Tungro infestation can’t affect Iloilo’s production target
Even as the tungro infestation continues to spread, Iloilo Provincial Agriculture Officer (PAO) Dr. Ildefonso Toledo said that he is optimistic that this cannot greatly affect the targeted rice production this year.
Dr. Toledo said that as of their latest monitoring, tungro has already infested some 25 hectares of rice land in the province with the additional report from Sta. Barbara.
The towns now infested with tungro are San Enrique, Barotac Nuevo, Pototan, Dingle, Barotac Viejo, Ajuy, Concepcion, and Sta. Barbara.
He, however, said that the tungro infestation is negligible considering that Iloilo province has a total of 627,000 hectares of rice land.
“To prevent infestation, farmers are being advised to do synchronous planting by next cropping,” Dr. Toledo said.
He said that because of the continuous rainfall last summer, some farmers were able to plant palay which made it conducive for tungro infestation. The infestation is caused by green leafhoppers that fed on the palay leaves.
The PAO do not recommend the use of pesticide in rice farms on vegetative stage but the farmers are advised to plow whatever they have planted and wait for the next cropping to plant.
Even those in reproductive stage in most of the affected rice farms in the province, farmers are not advised to spray.
For this year, Iloilo province targets a total of one million metric tons rice production. Last year, the province rice production was about 926,000 metric tons. (PNA)