LAHORE - Cotton growers should adopt special measures to save their crop from juice sucking insects for good yield. Agriculture experts expressed these views while talking to APP on Sunday. They said that thrips was the smallest insect among all juice sucking insects whereas whitefly harmed the cotton crop most.Whitefly weakens cotton plants by sucking juice and the insect also plays a major role in spreading the cotton leave curl virus CLVC from one plant to another, they added.
Whitefly usually attacks in dry and hot weather and in July and August it could be easily seen on the cotton crop, they said.Experts said red mites attacked the cotton crop when it was in its final stages. The attack of cotton mealy bug is spreading in Sindh besides Punjab and special steps should be taken to check it, they warned.Red cotton bug and dusky bug are insects which affect the colour of cotton which finally harms the quality of the crop, experts said and urged growers to control the attack of the insects.Experts asked the growers to use recommended sprays to get rid of insects and seek guidance from the agriculture department to overcome the problem.