)

Seedling nursery

15.0m Grafting chamber

Acclimatization room

60 mesh net

Central Height 3.5m

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II. Grafting chamber

Grafting chamber should provide a suitable environment for healing of

grafted union in a shortest period after grafting. The suitable climatic conditions

inside the chamber are 25 to 30 oC, relative humidity (RH) not lower than 85%,

and suitable low light intensity. The success rate of grafting is usually lower in

summer. High temperature and the fluctuation of humidity in summer can

increase the transpiration and respiration rates and result in wilting of scion

portion. If the condition continued, the healing can be failed and the plants will

wilt permanently. Even after healing, high temperature can cause frequent wilting

or even burning of leaves, which can delay the seedling growth. Therefore, it is

important to control the temperature and humidity in the grafting chamber.

The design of grafting chamber can be based on the production scale and

available materials and equipment. Two types of designs will be introduced

below. The tunnel type is suitable for small production by farmers. It is easy to

construct, and can be used as acclimatization room later. On the other hand, the

specialized grafting chamber with sophisticated design is suitable for nursery

production, because the production scale is larger and the success rate of grafting

is constantly high.

(I) Tunnel type grafting chamber

1. Selection of location: The suitable location should be flat, elevated, and not

exposure under direct sun light, such as tree shade.

2. Skeleton and its material:

(a) If the production is for 1,600 seedlings, an area of 4x2.5 m is needed.

Along the long side, a bamboo stake (45cm in length and 1.5~1.8 cm in

diameter) is placed every 50cm. There are 8 stakes per side. Each stake is

vertically planted 30 cm deep with 15 cm above the soil line (Fig. 7).

18

(b) Use 8 PVC pipe (4 m long and 2.5 cm in diameter) and bend into arch

shape. Each end of a pipe is inserted into bamboo stakes at corresponding

positions. Another 5 PVC pipes (4 m long) are fastened with the 8 arch

pipes with wires. The positions of these 5 pipes are one at the top of arch

and two at each side with same spacing. The two pipes near the end of

arch should be in close contact with the soil surface to prevent the

invading of snail into the tunnel (Fig. 7).

3. Rain prevention and shading: Transparent polyethylene sheet (0.15 mm in

thickness) is used as the first layer on the skeleton. This is to prevent the rain

and maintain the high humidity inside the chamber. Direct strong sunlight

should be prevented, as it can increase the transpiration of the seedlings and

raise the temperature inside the tunnel. Two layers of shading nets can be

placed on top of the PVC sheet. The middle layer is a black net with 70% light

cut and the outside layer is a silver net with 70% light cut. It is best to fasten

the PVC sheet and nets on the skeleton with plastic clips (Fig. 7).

4. Doors: For the convenience of seedling transportation and the following

acclimatization, one wooden door can be set up at each side of the tunnel.

The size of the door is 120 x 86 cm. The doors should be covered with 60

mesh net (Fig.7).

5. Maintaining high RH inside the tunnel: The ground inside the tunnel is

covered with a layer of black plastic sheet (0.15 mm in thickness). The edges

of this sheet can be fastened on the skeleton. Grafted seedlings can be placed

in the flats (60x40x8 cm) and each stood on 3 bricks on the ground. Water is

filled about 1/3 of the brick’s height (2~3 cm in depth) after placing the

seedlings. As the tunnel is isolated from outside, high humidity can be

maintained stable between 85 to 100%.

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6. Result evaluation: Results showed that the air temperature inside the tunnel

was 1.5 OC lower than outside, when the outside temperature ranged from

31.3 to 26.1 oC and the RH ranged from 95 to 97% in summer. Temperature

inside the tunnel can be increased 2 to 3 oC during winter season. The average

success rate of grafting using the tunnel type of grafting chamber is 90% and

98% in summer and winter respectively. Based on our experience,

construction of a tunnel requires 2 manpower for 2 hours and the total cost of

materials is N.T. $2,200 (about US $ 70).

Figure 7. Design of a tunnel-type grafting chamber.

60 mesh screen

Bamboo stake (15cm above soil ine) Clear plastic sheet (Thickness:0.2mm)

Black shading net (70%)

Silver shading net (70%)

PVC pipe

4.0m

Clip

Door width 86cm

PVC pipe (length:4.0m; diameter:2.5cm)

Central height 1.25m

2.5m

Door Height 120cm

Black plastic sheet (Thickness:0.15mm)

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(II) Specialized grafting chamber

In order to produce large amount of grafted seedlings and ensure the stable

and high success rate, grafting chamber with larger space and stable environment

is necessary. There is commercial grafting chamber developed by Mitsubishi

Agricultural Machinery Co. in Japan. The design is similar with a growth

chamber and the temperature, humidity, light intensity and air ventilation inside

the chamber can all be controlled. Based on references and experience, a

specialized grafting chamber was designed and constructed at AVRDC. The

chamber is built inside a screenhouse (Fig. 5). The design principles and other

points are listed below:

1. Regulation of temperature: The suitable growth temperature for tomato is 25

to 28 oC. In summer, the temperature inside screenhouse can easily reach 35 oC. In order to reduce the temperature, two designs are set up:

a) Increase distance between the roofs of the chamber and screenhouse: The

purpose is to increase the ventilation. Our design is to build the grafting

chamber 60cm below the ground (Fig. 8). The height of the chamber is

2.2m. Therefore, the distance between the two roofs can be increased to

1.9m.

b) Use insulation materials (Fig. 9): Use polystyrene boards as the building

materials for the chamber. Low density boards (90x180x4.5 cm) are used

in the center and high density boards (90x180x0.3 cm) are adhered at both

sides of the low density boards. Lastly, transparent polyethylene sheets

(thickness: 0.05 mm) are taped on the inner side of the chamber in order to

seal all the joins of the building materials and to maintain stable

temperature and humidity.

2. Regulation of humidity by dripping water (Fig. 9): Pipes and nozzles for

dripping irrigation system are used to set up a dripping system. Nuzzles are

21

installed every 20cm along the wall 2.0m above the floor. A ditch is built right

beneath nozzles (height: 25 cm and width: 20 cm). The water for dripping

comes through a PVC pipe (diameter: 2.5 cm) from a tank (volume: 250 cm3)

2.2 m above ground outside the screenhouse. The water from nozzles will

accumulate in the ditch. When the water level reaches setting height

determined by an electric sensor, a motor (1/4 HP) will automatically start to

pump the water back to the tank for reuse. The dripping system not only

increases the relative humidity but also reduces the chamber temperature.

3. Suitable light: It is shown that high humidity and low light intensity are

beneficial for the wound healing (5). If the grafting chamber was completely

dark, photosynthesis can not be conducted and leaves will turn yellow or even

necrosis. Thus, sufficient light should be provided in the chamber. It is

recommended that the light intensity in the chamber can be equal to 6% of

that in the acclimatization room (10 to 12 μmols-1m-2). We set up 8 plant

growth tubes (40W; wavelength: 600~700nm) in the chamber (Fig. 10).

4. Air ventilation: In order to improve the ventilation for the even distribution of

temperature and humidity in the chamber, the following designs are set up:

a) Ventilation tube: PVC tubes with 100cm in length (vertical part) and

3.5cm in diameter are used as ventilation tubes. An elbow connecting part

(6cm long) is attached to one end of the tube and become the horizontal

part. The tubes are fastened vertically on wall inside the chamber by

inserting the horizontal part through the wall. The position of the tube is

15cm above outside ground. Total of 45 tubes is installed 35cm apart each

other.

b) Fan: It is found that RH will decrease to 67~75% for 1~2 hours in the

afternoon, when the ventilation is poor inside the chamber. Using a 16”

stand-up fan (75cm tall) can solve the problem.

22

5. Stack (Fig. 10): Stack with 4 layers is used to accommodate more grafted

seedlings in the limited space of the chamber. The stack can be made by steel

beam (Thickness: 3mm). The final dimension is 200x52x135cm with 45cm

spacing of each layer. Each layer can accommodate 200 seedlings. Total of 6

stacks can be placed in the chamber. Thus, maximum of 4,800 seedlings can

be placed in the chamber.

6. Result evaluation: Based on our experience, the temperature inside the

chamber can be 3.2 oC lower than outside and the RH can be maintained

around 87~97%, when outdoor RH is 62~96% in summer. And the success

rate of grafting is 98%. The construction cost of a specialized grafting

chamber is NT$ 56,000 (about US$ 1,778), including materials and wages.

Figure 9. Internal design of a specialized grafting chamber.

Polystyrene board –- low density

Nozzle & pipe

Polystyrene board –

high density 20cm

Ventilation tube (Diameter:3.5cm;

length:1m) Ditch

Outlet

4.0m

35cm 2.2m

23

III. Acclimatization room

To prevent leaf burning and wilting of the just healed seedlings, the

grafted seedlings should be placed in a suitable environment and not under direct

strong sunlight for acclimatization. Gradual increase of light intensity can be

manipulated by different degree of shading. Usually it takes 7 to 10 days for

acclimatization as hardening treatment. Different facilities and methods for

acclimatization are described below.

(I ) Tunnel type acclimatization room

The facility is the same as the tunnel type grafting chamber. After healing,

the seedlings can stay for acclimatization. However, the water in the tunnel should

be drained. The silver shading net is removed 5 days after grafting and the doors

are opened at the same time. The black shading net is removed 8 days after

grafting. And 2~3 days afterward, the seedlings should be ready for transplanting

(Fig. 11).

(II ) Specialized acclimatization room

The facility is part of the specialized screenhouse for producing grafted

seedlings. Gravel is used to cover the ground (Fig. 12). Two layers of shading net

(50% light cut) are placed 2m above the seedlings. The grafted seedlings moved

from the grafting chamber are placed on the floor. The 2 layers of net are removed

separately, one at 3 days and the other at 5 days after the acclimatization period.

Seedlings can be transplanted 2 to 3 days after removing all the nets.

24

Preparation on seedlings of scion and rootstock

I. Seedling raising

Research at AVRDC showed that healthy and strong seedlings can

contribute positively to the final yield. Healthy seedlings of scion and rootstock

are necessary for the production of healthy grafted seedlings. The procedures and

materials for raising seedlings are described below.

1. Potting mixture: Ideal potting mixture should not carry pathogen or insect and

is able to support the uniform and fast growth of the seedlings. Commonly

used commercial potting mixtures are expanded clay, vermiculite, perlite, and

peat moss etc. The common properties of these mixtures are light and with

good air and water conductivity. However, fertilizers added in these mixtures

are often not uniformly mixed and these commercial mixtures are usually

expensive. Except commercial products, homemade mixtures can be prepared.

For example, potting mixture used at AVRDC is prepared from field soil

(from paddy rice field), compost (from sugar or mushroom production waste),

rice husk, and river sand in 2: 3: 1: 1 ratio. This mixture has good water

conductivity and sufficient N, P, and K, and no fertilization is necessary

during the entire seedling growth period. Sufficient N fertilizer is important

for tomato seedling growth. If potting mixture did not contain compost, 30g of

N fertilizer should be added into 100 liter of potting mixture. For the same

reason, 50g of N fertilizer should be added for the growth of eggplant

seedlings (2).

2. Scion seedling: Seeds of tomato can be sowed directly in flats (60x40x8 cm),

as the growth of tomato is faster. Fill in potting mixture until 5cm height.

Flatten the surface with a stick and push out 96 holes (0.5~0.8cm in depth) on

the surface with a spotting board. The holes are in 4cm spacing. Place one

25

seed per hole. Cover the hole with fine compost (about 0.5cm in depth) after

sowing.

3. Rootstock seedling: Seedlings of rootstock should be healthy as well as

uniform. Seedlings can be raised in plastic pots with 180ml in volume

(diameter: 6cm and height: 7cm). Place 40 pots per flats (40x60x8cm) after

filling potting mixture. Use finger to press out a hole (0.5~0.8cm in depth) per

pot. Sow two seeds per pot and cover with fine compost (about 0.5cm in

depth). Thin to one plant per pot after emerging of cotyledon (Fig. 14). The

length between cotyledon and first true leaf may be too short to be cut easily

for grafting, when the light is sufficient in the nursery. To prolong the length

of the first internode, shading net can be set up 1.5m above the seedlings or

higher plant density can be applied.

4. Suitable watering: The potting mixture should be kept moist after sowing until

germination in order to have uniform germination. Once or twice watering to

provide sufficient water is necessary to raise uniform seedlings with similar

stem diameter.

II. Calculation of sowing date

The closer the stem diameter of scion and rootstock the higher the success rate of

grafting. Therefore, the following points should be considered when deciding on

dates of sowing.

1. Germination period: Period required for germination needs to be determined

for each scion and rootstock variety. It takes 2 to 3 days for most tomato

variety to germinate. However, germination period of eggplant is highly

affected by temperature. It takes 3 days to germinate in summer (28 to 32 C),

but 4 to 6 days in autumn (21 to 24 C).

26

2. Growth speed: The speed of growth may vary greatly among variety. In the

case of using eggplant variety, EG203 and EG219, as rootstock to graft with

tomato, indeterminant fresh market type tomato, such as ASVEG #4,

Momotaro-T93, FMTT586, and CLN5915-206D4-2-2, should be sowed 3

days later than eggplant. However, cherry type tomato, such as ASVEG#6 and

Santa, should be sowed at the same time as eggplants.

3. Example: Use EG203 as rootstock and ASVEG#6 as scion. From April to

October at AVRDC, both can be sowed at the same time. Grafting can be

conducted 14 to 16 days after sowing, when both tomato and eggplant have 2

to 3 true leaves.

Procedures of Grafting

I. Seedling examination When the 3rd true leaf has emerged and the stem diameter reaches

1.6~1.8mm, grafting can be conducted.

II. Watering before grafting No water will be given to grafted seedlings during healing period to avoid

the infection of pathogens from the wound. Thus, plenty of water should be given

4 hours before grafting. Watering should not be done right before grafting to

avoid contamination during handling.

III. Tools and materials 1. Tools: scissors, razor blade, soft rubber tube with inner diameter of

1.8~2.0mm (Fig. 15).

2. Tube cutting: Soft rubber tubes are used to join the scion and rootstock. The

length should be 1cm and both ends should be parallel with 30o angel.

27

IV. Tube grafting method 1. Rootstock cutting: Cut between cotyledon and 1st true leaf of eggplant

seedlings along 30o angel.

2. Scion cutting: Cut either above or below cotyledon of tomato seedlings. The

stem diameter at the cut should be similar with that of rootstock. The cutting

angel is 30o, same as that for rootstock (Fig. 16).

3. Joint of scion and rootstock: Hold scion with left hand. Insert tube with right

hand until half the length (about 0.5cm). Then hold below the cut of rootstock

with left hand and above the tube at the scion with right hand. Insert the tube

into rootstock (Fig. 17). To be sure the joint is tight, push the scion part

downward again by holding at the tube with right hand and the rootstock with

left hand (4). It is estimated that a person with no experience can graft about

150 seedlings per hour.

V. Healing and acclimatization After the joining of scion and rootstock, the grafted seedlings should be sent into

grafting chamber immediately (Facility as described earlier). The healing period

is about 6~7 days for tomato and eggplant combination. If both scion and

rootstock are tomato or eggplant, the healing time is about 4~5 days. Seedlings

can be moved out for acclimatization and hardening after healing.

VI. Management of grafted seedlings 1. Addition N fertilizer: As the nitrogen supply is consumed nearly by eggplant

during the seedling growth period, it is necessary to apply additional N. It can

be done by foliar application with 0.3 to 0.4% of urea solution or 1000X

BASF foliar Nitrophoska (N-20%, P-19%, K-19%, Mg-0.5%).

2. Sucker removal: There is no obvious incompatibility by grafting tomato with

eggplant. However, sucker is usually developed from the cotyledon axis after

grafting and becomes quite obvious one week after grafting. These suckers

should be removed in time. Otherwise, they may affect the normal growth of

28

scion part. Nevertheless, the fast growing of sucker can fail the healing

process.

3. Tube removal: There is no need to remove the tube manually after healing.

The tube will become hard and crispy after transplanting with sunlight

exposure and it will crack when the stem enlarges. This is another labor

saving feature of this grafting method.

Field management of grafted tomato plants

Generally the field management for grafted tomato plants is similar with the

normal plants. However, few specific practices should be noted.

I. Transplanting depth The grafting union should be placed above soil line when transplanting (Fig. 18).

If the joint touched the soil, adventitious roots can develop easily. Then the

properties of rootstock will not be expressed completely. For example, R.

solanacearum, pathogen of bacterial wilt, can infect the adventitious root by-pass

the resistant rootstock and cause wilting of the grafted plant.

II. Sucker removal Timely removal of sucker developed by the rootstock after transplanting is

as important as at the seedling stage. Usually sucker will develop once at the

cotyledon axis at seedling stage or after transplanting (Fig. 19). Thus, suckers

should be removed once it is found at any stage.

III. Water management Eggplants prefer environments with 50~60% soil water content, while

tomatoes prefer 40~60% (6). When using eggplant as the rootstock, the grafted

plant has root properties similar to the eggplant and thus prefers higher soil

29

moisture. In a summer trial at AVRDC, the fruit setting and yield of grafted (with

EG203) and non-grafted plants of ASVEG#4 were compared. It was found that

7~11% of fruits in grafted plants had symptoms of blossom-end rot, where the

fruits of the first cluster were about 1~2cm size, while no symptom was observed

on non-grafted plants. It was found that the water content at that time was

30~35%. Therefore, low water moisture may result in insufficient calcium uptake

by the grafted plants and cause the severe blossom-end rot.

IV. Fruit setting High temperature in summer reduces fruit setting and fruit weight. Fruit

setting under protected cultivation inside nethouse or shelter can be worse, as the

temperature is usually higher in the facility than open field. AVRDC’s research

has shown that application of fruit-set hormone, such as Tomatotone (0.15% 4-

chlorophenoxy acetic acid) or Tomatolan (9.8% Sodium-4-chloro-2-

hydroxymethyl phenoxyacetate), can increased 64% of yield (3). Use of fruit-set

hormone in grafted tomato is important for summer production. Particularly the

first cluster would have lower fruit setting than non-grafted plants, if not treated

with the hormone. It was noted that the position of 1st cluster was on 8.7 node of

grafted plants, while it was on 10.1 node of the non-grafted ones. The low

flowering position may be the reason of the lower fruit-set on the grafted plants.

V. Staking Grafted plants should be properly staked on bamboo or others support 2~3

weeks after transplanting. The grafted union may contact the soil, when the

staking is not fastened enough to hold the weight of the plant, particularly near

harvesting stage. Adventitious roots can develop from scion part after contacting

the moist soil, which can be an infection site of R. solanacearum and cause of the

plant death (Fig. 20).

30

VI. Fertilizer application Based on our preliminary trial in spring, application of 220Kg-N, 160Kg-

P, and 200Kg-P per hater resulted in highest yield response on both grafted and

non-grafted tomato. The yield of grafted ASVEG#4 with EG203 was 66.9 ton/ha

and that of non-grafted control was 98.0 ton/ha (Fig. 21). As there were no

flooding or soil-borne diseases in this spring trial, the benefit of rootstock was not

showing. It was found that banding application of basal fertilizer had the best

effect. Based on the above results and previous research at AVRDC, the fertilizer

recommendation for tomatoes grafted with eggplant are:

Fertilizer (kg/ha) Basal 3Wk c 6Wk 9Wk 12 Wk Total

Ca(HPO4)2.H2O 375 375

KCl 100 100

15/15/15/4 a 400 400

20/5/10 b 200 200 200 200 800 a Compound fertilizer#43 (N/P/K/Mg as 15%/15%/15%/4%) of Taiwan Fertilizer Co. b Compound fertilizer#1 (N/P/K as 20%/5%/10%) of Taiwan Fertilizer Co. c Side dressing is applied every 3 weeks after transplanting.

VII. Pest management Severe damage caused by pathogens or insects can offset the effort in crop

management. For example, tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) can reduce

16~20% yield per plant. This amount of yield reduction is far larger than the

amount of increase by most crop management techniques. Thus, it is important to

control whitefly, the vector of TYLCV and remove diseased plants timely to

reduce the incidence. The other common tomato diseases are late blight, southern

blight, black leaf mold, gray leaf spot, and bacterial spot etc. And the commonly

observed insects are tobacco cutworm, beet armyworm, tomato leaf miner, and

whitefly etc. Management of these diseases or insects can be referred to

references on plant protection or consult with local extensionists.

31

References

1. AVRDC. 1999. AVRDC 1998 Progress Report. P.71-74.

2. Kuho S, Shimada N and Okamoto N 1992. Effects of the rate and forms of applied nitrogen in nursery soil on seedling growth of different vegetable species. J. Japan. Soc. Hort. Sci. 60 (4):859-867 (in Japanese). 3. Midmore, DJ, Roan, YC, and Wu, DL. 1997. Management practices to improve lowland subtropical summer tomato production: yields, economic returns and risk. Experimental Agriculture 33:125-137. 4. Midmore, DJ, Wu, DL, and Roan, YC. 1994. Response of grafted tomato to flooded conditions. Scientific Agriculture 42:57-64 (in Chinese).

5. Nohuaka, T, Oda, M., and Sasaki, H. 1996. Effects of relative humidity, light intensity and leaf temperature on transpiration of tomato scions. J. Japan. Soc. Hort. Sci. 64(4):859-865 (in Japanese).

6. Zhong, LF and Kato, T. 1988. The effect of soil moisture on the growth and yield in

solanaceous fruit vegetables. Research Report of the Kochi University-Agricultural

Science 37:51-59 (in Japanese).

32

33

34

35

IIlllluussttrraatteedd sstteeppss iinn GGrraaffttiinngg-- TTaakkeenn aatt tthhee TTEERRII aanndd TTNNAAUU TTrraaiinniinngg PPrrooggrraamm Constructing the Humidity Chamber At TERI, Delhi

Installation of the PVC frames under strong winds and a dust storm.

Placing the plastic sheeting over the PVC frame.

36

Plastic sheeting in place over the PVC frame.

Shade screening being placed over the bamboo frame.

Shade screening has been placed over the plastic sheeting. Two layers of the shade screening may be needed to provide the needed light (ca 50 lux) reaching the plants in the chamber.

Grafting at TNAU

Seedling Production

37

Seedlings grown in trays.

Selecting seedlings for grafting.

Scion and rootstock seedlings selected for grafting. It is important that the stems of the scion and rootstock be of similar width for grafting success. Four rubber sleeves, cut at a 30o angle, for joining the scion and rootstock, are seen between the two plants

Grafting

38

Cutting the scion at a 30o

angle with a single edged razor blade.

Slipping the scion into the rubber (left) which is also cut at a 30o angle.

The scion has been slipped into the rubber sleeve.

39

Scion with the rubber sleeve. The rootstock will be slipped into the left side of the rubber sleeve which is also cut at a 30o angle.

Slipping the scion with the rubber sleeve on to the rootstock which has been cut at a 30o angle.

40

Scion (left) and rootstock (right) attached at the 30o

angle by the rubber sleeve.

Proud trainee with her grafted plant.

Placing trays of grafted plants in a chamber with ca 50 lux light and 80-90% humidity where they heal prior to transplanting. The healing period is about 6~7 days for the tomato and eggplant combination. If both scion and rootstock are tomato or eggplant, the healing time is about 4~5 days. Seedlings are moved out of the chamber for acclimatization and hardening after healing.

41

PPhhoottooss ooff IInnsseecctt aanndd DDiisseeaassee DDaammaaggee TTaakkeenn iinn CCooiimmbbaattoorree DDiissttrriicctt,, TTaammiill NNaadduu,, IInnddiiaa,, MMaayy 99,, 22000088 Insect Damage on Vegetables

Tomato fruit borer damage.

42

Leaf miner damage on tomato.

Okra pod borer larva, Earias spp.

Okra pod borer, Earias spp. damage on okra pod.

43

Predators, ladybird beetle adults on okra.

Disease Damage on Vegetables Okra mosaic virus

Okra mosaic infected pods (yellow) and healthy pods (green).

44

Okra mosaic infected pods (yellow) and healthy pods (green)

Okra mosaic virus (note malformed and yellow leaves).

Okra mosaic virus.

45

Okra mosaic virus (note malformed and yellow leaves and aborted pod).

Okra mosaic virus infected leaves and pod (yellow)

46

Powdery mildew Erysiphe sp. (cichoracearum?) infected okra leaf.

Fusarium wilt infected tomato field showing dead plants and missing hills. It appeared that more than 50% of the plants were already damaged at this early stage of growth.

Fusarium wilt infected tomato (left) and healthy plant (right).

47

Lodged fusarium wilt infected tomato plant.

Fusarium wilt infected tomato plant stem.

Fusarium wilt infected tomato plant stem.

48

TTEERRII IIPPMM DDeemmoonnssttrraattiioonn AAccttiivviittiieess IPM Packages employed at all TERI sites in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh Brinjal Whiteflies and leafhoppers (jassids)= Yellow sticky traps, neem and acetamiprid Earias fabia (borer)= Pheromone and Bt for control Bacterial diseases= Pseudomonas as a seed treatment, streptomycin Fungal diseases= Trichoderma as a seed treatment Fruit and shoot borer (L. orbonalis)= L. orbonalis pheromone (only used for monitoring and not control), neem, Spinosad, Bt Soil borne diseases= Neem cake Tomato Fruit worm (Helicoverpa armigera) = Neem and Beauveria bassiana and pheromone for monitoring and control Mealy bug= Neem and Beauveria bassiana Bacterial wilt= Pseudomonas seed and seedling treatment Fungal diseases= Trichoderma seed and seedling treatment, mancozeb Okra (Bhendi) Whiteflies and leafhoppers (jassids)= Yellow sticky traps and neem sprays Earias fabia (fruit borer)= Neem sprays, Bt and pheromone for control Bacterial diseases= Pseudomonas as a seed treatment Soil borne diseases= Neem cake broadcast in soil Nematodes= Neem cake broadcast in soil, carbofuran Sucking insects= Beauveria bassiana and neem sprays Fruit worm (Helicoverpa armigera)= Neem and Beauveria bassiana Yellow vein mosaic virus= Varietal resistance, rouging Cucurbit IPM (new trial) Locations: Seven in Uttar Pradesh Crops: Sponge gourd, sweet gourd, bitter gourd and pumpkin Seed source: US Agrigenetics Treatments:

1. Seed treatment • Trichoderma- controls Fusarium, Pythium • Psedudomanas – controls bacterial pathogens

2. Neem cake- controls nematodes, Agrotis sp.

3. Pheromones- controls Bactrocera cucurbitae

49

4. Bt- controls Coleoptera, small leps. etc. Results: Sold crop for Rs 15/kg (best price) compared to Rs 10/kg for low grade cucurbits Reason for high selling price: Shiny fruit without holes due to borers and without spots. Also, the farmers are known for using low amounts of pesticides on their crops.

5. Beauveria sp. – controls aphids Report of TERI Activities October 2007 - May 2008 Training education and capacity building Demonstration of IPM practices on vegetable crops at farmers’ fields in 5 villages in Uttar Pradesh, 5 villages in Andhra Pradesh and 4 villages in Karnataka.

• In UP 21 field trials on okra, eggplant, tomato and cucurbits are in progress and 15 in AP and Karnataka.

• Training on safe use of pesticide and handling provided • Farmers meetings developed awareness among farming community. Farmers

were not aware about pheromone tarps, yellow traps and biopesticides. • Targeted farmers population in these villages including about 20000 women

farmers • Three farmers meetings and field days were organized • Farmers received better price for produce when using IPM technology

Technology transfer

• Use of pheromone traps and yellow sticky traps • Seed treatment with Trichoderma and Pseudomonas • Best way for biopesticide spray • Technology for producing neem spray from neem seed kernel • Provided knowledge about Bt, NPV, Beauveria, Trichogramma cards and natural

enemies of arthropods. • Grafting training for farmers and trainers

Publications

• 1 brochure on tomato and 1 on general pest chart • General pest chart would be pasted in each farmers entry register in HINDI,

TELUGU, and KANNADA language. • One poster on tomato • One poster would be pasted in each GRAM PANCHAYAT office for farmers use

Work plan

• Organize farmers meet and field day on okra, eggplant and cucurbits in south and north India

• Organize farmers group meeting o Organized grafting training program in UP, A.P and Karnataka

50

o Organize field day Planned activities for technology transfer

• Validation of IPM package of cucurbits, and revalidation for confirmation of technology on okra, tomato and eggplant

• Join other farmers who are interested in knowing IPM technology.

PPhhoottooss ooff TTEERRII IIPPMM DDeemmoonnssttrraattiioonn AAccttiivviittiieess

TERI logo on headquarters window, Lodhi Road, Delhi.

TERI offices, Delhi.

51

TERI chairman, Rajendra Pachauri, conferred the 2007 Nobel Peace prize along with Al Gore.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit with Dr R. K. Pachauri, Director-General, TERI, at a function to spread awareness about water conservation in New Delhi.

Grafting trainees listening to a lecture on grafting methodology at the TERI Farm and Research Station near Delhi.

52

Women weeding vegetables in Tatarpur village, Meerut Mandal, Uttar Pradesh near TERI IPM CRSP plots.

Woman weeding vegetables in Tatarpur village, Meerut Mandal, Uttar Pradesh near TERI IPM CRSP plots.

Women weeding vegetables in Tatarpur village, Meerut Mandal, Uttar Pradesh near TERI IPM CRSP plots.

53

Woman weeding vegetables in Tatarpur village, Meerut Mandal, Uttar Pradesh near TERI IPM CRSP plots.

Women weeding vegetables in Tatarpur village, Meerut Mandal, Uttar Pradesh near TERI IPM CRSP plots.

Insects caught in a yellow sticky trap in a TERI IPM demonstration plot.

54

Pheromone trap for the cucurbit fruit fly, Bactrocera sp. in a TERI IPM demonstration plot.

Fruit flies, Bactrocera sp. caught in a pheromone trap.

Cucurbit farmer in Tatarpur village, Meerut Mandal, Uttar Pradesh near TERI IPM CRSP plots. The plot is irrigated as it is the dry season.

55

Nutan Kaushik, TERI IPM CRSP Site Coordinator discussing the results of an IPM cucurbit demonstration with grafting trainees on a field visit.

TERI-IPM CRSP sign board in a farmer-collaborator’s IPM sponge gourd field demonstration.

56

5578R Proud onion grower stops to show his wares on the way to market in Tatarpur village, Meerut Mandal, Uttar Pradesh, near TERI IPM CRSP plots.

Nutan Kaushik, TERI IPM CRSP Site Coordinator explaining the use of the pheromone trap in Tatarpur village, Meerut Mandal, U. P. to Dr. Wu, AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center during the field visit.

57

Nutan Kaushik, TERI IPM CRSP Site Coordinator explaining the use of the yellow sticky trap in an okra IPM demonstration plot at Tatarpur village, Meerut Mandal, U. P. to Dr. Wu, AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center during the field visit.

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) Activities Visit to Theethipalayam Village, Coimbatore District, Tamil Nadu IPM CRSP team of TNAU researchers.

Dr. P. Balasubramanian, Director, Centre for Plant Molecular Biology Dr. V. Krishnasamy, Head, Department of Plant Molecular Biology and

Biotechnology Dr. V. Prakasam, Professor and Head, Department of Plant Pathology, Centre for

Plant Protection Studies Dr. M. Murugan, Associate Professor, Department of Plant Molecular Biology and

Biotechnology; Principal Investigator, IPM CRSP Dr. N. Balakrishnan, Assistant Professor (Entomology), Dept. of Plant Molecular

Biology and Biotechnology Dr. E.I. Jonathan, Professor of Nematology, Dept. of Nematology Dr. P. Karuppuchamy, Professor of Agricultural Entomology Dr. Yasoda, Research Associate, Dept. of Plant Molecular Biology and

Biotechnology Ms. Renuka, Senior Research Fellow Dr. Senthil Kumar, Senior Research Fellow, Nematology Dr. Bala Subramani

The TNAU team completed three seasons of okra IPM trials earlier this year in Coimbatore District. Brinjal trials were conducted in Coimbatore and Dharmapuri Districts. Observations:

• Saw tomato field with high mortality due to Fusarium wilt. Grafted plants would have been obvious if planted in this field.

• Okra mosaic virus severe

58

• Okra powdery mildew present • Tomato fruit borer damage • Leaf miner damage on tomato

Experimental Plans

The eggplant and okra research/demonstration trials in progress and those to be

planted from September 2006 to September 2008 will be conducted as follows.

Eggplant:

Varieties: Co2/ TNAU hybrid

IPM tactics:

1. Nursery

1A. Monitoring

Seedlings will be monitored once in every 3 or 4 days for the occurrence of

pests and diseases especially symptoms like wilting and yellowing.

1B. Management

1. Solarization of the soil with polythene sheets and sowing the seeds in

raised beds.

2. Soil application of neem cake (400 kg / ha)

3. Seed treatment with Pseudomonas (10 g/kg) / Trichoderma (4 g/kg) and

imidacloprid

4. Removal of disease affected seedlings and destroy them.

2. Transplanting: The seedlings will be transplanted at the age of 40 days

2A. Monitoring

1. Regular monitoring at weekly intervals will be carried out for the

occurrence of flagged tips, wilting, yellowing and stunting and little leaf.

2. Yellow sticky traps and pheromone traps will be erected in the main field

to monitor the incidence of whiteflies and EFSB respectively.

2B. Management in the main field

59

Prophylactic measures:

1. Soil application of neem cake, Pseudomonas / Trichoderma

2. Intercropping of coriander without compromising the row spacing of brinjal

and raising French marigold once in every 5 rows of egg plant.

3. Maintenance of weed free field

4. Judicious irrigation and 25 per cent more application of K

5. NSKE spray will be given as need based application.

6. Clipping of flagged terminals

7. Release of Trichogramma chilonis based on pheromone trap catches (1

male per trap)

8. Fish oil rosin soap will be used for the management of sucking pests in

Brinjal.

9. If soil treatment with Pseudomonas and Trichoderma were found

ineffective then fungicides will be considered as a final option to manage

the root rot incidence.

10. Little leaf infected plants will be removed and destroyed.

2C. Monitoring during fruiting period

1. The plants will be monitored at every harvest for the occurrence flagged

tips, wilting, yellowing and stunting, and little leaf.

2. Whiteflies and EFSB incidence will be monitored using the yellow sticky

traps and pheromone traps respectively.

3. The percentage of fruit damage by EFSB (punctures in the fruit) and

Phomopsis rot fruits will also be noted down at every harvest.

2D. Management

1. EFSB damaged fruits and Phomopsis infected fruits will be removed and

destroyed

2. Adequate irrigation in summer to suppress the population of mites.

Wettable sulfur will be considered as one time remedy (if the spider mite

population reaches the peak).

60

Ratoon crop: Not recommended

Pests and diseases during off season: Damping off and root knot nematode

Monitoring:

The spent plants will be monitored for the carry over of nematodes and pathogens

Management:

Deep summer ploughing and growing non host plants

Observations to be recorded:

Nursery

Ants, Jassids, Leafminer, Ash weevil, Damping off (Pythium) and Nematodes

Main field:

Eggplant fruit and shoot borer (EFSB), Ash weevil, Jassids, Whiteflies, Aphids,

Epilachna beetle, Mealy bugs, Root rot, Fusarium wilt, Little leaf and Root knot

nematode.

Control: Farmers practices

Plot Size: 10 cents for each treatment and replication

Materials and Methods for brinjal trials

Research/demonstration plot 2 The experiment, entitled, “Management of Pest and Disease Complex in Brinjal (Variety CO 2) with Cultural Methods, Botanicals and Biopesticides”, was planted on 9 September 2007, and had the following treatments:

1) IPM: Neem seed kernel extract + yellow sticky trap + neem cake + fish oil rosin soap + Pseudomonas fluorescens + T. chilonis + intercropping

2) IPM without Pseudomonas fluorescens 3) IPM without neem seed kernel extract 4) IPM without yellow sticky trap 5) IPM without neem cake 6) IPM without fish oil rosin soap 7) IPM without T. chilonis 8) IPM without coriander intercrop 9) Farmers practice.

61

Okra:

Season: Three trials from September 2006 to September 2008

Varieties: No.10 Mahyco hybrid/ TNAU hybrid

IPM tactics

1A. Monitoring

1. The crop will be monitored at weekly intervals for the incidence of yellow

mosaic virus and powdery mildew.

2. The occurrence of whiteflies will be monitored using the yellow sticky

traps.

1B. Management:

Prophylactic Measures:

1. The seeds will be treated with Pseudomonas and imidacloprid

2. Soil application of neem cake

3. Fish oil rosin soap will be used for the management of sucking pests

4. Yellow vein mosaic virus infected plants will be rouged out and destroyed.

5. NSKE spray will be given as need based application.

6. Wettable sulfur will be considered as the final option to manage the okra

mite and powdery mildew.

Major pests and diseases to be observed:

Fruit borer, Helicoverpa armigera, leafhopper, whiteflies, thrips, spider mites, leaf eating

caterpillars, flower beetles, nematodes, powdery mildew and yellow vein mosaic virus.

Off season: Growing of non-malvaceous crops will prevent the carry over of the pests in

the ensuing cropping season.

Control: Farmers practices

Plot Size: 10 cents for each treatment and replication

Materials and Methods for okra trials

62

Treatments:

T1 IPM (seed treatment with Pseudomonas fluorescens (2g/kg) + soil

application of neem cake (200kg/acre)+ foliar spray of fish oil rosin

soap 2% + foliar spray of NSKE 5%+ yellow sticky trap)

T2 IPM minus seed treatment with Pseudomonas fluorescens (10g/

kg)

T3 IPM minus soil application of neem cake (400 kg/ ha)

T4 IPM minus yellow sticky trap (1Kg/acre)

T5 IPM minus neem seed kernel extract (5%) (NSKE)

T6 IPM minus fish oil rosin soap (2 %)

For the treatments T1 to T6, all the 4 hybrids mentioned above were used. Arka

Anamika variety with non IPM practices (farmer’s practices) was compared.

Time of application Neem cake (200 kg/acre) was applied in the soil at the time of last ploughing. The yellow sticky bands were placed in the field, when the plants were at a height of 20cm. Three sprays of fish oil rosin soap (2 per cent) and neem seed kernel extract (5 per cent) were given 20 days after sowing and repeated on 40 and 60 DAS. Observations

Insect pests The per cent damage caused by borers and the number of sucking pests were recorded.

The intensity of the insect pests was recorded at 10 days interval by observing 15

plants selected at random in all the replications.

Diseases The observations on Per cent Disease Incidence for the virus disease and wilt and

Per cent Disease Index (PDI) for foliar diseases were recorded. The intensity of the

diseases was recorded at 10 days interval by observing 15 plants selected at

random in all the replications.

Nematodes The observations were recorded on gall index. The incidence of the gall index was

recorded 90 days after sowing. The intensity of the gall index was recorded by

observing 15 plants selected at random in all the replications in each treatment. The

results were expressed as gall index.

63

PPhhoottooss ooff TTNNAAUU GGrraaffttiinngg TTrraaiinniinngg aanndd IIPPMM FFiieelldd AAccttiivviittiieess

TNAU grafting training course banner.

TNAU grafting trainees receiving a lecture in grafting principles.

64

Dr. Wu explaining how to select the proper size seedlings for grafting.

TNAU grafting trainees proudly displaying their grafted plants.

This boy’s future prosperity is in the hands of his mother who is learning the vegetable grafting technique to produce economic security for her family.

65

All hail to ‘vegetable grafting,’ the future prosperity of IPM farmers in Tamil Nadu.

All hail to ‘vegetable grafting,’ the future prosperity of IPM farmers in Tamil Nadu.

66

Grafting trainees admiring their work.

Eager trainees requesting grafting supplies from Dr. Wu.

67

The matriarch of the IPM farmers in Tamil Nadu, Ms. R. Rangamaal, Thekkampati Village, Coimbatore District, learning the grafting technique.

Grafting trainees visiting a fusarium infested tomato field in Coimbatore District.

68

Dr. Wu explaining how to determine whether a tomato plant has bacterial or fusarium wilt.

Ms. R. Rangamaal, Thekkampati Village, Coimbatore District receiving her graduation certificate.

69

Fusarium infested tomato field in Coimbatore District visited by the grafting trainees.

Greg Luther, AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center and TNAU scientists examining yellow vein virus (YMV) infested okra in Coimbatore District.

TNAU scientist demonstrating the method for releasing Trichogramma chilonis, an egg parasite attacking okra pod borer eggs. It is recommended that 60,000 T. chilonis be released per acre.

70

Trichogramma chilonis on paper sheets for release in an okra field for pod borer control

Woman sorting mosaic infected okra pods (yellow) from healthy pods before taking them to the market. Mosaic infested pods fetch a lower price than healthy pods.

Time out for a refreshing and nutritious drink of coconut milk during the field visit.