Eco Secretz

Nature has provided a pest control system, which needs to be preserved. Diversity has an important role in building and maintaining an ecological balance. Some of the NPM practices that are based on observing and creating diversity are mixed or multi cropping techniques which include insect repelling plants, perennial trees and grasses; and preparation of bio-pesticides from different plant materials such as Milea azadrichta, Vitex negundo, calotropis gigantean, Pongamea glabra etc. Methods of Preparation Method – 1  Ingredients: Pods of Datura [Datura sirumarium]  - 1 kg Seeds of Arali [Nerium oleander]  - 1 kg Tobacco waste - 1 kg Lime [diluted calcium Carbonate] - 250 g Cow Urine - 5 lit Mud pot (10 ltr capacity) - 1 No. Preparation Method: The pods of Datura to be finely powdered; the seeds of Arali pounded well. The Tobacco waste and lime to be added to the above mixture, add 5 lit of cow urine and put all in a mud pot.The mud pot is covered with a lid ...

Plants have a wide range of defence mechanisms to survive different stress factors including diseases.Resistance genes confer genetic protection. What is coming to be understood now is that susceptible species also stand a good chance of defending themselves through activating a series of metabolic pathways that allow a rapid expression of a broad set of defences upon infection by a pathogen.Injury triggers the release of volatile compounds like jasmonates and salicylates which bind to cell membrane-bound receptors to result in activation of a series of defence related enzymes. This results in the synthesis of compounds like terpenes, phenolics tannins, all that insects don’t like. Some plants also release compounds which attract predatory insects (spiders, wasps, dragonflies, etc) which control pest populations rather effectively.Even roots release a number of metabolites in response to elicitation by jasmonates, salicylates and chitosan which show antimicrobial activit...

Disease pathogens and pests are always present. Yet not all plants come down with diseases or are attacked by pests. This tells us that diseases and pests are not unavoidable and that insects and plant pathogens are not the real cause of the problem. Pests and diseases are nature’s garbage collectors !!! Pests and diseases are merely there to eat or infect an unhealthy plant which is weakened. It is easy to see this as a nuisance but from our perspective, they perform an important ecological role. These unhealthy or defective plants would not be optimal for consumption of humans or animals and therefore these pests and diseases are doing us a favour by preventing us from eating inferior produce. However modern agriculture and horticulture have meant we can now simply kill off the pests and diseases using chemicals and eat the inferior produce anyway. Insect pests and diseases cannot successfully attack healthy, vigorously growing plants because, like humans and animal...