Agricultural Science

Agricultural pest and Crops attacked

len Alfred Ajibola - Fri, 24th May, 2019 @ 11:43 AM

Topics in Agricultural Science

Types of agricultural practices Crop rotation explained Benefits of crop rotation Differences between subsistence and commercial farming Subsistence farming explained with its characteristics What is commercial farming? Types of commercial farming Characteristics of commercial farming Importance of forest: Forest reserves in Nigeria Wildlife reserves in Nigeria and its importance Prevention and Control of Crop Pests Economic Importance of Crop Pests Classification of Insect Pests and their Economic Importance Agricultural machines and their uses Causes of soil erosion Ways to prevent soil erosion Asexual Propagation in Plants, Types and Examples Differences between gymnosperms and angiosperms Scheme of Work, Agricultural Science, SS1, First Term Scheme of Work, Agricultural Science, SS1, Second Term Scheme of Work, Agricultural Science, SS1, Third Term

Academic Questions in Agricultural Science

Please click here to see all Questions and Answers

The ideal pH for the optimum growth of most agricultural crop is between _____.

  • A. 1 – 3.5

  • B. 4 – 5.5

  • C. 6 – 7.5

  • D. 8 – 9.5

  • E. 10 – 11.5

  • F. 12 – 13.5

People who go about their lives by raising and herding livestock such as cattle, sheep and goats are said to practice _____.

  • A. Pastoralism

  • B. Pasturalism

  • C. Herding

  • D. Herdsmen

  • E. Animalism

  • F. Anime Farming

The act of giving birth in pigs is called _____.

  • A. Calving

  • B. Piggery

  • C. Kidding

  • D. Farrowing

  • E. Calfing

  • F. Pigging

Which of the following is not a vegetable?

  • A. Cashew

  • B. Cocumber

  • C. Tomatoes

  • D. Carrot

  • E. Squash

  • F. Eggplant

All plants are crops.

  • A. True

  • B. False

In agriculture, macronutrients are essential nutrients required by plants. Which of the following is not a macronutrient?

  • A. Zinc

  • B. Sulphur

  • C. Calcium

  • D. Phosphorus

  • E. Potassium

  • F. Magnesium

Which of the following is false concerning micronutrients?

  • A. They are non-essential nutrients

  • B. They are required by plants in minute quantities

  • C. Iron is a micronutrient

  • D. Chlorine is a micronutrient

  • E. Copper is a micronutrient

  • F. Boron is a micronutrient

_____ is a term that describes the biological, chemical and cultural control tactics employed to make pest management economical, environmentally friendly and socially acceptable.

  • A. Integrated Pest Management

  • B. Integral Pest Management

  • C. International Pest Management

  • D. Inclusive Pest Management

  • E. Imbibed Pest Management

  • F. Inclusion Pest Management


Pests in Agriculture:

In agriculture, any organism capable of causing damage to crop plant is termed a pest. To understand the differences between a crop and a plant, please read on plants versus crops here.


The important pest of crop plants are generally put into six groups. These are:

  1. Insects

  2. Birds

  3. Monkeys

  4. Rodent

  5. Man

  6. Nematodes


Below is a table showing some insect pests, the crops they attack, the nature of damage (or their economic importance) and their preventive and control measures:


Pests
Crops attacked
Damages caused/Economic importance
Prevention and control

Aphids

Soya-beans, Groundnuts, Cowpea and Legumes

i. Stunted growth in plants

ii. Galls, holes and spots on the plant's leave

i. Use of insecticides

ii. Uproot the infected plants

Army worm

Maize, barley and other cereals

i. Rate of photosynthesis is reduced

ii. The larva eats up the leave and stem

iii. Reduced plant growth and yield

i. Use of insecticides

ii. Hand picking

Bean Beetle

Bean seeds

i. They bore holes into bean seeds

ii. They reduce the quality of stored beans

iii. Reduce farmers income

i. Proper storage of beans

ii. Early harvesting

iii. Fumigating stores with lindane dust or phostoxin

Birds

Rice, Maize, Sorghum, Millet

i. They feed on grains in the field

ii. They reduce the quality of produce

iii. They reduce the farmer’s income

i. Early harvesting

ii. Use of scare crows

iii. Early harvesting

Cassava Mealy-bugs

Cassava and other tubers like yam

i. They twist the plant’s stem

ii. Reduced rate of  photosynthesis

iii. Reduced amount crop produce

i. Use of insecticides

ii. Use resistant varieties

iii. Early planting
Capsids / Cocoa mirids Cocoa

i. They transmit fungal diseases

ii. The inject toxic saliva into plants

iii. They cause staunted growth and reduce crop yield

i. Practice regular weeding

ii. Use of insecticides, e.g gammalin 20

Cotton Bollworm

Cotton

i. The larva feed on cotton seeds

ii. They destroy the cotton lint

iii. Premature fall of cotton boll

i. Burn all debris of the cotton plant after harvesting

ii. Use of insecticides

Cotton strainer

Cotton

i.. They pierce and suck plant sap

ii. They cause distortion in leaves

iii. They produce toxic saliva

iv. They can transmit disease

i. Use of insecticides

ii. Hand picking

Green Spidermite

Cassava, yam and cocoyam

i.. Reduce the rate of photosynthesis

ii. They feed on plant’s leaf

iii. They reduce crop produce

i. Use of insecticides

ii. Biological control

Leaf Beetle

Legumes; e.g Cowpea, soya-beans and Vegetables; e.g pepper and  okra

i.. They eat up plant’s leaf

ii. They reduce the yield of crop

iii. Reduced rate of photosynthesis

i. Plant seeds with resistant varieties

ii. Spray with insecticides

Leaf rollers

Vegetables; e.g Tomatoes, pepper, okra

i. Rolling and twisting of plant’s leaf

ii. Reduced rate of photosynthesis

iii. They reduced crop yield

Use of insecticides like vetox 85

Monkeys

Banana, cocoa, orange, mango

i. They eat up the fruits

ii. They reduce the quality of fruits

iii. The cause losses to the farmer

i. Shooting monkeys with guns

ii. Use of traps

Pod borer

Groundnut, cowpea and soya-beans

i. The larva make holes into pods

ii. They eat up plant’s seed

iii. They cause diseases to plants

iv. Reduced yield of crops

i. Practice crop rotation

ii. Practice early harvesting

iii. Spray with insecticides

stem borers

Cereals like rice, maize, corn and millet

i. Their larva bore holes into stems

ii. They eat up plant’s tissues

iii. Reduced plant growth

iv. Reduce crop produce

i. Use of insecticides like gammalin 20

ii. Practice early planting

iii. Practice crop rotation

Rodents; e.g rats, bush rabbit and squirrels

Fruits, cassava, rice, yam

i. They feed on crops

ii. They destroy the whole plant

iii. They increase the cost of production

iv. Reduced plant produce

i. Fencing farmland with wires and nets

ii. Use of traps

iii. Use poison baits

Thrips

Vegetables; e.g tomato, okra, onion

i. They cause browning of leaves

ii. They cause the wilting of plants

iii. They reduce crop yield

i. Use of insecticides

Variegated grasshopper

Tubers; e.g yam and cassava

i. The larva and adult eat up the leaves and stem of plants

ii. Reduced rate of photosynthesis

Reduced plant growth and crop yield

i. Spray with insecticides e.g Adrex 40

ii. Hand picking

Yam beetles

Yam

i. They bore holes into yam tubers

ii. Reduce the yield of yams

iii. They reduce the quality and market value of crop

i. Practice crop rotation

ii. Spray Adrin dust on yams before planting

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Amazing facts in Agricultural Science

Cows technically have one stomach, not four. However, a cow's stomach has four compartments. These are: rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum

Peanuts are legumes and not nuts

Although plants neither see nor hear, they can recognize their siblings and even give them preferential treatments

Squirrels do plant more trees (through their actions) than an average human in their lifetime. They often hide their acorns and nuts underground and forget about them

Cows have got the ability to walk up stairs, but not down stairs

A group of cows is called a team, drove or herd.

People just prefer to call them herd

Notable points in Agricultural Science

The flower is the reproductive organ in plants' sexual reproduction. In order to achieve a successful sexual propagation or reproduction in plants, the floral parts of the flower are utilized.

The floral parts of a flower consists of the followings:

  1. Sepals

  2. Petals

  3. Stamen

  4. Carpel

The stamen is male portion of a plant. It consists of the anther and filament.

The carpel (or pistil) is the female portion of the plant. It consists of the stigma, style and ovary.

Please read more on plants' sexual reproduction here

An organism will be considered a pest if it does one of the followings:

  • Attack crops and eat its seeds, roots, stem, leaves and flowers. Examples are locust and grasshoppers.

  • Cause damage to stored food, fruits or other agricultural produce. Some may even urinate or deaficate on these products. Examples are rodents, cockroaches and mice.

  • Attack and kill farm animals like goats, sheep and cattle. Examples are foxes, wild cats and snakes.

  • Act as disease vectors. A vector is an organism that carries parasite and other disease causing organisms, without being affected; but when they introduce the parasites into their host, such host becomes infected with disease. Examples of vectors are rodents and mosquitoes.

    Please read more on vectors of diseases here.

Below are the classification of crops based on their uses:

  • Oil crops

  • Vegetable crops

  • Latex crops

  • Drug and Medicinal crops

  • Beverage crops

  • Fibre crops

  • Fruit crops

  • Root and Tubers

  • Legumes

  • Spices

  • Cereals

All crops are plants but not all plants are crops. Below are some instances:

  • Weeds are considered as plants, not crops.

  • Parasitic plants are not necessarily crops. Examples of parasitic plants include mistletoe, corpse flower and striga.

  • Carnivorous or insectivorous plants are not necessarily crops. Examples are sundew, venus flytrap and pitcher plant. The image below shows a carnivorous plant (venus flytrap).

Venus flytrap - Len Academy

 

Meanwhile, always understand that all crops are plants, and they are grown for food, money or something beneficial.

Please read on plants versus crops here

Below are some of the problems of agriculture in Nigeria:

  • Lack of mechanized farming

  • Poor government policies

  • High cost of fertilizers

  • Lack of education

  • Lack of storage facilities

  • Bad road network

  • Poor research facilities

Please read a detailed explanation on the problems of agriculture in Nigeria here.