Importance of Ventilation and Drainage Management in Fields,
and Timely Application of Pesticides
The Hongseong-gun Agricultural Technology Center in South Chungcheong Province has urged farmers to pay special attention to thorough pest and disease control and environmental management, as the full-scale rainy season raises concerns about the spread of strawberry diseases and pests.
According to the county's Agricultural Technology Center, diseases that occur during the strawberry seedling stage can directly lead to reduced quality at harvest, not just hinder growth, making thorough prevention and monitoring activities more important than ever.
Prolonged rainfall and high humidity create favorable conditions for pathogens to proliferate rapidly, raising significant concerns about concentrated outbreaks of major diseases such as anthracnose, gray mold, and powdery mildew.
Strawberry diseases and pests mainly occur in hot and humid environments. Therefore, farmers are advised to maintain ventilation and dry conditions in greenhouses by ensuring proper ventilation, improving drainage, securing adequate spacing between seedling trays, and using raised beds. If any disease is detected, infected plants should be removed and incinerated immediately.
For chemical control, registered pesticides should be used preventively before disease outbreaks. However, since repeated use of the same class of pesticide can lead to resistance, alternating pesticides with different modes of action is recommended.
Suh Wontak, head of the Eco-Friendly Technology Division at the county's Agricultural Technology Center, emphasized, "During the rainy season, even a single day of neglect can cause diseases to spread rapidly. It is essential to strictly adhere to basic control measures such as ventilation and drainage management in the fields and timely pesticide application."
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